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A COFFEE BRAND THAT BOLDLY GIVES BACK

Posted on by foundersunfound

Listen in from your favorite podcast spots or read the full transcript here.

OUR SPONSORS FOR THIS EPISODE:

AfriBlocks
The global pan-African freelance marketplace and collaboration platform.
Tell them “Dan sent you” for 10% off your first order. More at afriblocks.com

Matching purpose with profit

 

Rod Johson is Co-Founder of BLK & Bold, the preeminent black-owned coffee company in America. Black & Bold was founded with the desire to unite coffee and tea lovers worldwide through a common interest of investing in community.

Rod grew up in the working-class city of Gary Indiana and eventually went on to Indiana University and a career in development and giving. But he soon developed a restlessness that only business ownership could fix. Along with lifelong friend Pernell, Rod set out to find their entrepreneurial calling, one that could match purpose with profit. 

And so BLK & Bold was born in 2018. Since then, Rod and Pernell have grown BLK & Bold into a national brand carried by the likes of Target and Whole Foods. They have a rare licensing deal with the NBA and have been celebrated by Dwanye Wade on the Ellen show. All this, completely bootstrapped from their headquarters in Des Moines Iowa.

Rod has a great story. You’ll want to listen in.

 

“If we’re gonna do this, we can’t play it safe. We gotta take some risks.”
~ Rod Johnson

In this episode Rod and Dan discussed:

  • Growing up in Gary and the Midwest
  • How a basketball hoop brought Rod and his Co-Founder together
  • Why starting a business built on giving back is so important
  • How the fire department was a part their early product development
  • Tradeoffs when doing a start up with a ‘day job’

 

 

“take self inventory…all right, what is it that I really want?”
~Rod Johnson

 

“We have that history and therefore it gives us the understanding of knowing this comes from a good place ”
~Rod Johnson