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Unknown
Hello and welcome to the BCU Alumni podcast I’m Beth from the alumni team and each episode we welcome a different member of the alumni community back onto campus to tell us all about what they've been up to since they graduated from BCU. Today we're joined by Sophie Marie, the founder of Black Owned Birmingham. Sophie studied Management and Entrepreneurship here at BCU and has since founded Black Owned Birmingham, which is a business support initiative which supports black owned businesses here in Birmingham.
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Sophie has grown the community to over 50,000 members. She provides vision, leadership, direction and support for all areas of the organisation, including local and national programs, holiday workshops, online resources, guest teachers, retreats and social events with an emphasis all on diversity. She's also developed strong community partnerships for both practical and financial support. In 2021, she was a finalist in the Social Activist of the Year category at the Multicultural Business and Community Champion Awards, as well as a finalist for Community Activist of the Year at the Birmingham Awards.
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Unknown
So in this episode, we're really keen to find out what goes into setting up an organisation, as well as finding out more about what Black Owned Birmingham is and how people can get involved. So Sophie, thanks so much for coming on to the podcast today. So what is it like to be back on campus, when was the last time you were here, do you feel nostalgic?
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Unknown
Yes. So the last time I was on campus was literally graduation day, which was 27th of July 2018. I took some pictures of that Symphony Hall and then came down, took some pictures here. It's crazy like everything has changed as well. Like even just where the barriers are is slightly different, and I was over in the library,
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Unknown
and I was like that used to be my room. I used to just always be in this one study room and now it's like a little group room. And I'm like, Oh, that was my solo room. It's really nice. Oh, good. OK, so onto, Black Owned Birmingham then. So I guess can you remember the moment when you first thought of setting up and like, what is the story really behind it?
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Unknown
Yeah, so I started it during lockdown on the 6th of June 2020. So this was a couple of days after the whole George Floyd and everything that was happening then, it was basically just like a social awakening. But what really was getting to me was before that I was a business consultant and I've just been doing business consultancy quite a lot, and a lot of the companies I was working for were putting out all these bold statements like, you know, we stand with diversity and all these kind of things.
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Unknown
And most of the time when I step into those rooms, I am the only black female in that room. So when I'm seeing these same companies saying, ‘Oh, you know, we're all about diversity and our team so diverse’, and then they're constantly using my picture when I'm only brought in as a consultant, it was kind of time for me to be like, you know, stop using my picture,
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Unknown
This is not the case. And I remember being on LinkedIn at the time, actually, and there was about five. I was going down and counting the amount of companies that were coming out and making their bold statements and there was like five companies I'd personally worked with that I knew basically weren't doing anything, but it was just all the social media.
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Unknown
And then I spoke to other people that do the kind of, you know, consultancy and stuff like I do business analysis and strategy and stuff, and they were all saying the same thing. But I was like, well why are we all in a WhatsApp group talking about this? Like, let's say something? But then none of us was actually brave enough to be like, ‘Hey, you, company number one, you're doing this’, you know?
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Unknown
So I was like, We need to find a way that we can help our community because I know there's more people out there. And then I jumped on Facebook and there was a group at the time called Black Owned Economy, and that was kind of going quite wild, actually it was UK based, I thought it was American based. And I thought, wow, we need something like this but I thought,
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Unknown
you know, I'm a very analytical person, so I'm like, there's no point me trying to take on the whole of the UK when I'm born and bred in Birmingham. So let me try and see what I can do for our community. And then I made this was actually on the 5th of June, so I was having this conversation with my best friend.
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Unknown
And she was just like, ‘Just do it! You want to do it!’ And all day, sorry, this is the 4th of June, all day on the 5th of June. I'm like, What am I going to call it? Am I going to do it?
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Unknown
what if people judge me? And basically I just woke up on the 6th of June, which is like two days later, and I was like, I'm going to do it.
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Unknown
I'm going to throw myself in and do it. And me, of course, with my business background, I'm always a you need to plan, you need to prepare kind of person. So I didn't do any of that. I jumped on Facebook, I made a Facebook group. I named it Black Owned Birmingham. I literally put in the little slogan part,
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Unknown
I was like, ‘This group is for black owned businesses and people that want to support them’ and just pressed send. And then I sent it to my friend and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I did it’ she was like ‘You did what?’ in that conversation, I made the group maybe about half eight, nine in the morning. In the conversation talking, friend got off the phone.
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Unknown
Maybe about half 11, jumped back on Facebook and it was already on 2000 people. I hadn't shared it. I just literally made the group. And I think because of the time that we was in it gained the traction. So I didn’t even know it jumped so quick. And then basically from that moment, it carried on spiraling.
