“If I stop by your office, can y’all be in a commercial?”

This DM hit our inboxes from a recent Academy Alumna, and we knew we had to join in on the fun!

Kayla Hall-Ransom, the owner of The City Juicery, is a Spring 2023 Academy Alumna and the recent star of a commercial all about her business. 

“The commercial was a spontaneous opportunity. Pinnacle Bank sponsored The City Juicery to set up under their tent during the Black on Buchanan event Hosted by The Nashville Black Market and The Equity Alliance. We passed out juice samples and business cards, and later we got an email with the opportunity to record a commercial!”

When Kayla told us this, we got even more excited – we LOVE each of these local organizations! To see one of our Academy Alumni tapping into different networks we’ve partnered with was super cool.

“It was so much fun to drive all around Nashville, connect with so many people in my community, and even just walk up to strangers and ask, ‘Hey do you want to drink this juice and be a part of our commercial?’”

She stopped by the Corner to Corner office and Amanda, our Academy Specialist, got her very own moment of fame alongside Kayla in the commercial!

“I was so glad that I took advantage of this chance because, in the end, I found a videographer who truly believes in me and my business. He’s passionate about recording history as it’s being made, and he feels that The City Juicery is making history, building a community here in the greater Nashville area! Shout out to Ty T.V.!”

This commercial is a shining example of what can be accomplished when a community comes together. From the organizations behind it to all the neighbors that participated in getting The City Juicery’s name out there, it was a team effort!

“My business wouldn’t be where it is today without Corner to Corner, The Nashville Black Market, Pinnacle Bank, and the support of my family and friends and all the local communities.”

Building our community and connecting with neighbors on a deeper level has been at the heart of what we do since our very first cohort of The Academy way back in 2016. It brings our whole team great joy to hear Kayla’s words and to see her own business embodying the same principles of connection.

When we asked her what advice she’d offer to the next generation of entrepreneurs to go through The Academy, she shared some straight wisdom.

“‘Are you creating a job or running a business?’ That’s a quote that I think of daily because anyone can cut apples and juice them into a bottle, but not everyone can get grants and connect with community members and share our mission ‘to be available to all people all over the city’. 

“So many times, there are business owners who are grinding and succeeding for three months, and then we never hear from them again. I think that’s due to burnout, from this focus on hustling and grinding and not prioritizing rest.

“I disagree with that. I think that taking the time to delegate, to ask for help from friends and family and within your network like The Academy is key to seeing persistent growth and not facing burnout.“

As a nonprofit that has had hundreds of Black entrepreneurs complete our 10-week training program, The Academy, we have heard a lot of different pieces of advice on entrepreneurship.

Kayla’s perspective really stuck out to us.

We can’t wait to see what Kayla accomplished with The City Juicery. Make sure you watch her commercial by clicking below!

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