Entrepreneur launches initiative supporting Black-owned sneaker retailers
Sun, June 6, 2021, 7:37 PM EDT
Protests for social justice and racial equity inspired The Athlete's Foot's management to launch STAART, "Strategic African American Retail Track." The initiative is a pipeline program that gives Black franchises access to capital and major vendors. Elise Preston has the story.
Video Transcript
[GENTLE MUSIC]
- We end tonight with a businessman who's now sharing his secret to success, and offering young entrepreneurs an opportunity to walk in his shoes. Elise Preston has more.
ELISE PRESTON: Sneaker culture has influenced pop culture for decades.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
ISOM LOWMAN: From Run DMC wearing Adidas with fat strings, you know, to Michael Jordan jumping from the free-throw line dunking a basketball. To all of the African-American kids who've actually supported the sneaker industry and made a sneaker industry the multibillion dollar industry that it is, it's unfortunate there's only a handful of African-American retail owners in the sneaker industry in the whole world.
ELISE PRESTON: That says Statistics store franchisee, Isom Lowman, says he wants to help change. Lowman owned nine The Athlete's Foot franchises, including this one in Atlanta.
- Have a good day, Ma'am. Thanks a lot.
ELISE PRESTON: It's the global brands highest grossing location. The nearly a third of the families in this neighborhood, live in poverty.
- No justice, no--
ELISE PRESTON: Protests for social justice and calls for racial equity, inspired him in The Athlete's Foot senior marketing Director Darius Billing's to launch STAART-- Strategic African-American Retail Track, a pipeline program that gives Black franchisees access to capital and major vendors. Areas where minority entrepreneurs have historically hit a wall.
DARIUS BILLINGS: It's upon us to really help faster change.
ELISE PRESTON: Billings believes change can come through growing generational wealth, where families pass down assets. On average, white families have a net worth nearly 10 times that of Black families. How does that make you feel when you hear about that as you're trying to grow generational wealth?
DARIUS BILLINGS: It's definitely alarming just because you see all the different ways that systemic racism has really affected the Black culture.
ELISE PRESTON: STAART hopes to motivate young minds.
BRE RENEE: I'm a sneaker head. I don't know if you can see those days that I'm rocking.
ELISE PRESTON: And help people like Bre Renee turn their passion into prosperity.
BRE RENEE: always wanted to create my own legacy, make my own impact in the world.
ISOM LOWMAN: It would tough being to think I'm the owner.
ELISE PRESTON: It's those legacies that Lohman who right now is the only Black franchisee at the athlete's foot, wants to help build.
ISOM LOWMAN: When you have Black ownership, not only does it help them economically, it helps other people believe that they can be Black owners as well.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ELISE PRESTON: Setting footprints for even the tiniest shoppers. Elise Preston, CBS News, New York.
- Got to start somewhere.
Yahoo is now a part of Verizon Media
Sun, June 6, 2021, 7:37 PM EDT
Protests for social justice and racial equity inspired The Athlete's Foot's management to launch STAART, "Strategic African American Retail Track." The initiative is a pipeline program that gives Black franchises access to capital and major vendors. Elise Preston has the story.
Video Transcript
[GENTLE MUSIC]
- We end tonight with a businessman who's now sharing his secret to success, and offering young entrepreneurs an opportunity to walk in his shoes. Elise Preston has more.
ELISE PRESTON: Sneaker culture has influenced pop culture for decades.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
ISOM LOWMAN: From Run DMC wearing Adidas with fat strings, you know, to Michael Jordan jumping from the free-throw line dunking a basketball. To all of the African-American kids who've actually supported the sneaker industry and made a sneaker industry the multibillion dollar industry that it is, it's unfortunate there's only a handful of African-American retail owners in the sneaker industry in the whole world.
ELISE PRESTON: That says Statistics store franchisee, Isom Lowman, says he wants to help change. Lowman owned nine The Athlete's Foot franchises, including this one in Atlanta.
- Have a good day, Ma'am. Thanks a lot.
ELISE PRESTON: It's the global brands highest grossing location. The nearly a third of the families in this neighborhood, live in poverty.
- No justice, no--
ELISE PRESTON: Protests for social justice and calls for racial equity, inspired him in The Athlete's Foot senior marketing Director Darius Billing's to launch STAART-- Strategic African-American Retail Track, a pipeline program that gives Black franchisees access to capital and major vendors. Areas where minority entrepreneurs have historically hit a wall.
DARIUS BILLINGS: It's upon us to really help faster change.
ELISE PRESTON: Billings believes change can come through growing generational wealth, where families pass down assets. On average, white families have a net worth nearly 10 times that of Black families. How does that make you feel when you hear about that as you're trying to grow generational wealth?
DARIUS BILLINGS: It's definitely alarming just because you see all the different ways that systemic racism has really affected the Black culture.
ELISE PRESTON: STAART hopes to motivate young minds.
BRE RENEE: I'm a sneaker head. I don't know if you can see those days that I'm rocking.
ELISE PRESTON: And help people like Bre Renee turn their passion into prosperity.
BRE RENEE: always wanted to create my own legacy, make my own impact in the world.
ISOM LOWMAN: It would tough being to think I'm the owner.
ELISE PRESTON: It's those legacies that Lohman who right now is the only Black franchisee at the athlete's foot, wants to help build.
ISOM LOWMAN: When you have Black ownership, not only does it help them economically, it helps other people believe that they can be Black owners as well.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ELISE PRESTON: Setting footprints for even the tiniest shoppers. Elise Preston, CBS News, New York.
- Got to start somewhere.
Yahoo is now a part of Verizon Media
