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cards

7 mins read

This Black Owned Trivia Game Will Call You Out On Your BS

Brilliant Or BS? was created by Kimelia Weathers,  youngest daughter of legendary film star Carl Weathers, better known as “Apollo Creed.”

Ok, that was BS. Kimelia is actually a TV challenge producer who turned her joy for hosting game nights for her friends into a career developing challenges for reality competition shows.

Now, she has her own trivia game that proves that it’s not what you know, it’s what others think you know! We caught up with her to find out more about her business and entrepreneurial journey.

Black Owned Trivia Game
Kimelia Weathers

What inspired you to start your business?

One of my absolute favorite things to do when I’m with my friends or family is to break out the board games for some friendly competition. I’ve always appreciated how games can bring us together and help us forget about the troubles of the world, even for an hour.

I began hosting regular game nights but got tired of playing the same old games every week. It wasn’t until I saw the success of an independent card game like Black Card Revoked, that I realized I had all the skills to create my very own classic game too!

With the support of friends, family, and an online community of generous supporters, I was able to bring the game to life through a Kickstarter campaign in 2019.

Black Owned Trivia Game

How did your background working with TV game shows help you develop this product?

As a producer on TV game shows, I’ve learned which elements make a game not only fun to play but also fun to watch. My job is to constantly come up with new ways to challenge contestants, so I set out to develop a game I knew my friends and I could have fun playing for hours.

I made an early version of “Brilliant or BS?” using notecards and tested it with a few different groups and coworkers. The initial response was amazing and since then I’ve seen that people of all backgrounds enjoy the game because it appeals to our basic human nature.

What differentiates your product from the other games that exist?

Brilliant or BS? is a party game unlike any other. It’s the only trivia game where you don’t need to know anything to win. Once a question is read, each player secretly inputs an answer then explains to the group how or why she knows her answer is correct.

Players earn points by predicting who actually knew an answer and who was just pretending to know. The fun comes in being creative and trying to trick your friends while also avoiding being fooled yourself.

Where do you see the business in 5 years?

In 5 years I see the game being a global sensation with various international editions and expansion packs available. Beyond what’s sold in stores, there’ll also be a TV show or digital series featuring celebrities playing the game in front of a studio audience.

My dream is to watch my favorite funny people (Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish, Regina Hall, etc.) play Brilliant or BS? and try to fool one another by making up crazy stories.

Black Owned Trivia Game

What is the most challenging and the most rewarding thing about being an entrepreneur?

The gift and the curse of being a first-time entrepreneur in a new field is that there is no blueprint to follow. On one hand, you can chart your own path, but on the other, there’s no step-by-step manual for success. There are definitely growing pains that come with starting something for the ground up.

I launched the business with only the help of my husband, so it’s just the two of us handling everything from product design to marketing to fulfillment. Luckily, we’ve been able to turn every loss into a lesson and utilize what we’ve learned to grow the business every day.

They say “build your own dream, or someone will hire you to build theirs.” The most rewarding thing is going to bed every night knowing I invested in myself and making my dream come true.

What advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Ignore the voice in your head that tells you it’s not possible just because you’ve never done it before. We’re all put here to fulfill our purpose. Focus your energy on something that you love to do that also helps others. If you have an idea that won’t go away like an annoying itch, keep scratching!

That’s usually the universe telling you you’re on the right path. Also, learn to swallow your pride and ask your friends to help. When you have a dream, you’d be surprised how many friends and complete strangers want to help you succeed. You just can’t be afraid to speak your dreams into existence and accept help along the way.

-Tony O. Lawson


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5 mins read

Black Owned Greeting Card Company Wants us to Stay Connected During a Pandemic and After

Now more than ever, it’s important to stay connected with the ones we care about. Culture Greetings, a Black Owned greeting card company is offering a catalog of over 1,500 greeting cards, with imagery featuring Black people.

Founded in 2018 by Atlanta based business psychologist and tech entrepreneur, Dr. Dionne Mahaffey, the platform allows its users to choose a greeting card, write a personal note using handwriting fonts that mirror real penmanship, and click “send,” which cues the state-of-the-art printing press.

black owned greeting card compnay
Dr.Dionne Mahaffey, Founder of Culture Greetings

The company then prints and mails the greeting card directly to the recipient the following business day, saving customers a trip to the store!

The website offers a tutorial of the entire process. In addition to greeting cards, the company offers gift cards from Amazon, Home Depot, iTunes, and several other brands that can be included in the mailing.

Black Owned Greeting Card

 

What inspired you to create Culture Greetings?

It has always been a natural gesture for me to send a greeting card to someone for almost any occasion. Perhaps a colleague hit a milestone mark in business, or a friend experienced a loss, or perhaps it’s just Tuesday and I want to show someone dear to me that I’m thinking of them by sending a greeting card in the mail.

Black Owned Greeting Card

I mail hundreds per year and decided in 2018 to leverage my software development acumen to create Culture Greetings as a way for customers to still use the classic touch of traditional mail with innovative technology to simply the process. And of course, to address the dearth of Black greeting cards in stores.

How has the Coronavirus outbreak affected your business?

I’ve actually seen a spike in business because greeting cards are an important utility used to send encouragement when we feel prompted.

A lot of people are reflecting on what’s important right now and feel inspired to go beyond a social media post or text message by sending a real greeting card in the mail. Our African American greeting cards can bridge the gap created by social distancing

How has it affected your lifestyle?

I am in constant prayer about the health and well-being of my family, friends and our community in general. I’m keeping busy and am laser focused on scaling and growing my business, while also finding ways to be of service to others during these uncertain times.


What new strategies have you implemented or do you plan to implement in your business?

I recently partnered with Walgreens and will be integrating their photo printing technology with my platform. This will give customers the option of picking up the greeting card from a Walgreens or Duane Reade store, of which there are 8000 locations across the country.

This feature is perfect for those occasions when you want to have the greeting card in hand to give to the recipient in person. I will also be launching both iOS and Android mobile apps in the near future. Flower delivery is also on my product development roadmap.

If you had one ask of your community right now, what would it be?

I’d like to encourage everyone to reach out to their loved ones by sending them a greeting card. Not only should we connect with those we love, we can also send cards to elders in senior citizens homes, youth in group homes, children hospitalized due to chronic conditions and healthcare workers, first responders and delivery staff.

While, this pandemic has stopped us from being social in person, the Postal Service is still hard at work, and our staff is taking every safety precaution to get your cards in the mail.