Congratulations to our winner! April Showers creator of Afro Unicorn®
Entrepreneur, innovator, and founder April Showers is the creator of Afro Unicorn®, a fully licensed character amplifying representation for women and children of color to celebrate how magical, unique, and divine they truly are. When Afro Unicorn creator April Showers realized that her favorite emoji—the unicorn!—was only available in white, she was inspired to create a more inclusive, conscious brand.
Shattering the glass ceiling, trailblazer Ms. Showers is the first Black woman to own a fully licensed character brand with a presence in seven major retailers across the United States and Canada with 25 categories, from apparel and accessories to toys, puzzles, books, bedding, backpacks, collectibles, and an original Afro Unicorn Holiday EP.
Children will soon be able to live and play in a world of Afro Unicorn with plushies, collectibles, games, puzzles, books, playsets, ride-ons, outdoor play, and live animation in the works. A new line of six original Afro Unicorn® books under the Random House Books for Young Readers imprint will be released widely in Fall 2023, featuring three Afro Unicorn characters by name across all Afro Unicorn® products.
Ms. Showers is a prolific public speaker, and ABC News Good Morning America 3: What You Need To Know and CBS Mornings created segments on Afro Unicorn®. Oprah Daily, Viola Davis, Sherri Shepherd, Alicia Keys, and Tina Knowles are all early believers. Ms. Showers hopes her success is the “blueprint” to empower and inspire fellow entrepreneurs to enter the licensing space with 45 + licensee partners worldwide.
Meet our Judges
Dr. Karen Semien-McBride, MAM, DBA, PsyD, DHL Renowned Social Psychologist, Executive/Business Coach & Business Strategist
[toggle title=”Learn More” state=”close”]Dr. Karen L. Semien-McBride, renowned executive, professional, business coach, business strategist, entrepreneur, and motivational speaker puts theory to practice by overlapping psychology theory and business acumen as a way of conceptualizing how individuals execute decision making, strategies, human interaction, operational styles, emotional intelligence, and mindset shift. She is the Chief Executive Officer of MKCircle CEO Institute. Through her commitment to creating emotional Intelligence leaders, MKCircle CEO Institute is leading a new movement in Executive Coaching programs, Corporate Counseling/P-EAP, Small Business Coaching programs, and Leadership programs for individuals, which support professional advancement and personal growth.
Dr. McBride has over 27 years of experience in the field of organizational leadership, business development, change management, strategic planning, public speaking, marketing, research, social psychology, HR, human equity, finance, executive coaching, entrepreneurship, and consulting, and business administration & higher education. 10 years of her career were spent as a C-level executive.
She is one of the most sought-after Executive Coaches, Trainers & business strategists for non-profit organizations & small businesses. She holds two doctoral degrees, a Master’s and a Bachelor’s in the areas of Business Administration, Social Psychology, & Organizational Leadership.
Dr. Karen’s mantra is simple, “Life is not a sport you want to participate in without a coach.”
How to follow the company and her work: Website: www.mkcircle.com IG: @drkaren.execoach IG: @mkcircleceo Twitter: @drkaren.execoach Twitter: @mkcircleceo FB:@DrKarenSemienMcBride FB: @MKCircleCEOInstitute YouTube: Dr. Karen Semien-McBride LinkedIn: Dr. Karen Semien- McBride LinkedIn; MKCircle CEO Institute[/toggle]
Robin Billups, President The Billups Group
[toggle title=”Learn More” state=”close”]The Billups Group, a consultancy, working nationally with entrepreneurs and public/private entities to assess and coach towards successful economic goals and compliance reporting. Robin’s expertise is developing strategic framework and the business narrative to engage with Primes. She is adept in identifying viable opportunities in the procurement supply chain. Value added services include an invited speaker/panelist/moderator; diversity and inclusion, tracking/reporting metrics; certification requirements; aligning prospects and deepening existing client relations; connecting relevant resources to create capacity and scale.[/toggle]
Felicia Divinity Delete The Divide
[toggle title=”Learn More” state=”close”]Felicia Divinity has dedicated her career to public service for the past 31 years with the County of Los Angeles, Internal Services Department. In September 2020, she was appointed to develop and administer LA County’s Delete The Divide Initiative and now oversees Community Engagement and Outreach. Felicia reports to the director and general manager of Internal Services Department and is responsible for overseeing community relations, marketing, communications, supervisory activities, as well as planning and executing major annual events for students and the community. Often, Felicia found herself to be the only woman and person of color in daily technical meetings. She is passionate about changing the faces in information technology (IT). Felicia’s greatest joy is mentoring young adults in disadvantaged communities interested in a career in IT.
Prior to joining Delete The Divide, Felicia held numerous technical and leadership positions throughout her career including technical project manager, information technology specialist, acting departmental information security officer, and Lead of the Departmental Computer Emergency Response Team. In addition, Felicia’s passion and commitment led her to volunteer in various leadership positions for 19 years. She worked directly with the County’s chief information security officer to develop and implement IT security strategies and security posture that is still in place today.
Felicia holds a Dual Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration: Information Systems and Quantitative Systems from California State University at Long Beach. Felicia’s heart to serve started as a young adult while attending college. She became a founding member of the student-led and operated Minority Business Program within the School of Business. She was responsible for implementing programs to provide supportive services such as tutoring, internships and academic counseling for African American, American-Indian, and Latino students enrolled in the School of Business to ensure student retention and increased graduation rates for students of color; the program successfully provided services for over 20 years. Finally, Felicia’s heart smiles when spending time with family and friends. She enjoys beach and park days, concerts, traveling abroad and watching her favorite sports teams compete: the Lakers and the Saints. [/toggle]
