It’s never too late to become an Entrepreneur
While many people quit their jobs to search for better opportunities. Others leave the workforce to start their own businesses. Andrea Robinson is one of many who has left the workforce. Robinson is a 46-year-old African American Entrepreneur living in Murfreesboro, Tn. Robinson has accomplished a lot since pursuing her own series of businesses in 2017. Robinson started a trucking company, childcare, event, and catering service, and is a promoter and business consultant. She is also in the process of owning her own beauty and barber shop.
Robinson used to work as an accountant and respiratory therapist before 2017. Robinson's first push to starting her series of businesses was being cut from her job as an accountant during covid 19. The first business venture Robinson started was a childcare business called Hands of Hope Academy in 2019. A fondness for children led Robinson to open her childcare academy.
“What inspired me to open a childcare was is that my passion and love for kids,” Robinson said. “I love working with children. I love to see them grow. And our kids are our future. I wanted to help struggling parents and not to charge a lot of money, it was based on their income. So, they would be able to work and afford things.’
Kenyatta Grant, an acquaintance, and prior client of Robinson’s childcare. Grant’s kids attended Robinson’s Hands of Hope Academy childcare. Robinson’s childcare academy helped her in dire need.
“I had three kids that went there,” Grant said. “Andrea offered transportation to pick up kids from schools that help me out a lot. You see because me and my husband worked until five at our jobs and our daughter got out at three o’clock. She did it with all the kids that were in school. There is not a childcare out there that does that.”
A year later, Robinson move forward with her trucking business. Robinson was inspired by her late grandfather, Little Jake, who was a truck driver. When she created her trucking company, she named it LJDS Logistics after him. She went into business with longtime friend Marcellus Smith. They have known each other since 2011 and he is a part-time owner and a class-A CDL driver.
“She’s very outgoing, she's a selfless type of person, she’ll help anybody, and she is driven,” said Smith. “In other words, she is a well-rounded person. And her work ethic is second to none. She set goals really high. She meets a lot of them. She cares about the employees and wants the best for the company, so she holds the employees to a high standard and sets the bar high for in terms of customer service. And being courteous to the customers as well with each and every delivery.”
Robinson plans to open a beauty and barber shop spa next year, but her lips are sealed tight on more details for now. She is planning on naming the business after her daughter who loves to do hair and likes to embrace natural hairstyles. Robinson’s daughter doesn’t know yet that the shop is going to be named after her. Robinson's business partner Jermany Cooper, a self-employed entrepreneur himself, is going to give the man’s perspective on the barber side of the shop. He is positive it's going to be a success and praises Robinson for her ideas and work ethic.
“She’s great, outgoing, very ambitious, and open-minded,” said Cooper. “She’s over the top I say that because sometimes she over-thinks things and it's for a good reason. She makes jobs easy, and she’ll go out of her way to make sure things go alright.”
Having a lot of business under your belt is a very high accomplishment. Some will wonder what her motives and goals are behind each one.
“You know I never lived my life for myself and as I got older it led me in doing the same thing, “Robinson said. “And now at the age I am now, 46 I’m now able to live my life for myself but I wish I knew it when I was younger, but I had a lot of people who was depending on me. But the goal of my businesses is to bring everyone together in unity. To where we can be able to support each other despite what your sex, race, color, or gender is. Build a corporation to where we can all be able to that and I wanted to leave a legacy behind for my children to continue,”