Off the Record
Off the Record is a podcast exploring the lives and stories of Twin Cities executives. Join the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, in partnership with Platinum Bank, for robust conversations with local leaders as they share pivotal moments in their lives, some of their career highlights, and their goals for the coming years. You know their names and faces, now get to know their stories.
Off the Record
Nancy Korsah, founder of Black Business Enterprise, on entrepreneurship and activism
Nancy Korsah founded Black Business Enterprise, a hub of resources to help minorities get ahead. She can relate to the trials of fellow people of color in the U.S. and abroad. She recalls her teenage years in Italy where, “if you’re of color there, you’re not getting a job. Definitely not that early,” she says in this episode of the Off the Record podcast.
Similar encounters have continued into adulthood and her professional life, Korsah said to hosts Kathy Robideau, market president and publisher of the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal and Dave Faust, president and CEO of Platinum Bank. Korsah – who’s fluent in six languages but spoke little English when she first arrived in the U.S. from Italy – struggled with her limited job opportunities.
At one point, out of necessity, she began cleaning homes and eventually operated a successfully business servicing hotels and clients, with the help of employees, such as Steve Harvey and Ozzy Osbourne.
“I really love that independence,” said Korsah, “or that being able to manage something bigger than myself.”
Listen to the latest episode to hear more about Korsah's career and outlook, including:
- “An extreme sense of freedom” she felt in her six-plus years as a flight attendant.
- Operating a women’s clothing shop while working at a bank in North Carolina.
- How being denied entrance to her workplace in Minnesota led to her launching Black Business Enterprise.
- What it means to be able to help other people of color launch businesses.
- How her mother’s words – “Everything is yours” – inspires her to “just go get it” every day.
- Maintaining passion and energy for her business despite working 18-hour days.
Leaders like Korsah understand the value of moving quickly and acting creatively, just like Platinum Bank. Learn more about business banking with a different kind of bank.