NO(LA) Reservations

Big changes coming soon! Stay mf tuned ya'll cause it's finna be dope

After a well-deserved Mardi Gras hiatus, we back at it again with another episode of NO(LA) Reservations! Victoria Adams Phipps has spent her life pursuing a passion sparked in her heart back when she was a child growing up in Miami. Something stuck as she listened to her father and grandmother reminisce about the neighborhood she grew up in before it was ... "remodeled" into a completely unfamiliar world. The gears kept turning as she was dragged behind her father to attend all of his important community org meetings. Victoria knew that her ministry was called to the work of economic development, naturally centering Black and Brown communities (Gotta love that ✊

Adrian Mendez has worn, and continues to wear, many hats on a day to day basis. He is also by no means a stranger to the game, as his track record for moving the needle and setting things in motion speaks for itself. Throughout his career, he has created impact across every industry you can think of: education, consulting, hospitality, entrepreneurship ... you name it, he did it. More captivating than the multiple lives he juggles regularly is the story that brought him here (here being a multi-entendre referring to New Orleans, the Food and Beverage industry, this point of success he's reached, etc.) I sat down with Adrian for a discussion recorded live during a special event held at Mr. Wolf Espresso and Bookstore in the CBD to learn more about his never-ending support for his communities and his story of resilience, passion, optimism, and determination. Join us for our first episode of the NO(LA) Reservations Podcast! Theme Song: Tank and the Bangas - To Be Real After the episode, check out our Blog on Medium here! ===== Shoutouts from this episode: Guest: Adrian Mendez - IG Set: Mr. Wolf Espresso and Books - Site, IG Libations: Exclave Spirits (official sponsor of NO(LA) Reservations

Welcome to NO(LA) Reservations (previously known as "Taking Back the Block: Conversations on Rebuilding)!!!! I'm your host, Travis Smith, and I'm an aspiring entrepreneur working at an education consulting nonprofit in New Orleans. This podcast is a conversation on how entrepreneurs across the country, focusing mainly on New Orleans, can help remove barriers to success for minority founders and startup leaders in a post-pandemic environment. In our premiere episode, I sit down with Ann Marshall Tilton (even though I called her just Ann throughout the podcast, sorry girl) from the Lepage Center at Tulane University. Her main project this past year was the Greater New Orleans (GNO) Startup Report that presented some findings and insights around the previous year's impacts on local founders' goals going into 2020. Check out the GNO Startup Report here.