Class was in session during the second day of the ESSENCE + New Voices Entrepreneur Summit and Target Holiday Market as Percy “Master P” Miller and his business partner, James Lindsay took to the ESSENCE E-Suite for an intimate conversation on all things business and success.
Master P has established a solid reputation in the entertainment industry and beyond with success as an independent rapper, Hip-Hop label owner and respected business mogul. As the CEO of successful Hip Hop-inspired chip brand Rap Snacks, Lindsay also has quite the success story.
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In addition to sharing what’s next for Rap Snacks, including the ‘Boss Up Program,’ a collaboration with the Biggie Smalls Foundation and the launch of Rap Noodles, the pair also shared a few valuable tips for navigating a successful business partnership as entrepreneurs.
Scroll through to check out some of what they had to say and then be sure to head back to ESSENCE.com for more of everything you missed at the inaugural ESSENCE + New Voices Entrepreneur Summit and Target Holiday Market.
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01
Positive Vibes + An Understanding of Structure = A Winning Combination
"Positive vibes is the most important thing to me when I partner with someone, and someone that understands structure. You have to have structure and believe in the person you like as well as get along well with them.”
Photo by Shekeidra Booker
02
Equal Effort Is Crucial
"Everyone has to put the same effort in. A lot of people say, 'let this person do this and I’ll sit back.' No, you have to do equal work.”
Photo by Shekeidra Booker
03
Be Willing To Push Your Partner When They Need A Little Motviation
P also stressed the importance of picking up the slack for your partner if necessary and being comfortable with leading the operations of business. “I need someone that’s gonna push me," he said. "Because I’m gonna push you.”
Photo by Shekeidra Booker
04
Start Small And Build
"Go with what you love and what you’re passionate about," James says. "I knew music would open doors for me to market what else I wanted to do. I used my skills in music and made that relate to other things like food and clothes. I always tell people to start small and build, a lot of people don’t want to do that but, success doesn’t come overnight."
05
The Best Asset Protection Strategies Are Built On Knowledge, Not Money
"Knowledge is more important than money," P says. "Everyone wants to make money but no one knows how to sustain it, money comes and goes. It’s important to know your business because when you lose money, you become down and depressed and everything stops. But when you’re a hustler and have knowledge, you know how to build the right team and get the right resources to get the money back."
Photo by Taylor Hunter
06
Encourage Your Community To Work Towards Economic Ownership, Too
In closing, James shared that it’s important to stay ahead of the game with every business idea and encouraged Black business owners to occupy more spaces as entrepreneurs. “Our message for 2020 is ‘How do we turn our culture and our people into producers rather than consumers?’
