Dawn Dickson

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Dawn Dickson
Dickson-Akpoghene in 2020
Born
Dawn Dickson

(1979-01-01) January 1, 1979 (age 45)
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Alma materOhio State University
OccupationBusinesswoman
Known forFounder and owner of PopCom
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2019)​
Children1

Dawn Dickson (born January 1, 1979), also known as Dawn Dickson Akpoghene,[1] is an American businesswoman, inventor, author, and investor. She is the founder of retail technology company PopCom and women's shoe company Flat Out of Heels.[2]

Early life and education[edit]

Born in Ohio,[3][4] Dickson's mother ran an in-home day care service and her father remodeled homes. Their family also operated a demolition business.[4] As a child, she made money by selling candy, old toys, and lemonade.[3]

Dickson received a Bachelor's of Arts degree in journalism at Ohio State University and did graduate work at DeVry University in information technology.[3][4] She was later selected for the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center's Milestone Makers program, as part of its Fall 2019 cohort of mid-stage entrepreneurs.[5]

Career[edit]

After an internship at Nationwide, Dickson was offered a full-time position as a business analyst.[4] She then ran online marketing for agents in a subsidiary of Nationwide.[4] Dickson founded her first company, TheUrbanStarr.com, in 2002, while still working at Nationwide and studying at DeVry.[4] TheUrbanStarr.com was a web site highlighting local entertainment and events in Central Ohio, which streamed music and videos online before the existence of YouTube.[3]

In 2005, Dickson started her own consulting business in online marketing and business development.[4][6] She then moved to Atlanta, and later on to Miami.[4] She finally closed TheUrbanStarr.com web site during the 2008 recession.[4]

Flat Out of Heels[edit]

In 2011, Dickson came up with the idea for Flat Out of Heels after wearing heels all day at an event, and looking for comfortable flat shoes to buy at the airport.[4] Unable to find what she needed, she noticed that many other women were walking around the airport barefoot.[4] Her solution was to create rollable flats that can fit in a purse and be sold in vending machines to help women find relief from sore feet.[7] She raised $1.3 million in investment for Flat Out Heels.[8]

PopCom[edit]

Dickson launched Shoe Vending International, Inc. (renamed Solutions Vending International, Inc. in 2014 and PopCom in 2017)[9] to build vending machines in order to sell her shoes. She found a supplier in the United Kingdom and placed her first Flat Out of Heels machine in Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport, followed by LIV Nightclub in Fountainbleu Hotel in Miami, Bayside Marketplace in Miami, My Fair Sweets in Atlanta, MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas and she held pop-up shops with the machine in venues around the country.[10][11] In 2014 Dickson was invited to appear on the CNBC/Yahoo web show "Your Biz Fix" hosted by Marcus Lemonis.[12] After the show Dickson decided to build vending machines for more than just Flat Out of Heels and in 2020 Dickson received a patent for the PopShop Digital vending machine.[13]

In 2019, Dickson raised a security token offering (STO) when she secured over $1 million for PopCom using equity crowdfunding[14] and, in 2020, started a second equity crowdfunding campaign that raised $1.07M. The campaign eventually closed in 2022, with PopCom crowdfunding a total of $6 million from over 10,000 investors.[15] Being an early adopter of crypto currency and blockchain technology,[16] she was invited to testify before a Congressional committee on small business in March 2020 in a hearing titled Building Blocks of Change: The Benefits of Blockchain Technology for Small Businesses.[17]

Other projects[edit]

Dickson is the host of the BARS! Podcast where she discusses how to be an entrepreneur.[18] She is also the owner of Nia Studio, a yoga studio named after her daughter located in Columbus, Ohio.[19]

Awards[edit]

Dickson received the Women's Entrepreneurship Day Organization’s Technology Pioneer Award at the United Nations in 2022, celebrating her as a trailblazer and innovator in her field. The prestigious award, also recognized by the US Congress, highlights women entrepreneurs and the meaningful impact they are having on the world.[20]

Books[edit]

Dickson released a book in 2021 alongside co-author Frederick Kevbe Akpoghene titled Started in the DM: Using Social Media to Find the One. The book came from Dickson being too busy to actively date and chronicles the story of how her future husband found his way into her Instagram Messages, along with discussions on how businesspeople can use social media to assist with their own dating journeys.[21]

In 2021 Dickson signed a publishing deal with Penguin Books to publish a new book titled Built Differently in 2023.[22]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Rhinehart, Charlene (May 2, 2021). "PopCom Founder Disrupted Retail Industry; Raised Over $3.5 Million In Equity Crowdfunding And Traditional Funding". Black Enterprise. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  2. ^ Schomer, Stephanie (March 2021). "From Each New Solution, A New Challenge". Entrepreneur. Vol. 49, no. 2. Retrieved August 22, 2022 – via EBSCOHost.
  3. ^ a b c d "2022 CORE 100 Most Influential Blacks Today – Dawn Dickson Akpoghene". CORE Magazine. February 26, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Ghose, Carrie (February 21, 2020). "Newsmaker: How Dawn Dickson refused to let her startup die before it launched". Columbus Business First. American City Business Journals. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  5. ^ "Meet the Entrepreneurs In Our Fall 2019 Milestone Makers Cohort". Nasdaq. November 8, 2019. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  6. ^ "Movers & Shakers: Dawn Dickson-Akpoghene on the Columbus startup scene, founding a variety of businesses and her plans to retire at 45". TechOhio. August 18, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  7. ^ Davis, Rachaell (December 6, 2020). "A Path to Power Success Story". Essence. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  8. ^ Blanco, Lydia (May 31, 2018). "Dawn Dickson's Road to $1 Million Started at the Entrepreneur Summit". Black Enterprise. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  9. ^ "PopCom Making the Vending Machine of the Future". TechOhio. April 23, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  10. ^ "Fashion Biz: Dawn Dickson, CEO Flat Out of Heels". Ebony. July 2, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  11. ^ Johnson, Kandia (July 7, 2016). "Comfy Shoes From a Vending Machine? This Entrepreneur Made It Her Business". Fortune. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  12. ^ Shah, Hakimah (May 29, 2014). "Marcus Lemonis says don't sell, it may be the next big thing!". CNBC. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  13. ^ G., Renee (October 17, 2020). "Black-owned tech company awarded patent on kiosk". TheGrio. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  14. ^ Samaha, Barry (July 28, 2021). "How Women of Color Are Using Equity Crowdfunding to Achieve Success in the Tech World". Harper's Bazaar. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  15. ^ "2021 Female Founders 100: Dawn Dickson-Akpoghene, PopCom". Inc. Mansueto Ventures. 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  16. ^ Nelson, Camri (July 19, 2022). "Black Tech Week highlights Black-owned tech companies across the U.S." Spectrum News. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  17. ^ Sinclair, Sebastian (February 28, 2020). "US House Committee to Hold Hearing on Blockchain Benefits for Small Businesses". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  18. ^ "BARS!". Apple Podcasts. Apple Inc. 2022. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  19. ^ Colombo, Hayleigh (March 14, 2022). "Like WeWork for yoga teachers: Columbus entrepreneur's newest venture aims to bring 'movement' studios to Black neighborhoods". Columbus Business First. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  20. ^ Congressional Record. Vol. 167. No. 201. (2023, February 10). https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-167/issue-201/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/E1257-1
  21. ^ "Started in the DM: Using Social Media to Find the One|Paperback".
  22. ^ "Recent Deal: BUILT DIFFERENTLY by Dawn Dickson-Akpoghene (Portfolio)". December 3, 2021.
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