Model, entrepreneur, and 11-year cast member of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” Cynthia Bailey, joined former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo for a conversation about the challenges Black women face when starting a business and the importance of talking about entrepreneurship in schools.
In September, Bailey appeared on an episode of The Chris Cuomo Project podcast, where she delved into the inspiration behind her work ethic and growing fortune.
Inspiration to do more
Bailey
is the daughter of two former factory workers. When Cuomo asked how her mother feels about her business acumen, Bailey was inspired to talk about her grandmother, the first entrepreneur she had access to.“My grandmother had probably 10 jobs,” bailey explained.
“She was full-time at the factory, the sewing factory, where she got my mom a job and all of my other aunts a job. She also sold hamburgers and hot dogs. She had a little farm, so she actually picked collard greens as well,” also noting that her grandmother had 11 kids.
“To watch her work and take care of these 11 children and then her grandkids was something that always inspired me to believe that I could have anything I wanted in this world as long as I was willing to do the work,” she continued.
“And I’ve been working ever since.”
Learning early
Cuomo pointed out that the lack of education on entrepreneurship “masks the need for entrepreneurial existence within minority communities.”
“I think it’s important for us to talk about entrepreneurship more in school, like even at an early age,” Bailey responded.
“Everyone doesn’t want to be an entrepreneur, everyone can’t be an entrepreneur…but for the people that actually want to, I think that information and that skill set and knowledge should be
available to them at a very early age [for them] to just start even thinking as an entrepreneur because there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with owning a business,” Bailey continued.Leveraging platforms
With a net worth of $2.5 million, Bailey understands the pressures of owning several businesses. She revealed that her The Bailey Wine Cellar and The Bailey Room event spaces never recovered from COVID-19—like many Black businesses. But the power of her platforms always afforded her business promotions.
“I know that me having the housewife platform, my modeling platform, those platforms definitely helped me a little bit more than just any other normal Black woman that’s trying to start a business [sic],” said Bailey.
“That was why it was important for me to make sure I leveraged those platforms…Normally, a regular Black woman would have to pay for marketing and promotion.”
“They would never have that type of worldwide exposure. And I could understand how they would easily get overwhelmed and give up,” she added.
Watch the full interview here: