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According to a 2021 report published by financial firm J.P. Morgan, the number of businesses owned by Black women grew 50% from 2014 to 2019 and accounted for 42% of all women who opened new businesses during that time period.
Though Athens entrepreneur Cynthia Williams recently celebrated her 10-year anniversary as a small business owner, her journey began much earlier than that.
In honor of National Black Business Month, Williams spoke to Banner-Herald arts and culture reporter Andrew Shearer about how she went from spending a decade of her life as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps to “taking it down a notch” as the owner of Molly Maid of Athens & Winder.
Andrew Shearer: What made you decide to switch careers from being in the military to being a business owner?
Cynthia Williams: My last duty station was in Parris Island, South Carolina. When I got out of the Marine Corps, I moved to Georgia and took a job at a Target distribution center in Tifton for three or four years. I’d always been interested in entrepreneurship, but I wasn’t sure if that was an option for me. I began to reflect back on leadership and planning skills that I had developed as an officer and thought those things might translate to running a business. I started doing research and spoke to a few business owners, and though I realized some principles from the military were the same in the business world, things like marketing were completely new to me.
Shearer: What challenges did you face when you were getting started?
Williams: I was concerned about how I was going to get the capital together and about how to come up with a business plan, but I found out that there are a lot of resources available for those things. Talking to the Small Business Administration department; your bank is a good starting point, because there are special loans available for small business owners and military veterans. They also offer classes and webinars on how to make a business plan. To decide what kind of business I wanted to go into, I reached out to a franchise coach who connected me with a company called Neighborly, where you can meet the presidents and owners of different businesses to find out which one suits you the best. That’s how I decided on Molly Maid and began building my customer base in Athens and Winder.
Shearer: What was it like making the adjustment from the Marines to Molly Maid?
Williams: At Parris Island, I was in charge of a platoon of 100 people, and I have 10 employees at Molly Maid. You have to take it down a notch, because in the military, it’s a different mindset. It’s like, “Hey! We’ve got to get this done now, now, now” and no one asks a question unless it’s absolutely necessary. You come up with a plan, you give them the plan, and that’s it. As a business owner, I had to tone that down in order to be successful. You have to learn to give input and be willing to get input, because everyone has to buy into the plan before they can go operate the plan. That’s the biggest difference. It’s about giving suggestions and being more open to listening to feedback from the staff. The final decisions are still up to me, but you have to want your employees to be successful, so the key is making sure everyone agrees with the plan.
Shearer: What is your outlook on the future of Black-owned businesses in the Athens area?
Williams: I think it will continue to grow. When people see someone like me owning their own business, they feel comfortable coming up to me and asking questions. It helps them let go of their fears a little bit, and then it’s like a chain reaction that leads to going into business for yourself. Black entrepreneurs are being highlighted more, and that motivates people to make serious moves towards giving their business ideas a try. Just letting people know that there are resources available to help you get started, classes they can take and business owners who offer mentorship are great ways to clue them in to what’s going on. Athens and Winder are areas that are growing so much, and I think Black-owned businesses are going to grow along with them.
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