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Unknown
OK. I mean, you said that your Birmingham born and bred. And you did three degrees here. That's impressive. Which one did you do then? So I did my foundation degree in Professional Administration, then I did my B.A in Business Administration, the top up, and then I did my Masters degree in Management and Entrepreneurship.
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Unknown
OK. So it must be really nice to kind of do something that brings people in your city together then. Especially just my community as well, like I said. So the conversation was happening prior to that was there's no one that's kind of like saying anything about helping or supporting these black businesses.
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Unknown
And I was basically in a position where I could help and support these black businesses like, you know, I do consultancy for major businesses. I do, you know, like business analysis, data, all of that kind of stuff and unfortunately, the black businesses in Birmingham, I didn't realize were so much, let me just throw that out there and they didn't have support.
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Unknown
So the support that we kind of offer them and give them, you know, it's is tenfold anything I've ever done in my whole entire life. Like I quit. Obviously it was lockdown, everyone was like furloughed and stuff. I was working, I was a project manager at the time, so I was still worked all through lockdown in London and Leeds and I just basically wasn't happy.
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Unknown
I was like, I'm, you know, doing the Black Owend Birmingham stuff on the side and I want to take it on full throttle and not so sure I quit and since then I've been a lot happier. So how is it supporting businesses across the city then? Truth be told, is really hard, but it's so fulfilling at the end of it.
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Unknown
Like it makes it all worthwhile. It's like when you get a degree, like, you know, you struggling at the beginning and why am I doing this? But then when you have that certificate, it's worthwhile. And I'm lucky enough to have a big gob. So I kind of throw some stuff on LinkedIn or on Facebook, and it kind of gets traction where I can connect with not just people in my community, but people in other communities that want to support my community.
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Unknown
But they just didn't know how, like they didn't even know we existed. They didn't know how to kind of tap into that network and that, you know, my mouth as well as just being able to type a few things is what I've been able to get me into certain places. OK So obviously the community of over 50,000 members,
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Unknown
that's huge. So what has really gone inside, kind of like growing that community then? And I imagine it's very busy kind of obviously behind the scenes as well. Yeah. So our Facebook group is 21,000 and then across all of our social media and especially like our email list and stuff is how we get to 50,000. Yeah, we've got a membership which, you know, we have to kind of close and open at certain times for our paid membership because literally it gets kind of flooded.
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Unknown
Yeah. And then with the paid membership is basically where we help start open grass root companies, black owned or even minority ethnic owned and basically just in the very basic. So some companies have been, you know, up and running for ten years and, you know, they don't have a business plan or, you know, they've never did a forecast or stuff like that.
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Unknown
So it's kind of just taking people back to the roots and kind of helping them get the foundation put in place. It's like they've all got the house is wobbly. And so we have to go in and put the foundation in. So yeah, we've got like our online membership where we do our courses and stuff like that, which is it takes up majority of my day because it's me
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Unknown
that you know, I don't say teachers because I'm not a teacher, but it's me that kind of facilitates these courses and stuff like that. And then we also have our own awards as well, the Black Owned Birmingham Awards, which is absolutely amazing. Again, it's my baby, so I kind of, you know, I need to be able to delegate but
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Unknown
I can't because I'm just like, oh my God, it's so worth while and I just want to feel every moment of it with less stress or tears. So that's a lot. And then we have like our marketplace events where people come sell their items and stuff like that. And again, it's like another baby, like I've got three daughters, but then I've got like fourth, fifth, sixth because, yeah, I just really love it.
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Unknown
So it's just for me, it's a lot, but it's definitely worth while. OK. So in terms of, obviously you mentioned, workshops, events, resources, so kind of what what actually goes into them, what what is it that people are actually offered? So it depends on what, what point they're in their business. So for example, if it's like someone that's, you know, pre-seed or pre startup and we basically offer them everything, so from a business plan and walking them through that, how to create pitch depth, pitch decks, sorry, media decks, basically walk them through, you know, the day in the life because a lot of companies haven't just thought like what a day in the life
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Unknown
is as a business owner, what do I need to do? It's kind of like especially if they're products that they're making with their hands and you know, of course that's great when they're doing like small batches. But you know, if you get a call from Sainsbury's saying the 150,000, how are you able to provide that? So it's kind of not only having the conversations with them and kind of putting their mindset into a business mindset, but then also the growth element as well is like a really big part of it.
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Unknown
And then we do like kind of 1 to 1 mentoring and coaching and stuff like that, just to kind of help them get from A to B, but the A to B is determined by them. So they could already have a business and they want to see growth. So, you know, their B would be growth.
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Unknown
So we kind of tailor their packages to that. OK. And I guess and how can people get involved and become a member? The best place for, where the majority of the engagement is is Facebook. I know that sounds crazy saying that in 2023, Facebook is of course we have all the platforms, we have TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn and all that kind of stuff.
