Images of women standing strong together11/11/2022 “Being the first in our family and the first of my friends to do anything like this, it was kind of important to go with them because they are also the first - it felt historic in that way,” reflects Aisha Miller. They say they also found the support they needed there. that was founded, owned and led by women with a mission to help other women succeed. Neither had ever owned a business, so when they decided to make the leap, they liked the idea that First Women’s Bank’s was the first commercial bank in the U.S. “I think the older you get, your relationship with your mother evolves so it’s less mother-daughter and more like, I don’t know, two best friends doing a business venture together.” “I think we work really well together,” she says. At the café - nestled between other shops on Cicero Avenue in Burbank, Illinois - she focuses on the marketing and strategy of the franchise while her mother handles the day-to-day operations. (Photo by John Brecher)Īisha Miller studied business administration at Howard University, earned her MBA from the University of Michigan and now works full-time as a technology and digital transformation consultant. “I kind of felt that maybe if I had my own business,” she says, “then I can do things my way.” Aisha and Ruth Miller share a laugh behind the counter of their new business. She even carried her passion for child education into her new business venture: She plans to incorporate various initiatives, including reading incentive programs, for the kids who attend neighboring schools. When she retired, she originally aspired to open a daycare or school, but learning about Tropical Smoothie Café’s business model - and her love for the food and drinks the stores serve - convinced her to start a franchise with her daughter. Born and raised on the south side of Chicago, Ruth Miller worked as an educator and principal prior to becoming an entrepreneur. Microsoft is also working with First Women’s Bank to develop new learning, networking and business development opportunities for the entrepreneurs through the WIT Network and Cloud Accelerator programs.Īisha and Ruth Miller each brought their own unique skills and aspirations to their business, which officially opened on June 5. The hope is that these investments not only help people fund big dreams, but that they also act as a catalyst for encouraging other companies to invest strategically to create new opportunities for people in many more communities, according to Michelle Christensen of Microsoft’s Treasury team. “When we think about all of our impact investments, we’re doing this to drive positive change in the world we’re not doing this primarily for the return,” says Joel Combs, director of Impact Investments at Microsoft. The partnership aligns with Microsoft’s other impact investments and its equity initiatives focused on gender, race and housing. “ Small business owners support their families, their employees and their communities - we’ve formed First Women’s Bank to support them.”Įarlier this year, Microsoft became a First Women’s Bank mission partner when it committed to holding deposits at the bank to support small businesses. “ When you support the women’s economy, the entire economy benefits,” says bank President and CEO Marianne Markowitz. The bank helps business owners like the Millers by pairing Small Business Administration lending tools with deposits from people and organizations, including Microsoft, who support its mission. The pair built the foundation of their Tropical Smoothie Café franchise with support from First Women’s Bank, a women-led bank formed to close the gender lending gap. “And I think we are, I would say, almost groundbreaking.” “I think it definitely has a larger impact on the community - at least for me, I don’t know a ton of Black women-owned businesses in the Chicago or neighboring areas,” Aisha Miller says. The tidy, colorful shop just outside Chicago is a way to build generational wealth, provide jobs for more than two dozen people in the neighborhood and maybe even inspire other Black women to explore the possibilities of business franchising. To both, it’s much more than a new business. She sees her mother, Ruth, running things behind the counter - always completely “in her element” - and can’t believe that together, they own this place. Every time Aisha Miller walks into her new smoothie and sandwich shop, it feels unreal.
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