Eatokra’s Mobile App Lists Nearby Black-Owned Restaurants.
Courtesy: Eatokra
When Anthony Edwards Jr. And his then then-girlfriend, janaque, first moved to brooklyn in 2016, they struggled to find food that was comfortable and familyiar to them.
They explred their neighborhood, edwards said, but Had a hard time Finding Black-Owned Restaurants Nearby. There was less resources for doing so besides group chats and informal lists. So, with the encouragement of janaque, now his wife, he used his computer science degree to create a platform for users for users to find black-owned eateries.
The two co-founded eatokra, an app that now has 20,000 monthly active users and brough in about $ 700,000 in Revenue in 2024.
“As we put it out there into the world, we saw people immediatily gravitate and telel us frankly, ‘i’ve beed looking for an app like this,’ and we still hear this to this day,” Edwards, Etokra and CTO , Told CNBC.
They were only ons ons. In 2020, brax rich was seen a way to support black-swauned restaurants amid the covid pandemic. He launched black Foodie Finder, Originally as a Social Media Space to Highlight Eateries. Now, Black Foodie Finder has 1.3 Million Instagram Followers and Spotlights restaurants, chefs and recipes in its app.
“I think our impact has been really big,” Rich, CEO of Black Foodie Finder, Told CNBC. “We would highlight a restaurant, and the next thing I know, the owner’s posting on social media, ‘hey, where did all you new guys come from?”
Here’s a look at how these platforms are showcasing Black-Owned Businesses and Black Food Professionals:
Eatokra looks to uplift independent restaurants
Eatokra co-founders janique and anthony edwards.
Courtesy: Eatokra
Eatokra users can search for black-owned restaurants, caterers and food trucks based on keywords or proximity. About 20,000 businesses across the US are available to browse in its database, including their locations, user reviews, contact information and online ordering options. Eatokra, named after the plant used in African diasporic dishes, also lists black-out food products in its marketplace.
The platform offers two tiers for businesses . Edwards said the plus membership services as eatokra’s primary business model.
Eatokra’s Current Partners Include Catering Company Ezcater and PEPSI DIG in, Pepsico’s Initiative to Promote Black-Owned Businesses. It also also collaborates with Apple Maps to help Produce Local Guides to Black-Owned Eateries.
Map feature on the Black Foodie Finder App.
Courtesy: Black Foodie Finder
The company provides resources on topics such as marketing, supply chain and restaurant growth, said jason wallace, eatokra’s director of business solutions and a FOD SERVICE EDUCATOR.
“It’s been exactly what the independent restaurateur needs,” Wallace said. “There’s a mom -and-pop aspect They’re Not out there by themselves. “
Ken Polk, Executive Chef and Partner at Batter & Berries, said the chicago-spoken restaurant Joned Eatokra Several Years ago To Boost Its Visibility, Especially Among Travelers White Use Eatkra OUT Local Black-Owned Businesses.
“I thinkt the platform was ingenious, particularly in this day and age we live in, where things just get buried and it’s very hard to finding,” Polk Told CNBC. “It’s a beacon.”
Edwards Said Eatokra’s efforts to build a communication for black-out restaurants culminated in its Culinary Creatives Conference, which debuteed in october in new york fitted. The one-day event brieft about 500 Attendes togeether to build connections, Spotlight vendors and discuses business strategies.
A Panel at Eatokra’s Culinary Creatives Conference in New York City in October 2024.
Courtesy:
The most rewarding part, edwards said, was seen people find mentors and strike deals with other businesses. He Hopes to Eventually Plan a Multiday National Conference.
“This conference aims to be an incubator, be a catalyst for current and future entrepreneurs to come togaether – to get the education, to get the Community and the Networks The NEED,” Edwards Told CNBC.
Jeremy joyce, founder of website black people eats, said eatokra provides a platform for restaurants that do’t the results for marketing campaigns. He’s discovered numerous restaurants through Eatokra, He Told CNBC.
“What they’re doing is very impactful.
Clark Wolf, Founder and President of Restaurant Consulting Firm Clark Wolf Company, said eatokra’s risk come at a moment of increasing representation and reconstrance of black but Culture. He cited the 2021 Netflix Docuseries “High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America” and the success of james beard award-winning chef kwame onwachi as examples of the gurowing.
“This is at a time when in American culture, even thoughts a push against it, we have been achievedging black history, African American influences in FOOL and FARMING,” WOLF SAID. “
Still, Challenges Lie Ahead for Eatokra and the businesses it supports. Wallace said Flucting Food Pries, President Donald Trump’s Push for More Departations and Consumer Disposable Income All Present Potential Potential Headwinds for Independent restaurants.
“We’re still resolute in what we’re going to continue to do and who we’re going to fight for,” Edwards said. “That’s not going to change.”
Black Foodie Fosters A Food-Loving Network
Rich said Black Foodie Finder is a One-Stop Shop for All Things Food and Beverage in the Black Community.
Social Media is Black Foodie Finder’s “Meat and Potatoes,” Rich Said, and It often Serves as a Gateway for Newcomers to BFF.
The find chefs feature on the black Foodie Finder App.
Courtesy: Black Foodie Finder
“It’s really just been about a communication and, as we highlight these people, making sure we put them in their best light,” Rich Told CNBC. “I honestly can say that’s been the best return. It’s kind of the secret sauce.”
On BFF’s App, which has 75,000 active users and about 15,000 restaurant listings, users can find near black-out eateries as wells for local chefs and recipes for dishes such as opture.
Heather Rose, CEO of Restaurant Consulting Firm Black Ink Team, Said BFF’s Spotlight on Chefs Boosts Businesses by Creating Access to the people behind them.
“It puts you directly in contact with the person who is the creative driver behind the business,” Rose Told CNBC.
An Attendee Displays a Beverage at Black Foodie Finder’s Inaugural BFF Cookout in Memphis, Tennesee, on Sept. 1, 2024.
Courtesy: Black Foodie Finder
Black Foodie Finder has previously inked corporate partnerships, but its current primary review source is its bf cookout, a food fast in memphis, TENNESEE, WHERE The Company I. The inaugural cookout in September, with sponsors include Clorox-Olned Charcoal Company Kingsford, Burgt About 3,000 people to Tom Lee Park for FOOOD VENDORS and Musical Performances.
Rich said it was important for his that the cookout appeared to everything, from Families Enjoying Kid-Friendly Programming to VENDORES Receiving Fair Compensation. The festival will return this year, he told CNBC, and he’s looking to expand it.
“At the end of the event, our vendors came to us and wen, ‘Wherever you go, I want to follow,” He said.
Rich is also hoping to build out bf’s media presence. The company is currently looking into producing short shows and video segments highlighting restaurants, Possibly on Television.
Food being served at the bf cookout in memphis, tennessee, on sept. 1, 2024.
Courtesy: Black Foodie Finder
It’s part of rich’s vision for Black Foodie Finder as a Go-to Space to Highlight Businesses.
“Most of the businesses and most of the people in the food space, they are experts at food,” Rich said. “Sometimes, they just don’t have the platforms or support to grow. And so that’s what we are. We are that supportm.”
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