Break it down.
Margins, cash flow, distribution, raising money. I explain the stuff that sounds complicated the way you would explain it to a friend.
Dad · Entrepreneur · Investor · Business builder
Business, broken down for the everyday entrepreneur.
I'm Jomaree Pinkard. I grew up in the Ravenswood Houses in Queens, turned $2,500 into Hella Cocktail Co., a beverage brand with more than $40 million in lifetime revenue, then led Pronghorn, a $200 million Diageo-backed investment platform. Now I break business down so you can actually use it.
On air
Catch The Everyday Entrepreneur, my segment on Sway in the Morning, SiriusXM Shade 45. Piloting November 2026.
What I do
Most business advice is too fancy to use or too vague to matter.
I keep it plain and practical.
Tell you the truth.
If the numbers don't work, I'll say so. Then I'll show you what would make them work.
Give you the next move.
Every conversation ends with one clear step you can take this week.
Hella Cocktail Co.: $2,500 to $40M+ in lifetime revenue
Pronghorn: 20+ Black-owned businesses backed
Founder, On The Menu Ventures
Featured in Fortune and Inc.
Watch
Short videos on how business works, and the mindset it takes to build one.
As Seen on TV
NBC New York
Opening doors in spirits
Jomaree talks about how Pronghorn is shaking up the spirits industry to give the Black community more opportunity and access, with stories from two of the brands it backs.
American Express
National TV Commercial
Jomaree remembers the tight deadlines of starting Hella, and how he used his American Express card, instead of a loan, to get what the company needed to fill orders on time.
In the Room
The Mindset
Go beyond the charity event
At Black Men XCEL, Jomaree challenges corporate sponsors to go beyond charity events and fund financial literacy, brand building and budgeting in our communities.
The Mindset
Disruption starts with the consumer
At the Black Enterprise Disruptor Summit, Jomaree explains why real disruption comes from understanding how people buy, and how backing Black-owned brands keeps dollars circulating in the community.
The Mindset
Building a bigger table
Jomaree and Victoria Ho built :INCLUDED CPG so BIPOC founders could break bread, share their journeys and advocate for each other. Real community means showing up on the hard days.
Read
In the press
Fortune
June 1, 2025
This Gen Xer turned $2,500 on a credit card into a multimillion-dollar business and quit his 9-to-5 for good
Read on Fortune Inc. May/June 2021 issueHow Playing Basketball With Snapple's Former CEO Helped This Founder Find the Right Product Mix
Read on Inc. Liquor.com February 9, 2021Jomaree Pinkard on Building a Brand While Advocating for Diversity
Read on Liquor.comGot a business question that won't leave you alone?
Book a session and we'll work through it together.
About
I explain business the way I learned it: by doing it.
I'm Jomaree Pinkard. I grew up in the Ravenswood Houses in Queens. My path took me from the city's public housing to the University of Virginia, The Wharton School and, eventually, to building businesses of my own. Along the way, I worked in corporate finance, consulted for the NFL, and helped develop The Salvation Army's September 11 World Trade Center Recovery Program.
In 2011, I co-founded Hella Cocktail Co. with Tobin Ludwig and Eddie Simeon. We started with $2,500 and homemade cocktail bitters. Over more than a decade as CEO, we grew it into a nationally distributed beverage business with more than $40 million in lifetime revenue and partners including Whole Foods, Walmart, Disney, Delta Air Lines and TGI Fridays. Today I'm its chairman.
I know what it's like to build with less access to capital, networks and know-how than the other guy. Next, I became CEO and managing director of Pronghorn, a $200 million Diageo-backed investment platform. We invested in more than 20 Black-owned businesses and helped create more than 100 jobs across the spirits industry.
Today I'm founder and managing partner of On The Menu Ventures, a media and investment platform that finds culturally rooted food and beverage brands, tells their stories to build demand, and backs the breakouts with capital. I'm also a founding leader of :INCLUDED CPG, a nonprofit community that connects diverse entrepreneurs with resources, relationships and opportunities, and I've served on the board of the Specialty Food Association.
Now I'm bringing all of it to the radio with The Everyday Entrepreneur on Sway in the Morning, to make entrepreneurship more approachable for anyone who's ever had an idea or wanted to work for themselves.
Entrepreneurship shouldn't be reserved for the privileged or well-connected. Opportunity is everywhere, and everyone deserves a chance to build something meaningful.
Why plain language
Who's buying?
What does it cost you?
What do you charge?
Can you keep doing it?
Here's what all of that taught me: most of business comes down to a few questions. Jargon just hides them.
I studied at the University of Virginia's McIntire School of Commerce and earned my MBA at Wharton. I'm proud of both. I just don't need fancy words to prove it. I talk about business the same way whether I'm on the radio with a first-time founder or in a boardroom with investors.
As featured in
Want my take on your business?
Work with meWork with me
Let's work through it.
Two ways to work with me: a single session when you need help with something specific, or an ongoing advisory relationship when you want someone in your corner for the long run.
One-time
One-on-one session
Need help with something specific? Book a single session. One conversation, focused on your question, with clear next steps.
Best for everyday entrepreneurs with a real question: founders, side hustlers and anyone with an idea. Pricing a product, getting into stores, figuring out if the numbers work, deciding what to do next.
What you get
- A short form before we talk, so we spend the time on what matters.
- Fifteen minutes to an hour on your business, in plain language.
Ongoing
Long-term advisory
For those looking for a long-term advisor. We work together over time, as your business grows and the decisions get bigger.
Best for founders and leadership teams at a turning point, established companies entering or growing in consumer products, and investors who want an operator's view.
Where I help
- Getting clearYou have a strong idea but aren't sure about the customer, the money or the end goal.
- Getting to marketPricing, production, which channels come first, and whether the launch budget adds up.
- Growing without breakingSales are moving, but cash, inventory or your team is stretched.
- Expanding or changing courseEntering consumer products, adding categories, or resetting how you grow.
- Raising, investing or sellingGetting ready for investors, a partner or a sale. Or, for investors, a clear-eyed look at a deal.
How we can work: a defined project, an ongoing advisory relationship, or support for investors and their portfolio companies.
Tell me where you are, and I'll get back to you within 3 business days.
Questions
Before you book
What can we cover in a session?
Anything about building or running a business: pricing, costs, getting into stores, marketing on a budget, hiring, raising money, or whether an idea is worth pursuing.
What isn't covered?
I give business guidance. I'm not your lawyer, accountant or financial adviser, and sessions are not investment advice.
Will you invest in my business?
Sessions don't come with investment. If something looks like a fit for my ventures, that's a separate conversation.
Do I need a business already?
No. Ideas are welcome. Come with a clear question and we'll get further.
Pick a length. You'll choose a time, answer a few quick questions and pay to confirm.
15 minutes$100Choose a time
30 minutes$175Choose a time
45 minutes$250Choose a time
60 minutes$325Choose a time
Booking opens in Calendly. You'll get a confirmation email and a calendar invite.
Sessions and advisory provide general business guidance. They are not legal, tax, accounting, investment or financial advice. Talk to a licensed professional about those questions.