African American Golf Expo & Forum introduces minority businesses to supplier diversity opportunities for a common good
ATLANTA, Ga., MAY 2022: Invited (formerly known as ClubCorp), the leading owner-operator of private golf and social clubs in North America built on the central purpose of growing diversity and equity through Building Relationships and Enriching Lives®, and American Soul Brothers, a veteran/certified minority-owned gourmet barbeque sauce company, have announced their partnership to advance opportunities that grow minority and women-owned companies.
Invited CEO David Pillsbury and American Soul Brothers met at the Inaugural African American Golf Expo and Forum held in Atlanta this past August. One of the objectives of the expo was to introduce minority businesses to supplier diversity opportunities across the golf industry. Pillsbury was impressed with American Soul Brothers sauces and equally impressed by the perseverance of co-owners Kevin Shirley and Omar White. They have had manufacturing, marketing, and a team for nine years but still haven’t advanced in the market.
“Distribution was the continuously missing piece,” said Shirley. “It’s been a lot of pounding the pavement and making connections that ended in empty promises.”
Pillsbury was surprised by their story. Two weeks after their meeting, Pillsbury sent a team to American Soul Brothers to establish distribution connections with Avendra and US Foods.“
Invited’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is to foster a culture that values and champions diversity and is ultimately free of discrimination and oppression of any kind,” said Pillsbury.
“This is a great opportunity to showcase the quality of our product to the Invited family, Shirley said. “We look forward to working with the Invited team to establish a long-term relationship. We appreciate the leadership of David Pillsbury and his executive team for making this opportunity a reality. In addition, US Foods is one of the main distributors for Invited, and they’re also looking to partner on this endeavor.”
Invited and American Soul Brothers will further strengthen their relationship with the common goal of building meaningful relationships that model opportunities for minorities and women. The partnership will also work with youth in their communities to teach them the world of business entrepreneurship through golf.
About Invited
Since its founding in 1957, Dallas-based Invited has operated with the central purpose of Building Relationships and Enriching Lives®. The leading owner-operator of private golf and country clubs and city and stadium clubs in North America, Invited is relentless in its pursuit of providing extraordinary experiences, meaningful connections, shared passions, and memorable moments for its more than 400,000 members. With approximately 20,000 peak-season employees and a portfolio of 200 owned or operated golf and country clubs, city clubs, sports clubs, and stadium clubs in 29 states, and seven BigShots Golf locations. Invited creates communities and a lifestyle through its championship golf courses, workspaces, handcrafted cuisine, resort-style pools, tennis and pickleball facilities, golf lounges, fitness centers, and robust programming.
Marquee Invited properties include:
Firestone Country Club (Akron, Ohio); Mission Hills Country Club (Rancho Mirage, California); The Woodlands Country Club (Houston, Texas); and The Metropolitan Club (Chicago, Illinois).
About American Soul Brothers
American Soul Brothers is a certified, minority-owned/veteran-owned, clean ingredient gourmet barbeque sauce and spread company. From their bases in Atlanta Ga. and Vancouver, Wash., they create clean-ingredient products that are low/zero sodium, low-fat/zero fat, and low in sugars—pour them on everything from tofu to pig. In addition, American Soul Brothers has giving back to their community built into their business model. Their social entrepreneur program teaches business-minded youth the benefits of entrepreneurship and doing business the American Soul Brothers way by valuing relationships over transactions. Healthier barbeque comfort foods and giving back is why Heart and Soul in Every Bottle™ is printed on every label.
To learn more about American Soul Brothers, go to AmericanSoulBrothers.com and pour on the soul.