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Unknown
But where the engagement is more wholesome is Facebook, especially when it comes to the small businesses that are also providing a service. So we have a lot of people that, you know, just jump in and say, ‘Hey, I need a gardener.’ Then you have a gardener, you know, he's been working for ten years, he's amazing what he does, but, you know, he's even a flier.
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Unknown
So you'll be able to put in there, ‘Hey, I'm a gardener. This is what I do. Here's some pictures of my work.’ And just like that, he's got a client and hopefully a lifelong client. So Facebook is our it's our baby. OK, so I guess then what was it that you initially kind of set out to achieve then with Black Owned Birmingham?
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Unknown
And would you say that you're like on track with it? I originally set out just to support. That was all I wanted to do, just to help. Like, hey, I know this small business is I can do things I can't do and now these companies are saying they want to help us. I can kind of be the middle person.
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Unknown
But then that just wasn't the case because, you know, I'm a bit of a weirdo. So I kind of take over and I'm like I want to help more, I want to help more. So, yeah, to answer your question about am I on track, I would say yes. However, personally I always move my goalposts anyway. So I'll always be, you know, chasing the end of it.
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Unknown
And the aim of what I'm doing is kind of to help 95, even 100% of the black businesses in Birmingham. And that can be from something very small or from something very, very big. But not only just the businesses, but the entrepreneurs as well. And even the people just want to support black out. I want to cover it all.
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Unknown
I understand. I'm only one person and I've only been in this for three years, but yeah, that's my aim to at least like if you look at my business plan now, you'll see 75% of black owned businesses be the next five years. I want to have at least had a conversation with the owner. And kind of see where we can help, where we can support because a lot of our services are free, which a lot of people don't
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Unknown
they think, oh, I’ve got to pay for this, got to pay thousands, but a lot of our services are actually free. So yeah. OK. So I guess how are you also hoping to continue growing in the future? Obviously said that it's just you. So what do you have planned for, I don't know, maybe the next 3 to 5 years? Yeah. So I do have a team and the team kind of help with the content side of it, but and I do also have volunteers as well who help with the Facebook group and stuff cause we get 4-500 requests every single day.
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Unknown
Oh God. Yeah. It's crazy. But ultimately I do. You know, I started this by saying, Oh, I can't help the whole of the UK, but I have tapped into what this is already and you know, I do want to help the whole of the UK. Yeah, eventually. I know that, you know, it's not realistic for me to say 75% of the whole of the UK black businesses have to come from us.
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Unknown
However, I do want to be able to tap into their networks and kind of tap into them that way. So there's like maybe a third or fourth degree where we can all connect. Um, I do a lot of work in London at the moment, which has their own black owned London and their own community of all the stuff that they do.
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Unknown
And it's just amazing because you wouldn't, you would know, if you go to certain areas, you would know, if you had certain conversations with people, but just overall, looking on social media, stuff like that, you just like you just don't know. Like I'm like, I should even know you existed. Yeah. And then the second that I say that, my next thank you.
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Unknown
So how can I help? Yeah. And yeah, the answer that I always get back is normally, always financial. They need financial support and stuff like that. But again, they'll say the same thing. Oh my gosh, I even now you guys existed. So I do want to focus more on expanding outside of expanding in surrounding areas, the West Midlands and growing outside of the West Midlands and then also providing support, even if it's long distance support like London or even even Scotland, you know?
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Unknown
OK, and so obviously a lot of hard work has gone into the organisation over the last few years then. So what are some of the, I guess, like biggest lessons that you've learned so far? Delegate I know I’m contradicting myself now because I can't delegate for anything. But I'm the kind of person where, you know, when it came to my degree, it came to my dissertation two weeks before I was starting it,
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Unknown
it, you know, I kind of like I say, I don't like pressure and all that kind of stuff but
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Unknown
I excel better that way. But unfortunately some things are just bigger than me and I need to learn to delegate. And you know, when does a saying I always say to like my sisters, I'm from big family, so my sisters always helping me, I would say to my sisters, like, you know, if you see me moaning and sending like long voice notes over and over again over the same problem, that's when I need help.
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Unknown
It’s just I can't ask for it. So you need to just kind of offer it. But my sister, you know, I'm three years in this now, so my sister's, they already know they'll pop me up and be like, so what do you need? And my best friends as well like, ah OK what do you need, how can we help? So, yeah, delegate is
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Unknown
it's on my bucket list for this year. I need to master. Yeah, to master. Yeah. So I guess what more do you think needs to be done then to support black owned businesses, not just here in Brum but also like the wider UK like you said? I would say the same as they were in 2020, all these organisations, it needs to be the same now.
