This New Orleans, LA, entrepreneur has his sights set on a hospitality takeover! When serial hospitality entrepreneur Larry Morrow and his mother, Lenora Chong, opened the doors to Morrows in 2018, it was all a part of the bigger vision to bring more Black-owned restaurants to the vibrant, history-rich city of New Orleans. Fast-forward to 2024, nearly six years later, Morrow and company have opened the doors to Morrow Steak, a second steakhouse located in the Crescent City, Blavity reports. The restaurant, which seats about 125 people, and is geared toward celebrating any type of special occasion, features a menu that is yet another nod to Morrow’s Korean background on his mom’s side with a blend of classic steakhouse fare and Asian-inspired dishes. From a tomahawk ribeye and wagyu steak to broiled snapper, marinated pork chops, and side dishes like lobster mac and cheese, Morrow’s Steak has a little something for everyone. Its vegan dishes like kung pao cauliflower allow Morrow to...

Shaquille O’Neal is taking his restaurant franchise talents to Nebraska. The former NBA superstar-turned-serial entrepreneur has announced that his fast-casual restaurant franchise, Big Chicken, will expand to the Omaha market, according to KETV Omaha. O’Neal plans to open two Big Chicken locations in Omaha, led by father-son duo and local entrepreneurs Tom and Zak Davis. “Our experience has provided us a perspective on Big Chicken that we feel fantastic about. We know that it is the right time to bring the quickly growing brand to Omaha,” said Tom, per KETV. “There are a lot of parallels for us with Big Chicken and its leadership team. We have a deep appreciation for running great restaurants, and Big Chicken’s team is equal to the match. We have been following the growth of Big Chicken for a while, and once we were finally able to try the menu, we decided to get serious about opening our own stores in Omaha.”   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Big Chicken...

Larry Morrow is opening another restaurant in his hometown of New Orleans, LA. As previously reported by AFROTECH™, Morrow became an entrepreneur at 22 years old with the opening of Larry’s Poboys & Wings, which later closed. Learning from his mistakes and with the wisdom that comes with age, he would return with the opening of Morrow’s in 2018. “Learning from when I was 22, it helped prepare for when I opened up Morrow’s,” he mentioned during an interview with “Earn Your Leisure.” “I knew I needed more reserves and I was just mentally in a better place. I was much more mature than 22 years old.” He continued, “I opened up Morrow’s, it was like a line out the door and I’m like, ‘Oh sh-t, we on to something.” Morrow would go to open up five different restaurants and a club by 2023, and most recently his business has scaled once again with the launch of Morrow Steak, bringing him closer to his aspirations of making history in the hospitality industry. “I want to be the largest...

Whether you know her for her music or her “Patti Pies,” Patti LaBelle is an icon. Originally coming to prominence thanks to her musical stylings with LaBelle (originally known as Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles), the fierce songstress first began making headlines when one of her original bandmembers — Cindy Birdsong — departed the group to join Diana Ross and the Supremes. But it wasn’t until the release of the original “Lady Marmalade” in 1975 — and an appearance on the cover of Rolling Stone — that LaBelle began hitting the mainstream. Today, as a respected R&B diva, she has diversified her business portfolio. In addition to a prolific acting career that took her everywhere from Broadway (in “Fela!”) to primetime (thanks to her role in “Empire”), LaBelle gained a whole new fan base — and became an LGBTQIA+ icon — when, in 2015, social media personality James Wright Chanel recorded a video singing the praises of her “Patti Pies.” The video subsequently went viral, and LaBelle...

There’s been an influx of women-focused spaces popping up to provide founders with a range of resources to expand their businesses. From The Wing leading the way for women-only co-working spaces to the Female Founders Fund providing capital to women-led companies, it is becoming increasingly important for businesses to find ways to offset the impacts of the lack of gender representation in successful companies. HerHeadquarters has launched to help female entrepreneurs create partnerships amongst each other. “We’re on a mission to change the narrative and image of women entrepreneurs and female founders,” said HerHeadquarters Founder and CEO Carina Glover. Glover worked on the company for 18 months before releasing the app that could streamline collaborations between women in business.  HerHeadquarters covers a range of industries including beauty, fashion, public relations, event planning, and entertainment. Not only does HerHeadquarters bridge the gap of opportunity for female...

This article was originally published on 07/25/2019 2018 was a record year for the amount of venture capital pumped into startups. Over $130 billion went to several lucky founders — the highest since the dot com era — setting them and their companies on a potential pathway to success. For many people, this number sparks a lot of optimism. More VC dollars means more companies are funded, which means more people have a shot at launching their idea. For Black and brown founders, seeing this large, obnoxious amount of VC funding can be a stark reminder of how much of it they’re not getting. According to a recent study, over the past 5 years, 77 percent of founders backed by VCs have been white and the teams receiving that money have been made up of mostly white men. Black founders made up just one percent of the companies receiving cash from VCs and for Black women, the picture is even bleaker. According to data from ProjectDiane, Black women founders have only received .0006 percent of...