Black Vines – Fern Stroud
#024 – Today we talk with Berkeley native and Oakland wine entrepreneur and Black Vines founder Fern Stroud. Fern founded Black Vines to celebrate black history while focusing on black future. Black Vines focuses on the future of wine, the future of art, the future of jazz, the future of culinary experiences while featuring black owned companies.
“we want to create community and do our part in the building, maintaining and sustainability of a black economic ecosystem”
Community is so important to Fern. She grew up going to musical and cultural festivals in the East Bay and that is what she set out to recreate. Wine was not the primary focal point, but it quickly became the conduit. When she stumbled across the Association of African American Vintners, she knew it was a perfect pairing and she was on to something.
“to bring those elements together, the art, the food, the wine, the jazz. We also wanted to patronize black owned spaces and so we were the first to go to every black serving gallery or black owned gallery and activate the space with this experience.”
Fern knows a long time successful business cannot be built on mere transactions – relationships are important to her. She is most proud of the deep relationships she has developed that have benefited both Black Vines and the wine makers alike.
“we have built some of the most amazing business relationships with our partners that anyone could ever dream of and that is probably the most beneficial thing – just the community in itself”..
Be sure to stick around until the end to hear about Black Vines future plans and events.
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