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Unknown
Everyone’s gone quiet and that’s unfortunately, a very big problem that the black community has had, in 2020 in lockdown we had a lot more support and allyship is something that we have to rely on heavily. Unfortunately. And stepping into this, the end of 2022/23, everything kind of just went silent. And just every now and then Black History Month, it will kind of pop up again.
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Unknown
But I think the main thing now is support. We need support from every angle, not just financial. We even like mentors, even like, you know, just opening the doors for people that wouldn't normally have the doors open for them. Do you know what I mean? Saying that black people say, I have to kick down the door to get in.
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Unknown
And it's like, well, why when someone's there to open the door for you? So can you tell me your three top black owned businesses in Birmingham then. Oh, OK. If you have a top three? I don't have a top three, but I would say, Legacy Center of Excellence for event space, because that is like the largest black owned event space in Europe.
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Unknown
So that is definitely within there. So these in no particular order. Definitely within there. I also want to have a food one in there. So food, these are like a three joint ones. So we've got Dane’s Catering, so that's like a catering. And then we've also got Melos which is at the back of Broad Street, which does amazing food and they was also our winner as well.
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Unknown
And then we've got Adrien's Dining so they're like three, if anyone asked me where to go for food is between those three. So that's a food top three. Oh and I'll do a charity one and for that I'm going to throw in First Class Foundation because they are absolutely amazing. Like what they do, the work they do is phenomenal.
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Unknown
So yeah, it's not like a top three with three categories of businesses, so yeah. OK. So this is something we like to in each episode a Birmingham quickfire round, so you. said you are Birmingham born and bred. So you know it well, what is your I guess like your favorite spot on the BCU campus then? Was there anywhere like when you studied here that you like
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Unknown
I just love it in there. This is going to sound so weird, in the library there's like a study room. Yeah. And it was just like, that was my room. Yeah. Any time. Like I went to go in there or, like, book it and someone was in there, it was just like. Like, how could you even focus anywhere else?
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Unknown
Like, that was my room. And it’s so weird to say this, a space in the library is your space. No, I get that. Yeah, it was. It was my home away from home. Snobs or Pop World? Snobs. Snobs. Yes. Blues or Villa? Villa. That's where we have our awards every year. Yeah, Aston Villa, Football Club. Villa. Would you rather go to Broad Street or Digbeth?
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Unknown
Oh, Broad Street. Definitely Broad Street, yeah. And what is your I guess like favorite like Brumie like landmark? Cliche but the bull. I love the bull. Yeah. Everything about the bull, like when they get it changed when they put the little snow on it with the Christmas, I love it. If you go down my phone now you see all the different pictures of me with the bull.
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Unknown
I'm a tourist. I love it. So, yeah. And what is your like, best Brummie like slang word? Init. Yeah, init, I say it a lot! and I say erm a lot as well, which I didn’t realise. Non Brummies would say like you say erm a lot and I'm like no I don't, so then I catch myself, so yeah, init.
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Unknown
Any So you've been selected as one of our Barrier Breakers at this years Alumni Festival. So what does that mean to you? I'm excited. It's crazy because I've done three degrees here and I've never thought that I'd be part, although I'm technically part of the alumni but never like part of anything facial wise alumni, you know what I mean?
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Unknown
And I remember when I used to come uni here and I'd see alumni and see them and I'd be like, oh, you're so amazing, you did all of this, and then now people are saying that to me and I'm like, no, I'm still 24 doing my degree, even though I’m not I’m 32, but so it means a lot to me.
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Unknown
Like I'm going to put it on my LinkedIn profile. And final question then, if you could go back to your very first day here at BCU. So right back, you know, I guess I guess the first day of even like your foundation degree, what is the one piece of advice you give yourself? Truth be told, walk in that room. I was late and I didn't go into my class.
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Unknown
I stood outside and I watched everyone I know like I'm not going in because I’m going to be late. So that was my actual very first day. I didn't go in. I stayed outside until the lecture was over. And then I spoke to the teacher afterwards and she was lovely, she was lovely,
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Unknown
she was literally like, well, you know, you got be back here tomorrow at nine. So then the next day I just walked straight in and I was actually really early, all of us within the class. But I was really lucky because I had a really, every single degree that I've had, I've loved all my training and stuff, I've loved just based on the tutors here like, absolutely amazing and she was lovely.
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Unknown
She was like, She kept coming to check on me and just be like, you sure you’re ok? Do you want to drink? And I was like you can drink here? Like it's such a like culture shock from what I was I'm used to but yeah. Just go in because I think I would have enjoyed it more if I’d
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Unknown
not been so scared for the next day and just grab, it's going to sound so Brummie cliche but you know grab the bull by the horns and and go and get it. But yeah, definitely. OK, well thanks so much for popping by today and coming onto the podcast, can’t wait to see you again very soon. I’m excited.
