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Meet Davonne Reaves of The Vonne Group in Downtown

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Davonne Reaves.

Davonne, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My smile and the power of yes ultimately got me my start in the hospitality arena. I was fortunate enough to meet the Director of Rooms of the illustrious Hyatt Regency here in Atlanta, and he asked this broke college student, with whom he saw potential if they wanted a job. Of course, I said, “YES.” My days started as a front desk agent, but through my 10-year tenure in the hospitality industry, I was also able to work in Hotel Operations, Hotel Asset Management and Development, I even conducted feasibility studies.

It was a long windy road, but I knew there was more for me out there. I began working as a non-paid intern for a development consulting company on the side while working full time at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, that introduced me to the corporate side of hotel ownership and the commercial side of real estate. It was my experience here that exposed me to hotel owners. As I continued to say yes to new opportunities, I was presented with the opportunity to go to Boston, Massachusetts. I was offered an associate position at the Nation’s largest third-party hotel asset management company in which I was the only African-American in the entire company. While at CHMWarnick, I was working on asset portfolios upwards of $1 Billion. I was so excited for the opportunity to be in the space to work with a different class of Real Estate, even being honored as a Top 30 under 30 Hotel Professional. But as I looked around in Boston, with this amazing opportunity, I began to feel lonely at the top. I needed fulfillment and purpose.  I started my own hotel consulting firm advising clients to develop hotels.

A friend of mine reached out to me asking my opinion on a hotel they were looking to buy back in my hometown of Atlanta. Two hours into the conversation, I realized what was missing from my experience, the opportunity to help others to diversify the field of hotel ownership. It was then I knew my purpose, and I had to get back to Atlanta. That was when The Vonne Group was born. My passion for hotel ownership and hotel consulting is ultimately what lead me to the path of entrepreneurship.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
While I was working for corporate, I traded my time for money. When I started my business, I was paid by results. When I first moved back to Atlanta, things were flowing. I was featured in hospitality press articles, and the clients were flowing in. But as fate would have it, my father got sick (back in my birthplace of Philadelphia, PA), and my grandmother took ill down in SouthwestGeorgia. Just as I began writing my book and expanding the company to take on more clients, I had to now travel back and forth as the caregiver for both my dad and my grandmother. My father passed away shortly after getting sick, and just as life was settling down, I found out I was pregnant.

Where do I go? What do I do? Should I just go back to corporate and get a steady paycheck? I had clients, but as a solo-preneur, I had to be the accounting department business development, marketing, and PR. Even dealing with the billing of the clients I did have to make sure they were paying their invoices on time. It was rough. I remember one night barely making into my grandmother’s house when I burst into tears. “I just can’t take it.” I thought about giving up, but she looked me in my eyes, at the ripe age of 91-years old and reminded me of who I am… I am the Legacy of my father. I am a Reaves, and we don’t give up.

I knew the power of partnership, and in order to succeed, I had to find a partner with skills that complimented mine. That’s when I started Epiq Collective with my business partner, Jessica Myers. Together, we created a Commercial Real Estate Investment Fund that focuses on acquiring Commercial Assets, like hotels, value-add apartments, and commercial buildings.

Please tell us about what you do.
I am very passionate about Real Estate and Ownership. The Vonne Group specializes in hotel consulting and development with an emphasis on market research.

Being a person of yes, I began taking speaking engagements at different colleges around the country, and I noticed, I was being asked the same questions over and over by the students/young professionals desiring to break into the industry.
“How do I find a mentor?”
“Where should I go to look for jobs?”
“How do I look for scholarships?” and so on. My self and my co-author, Dr. DeQuan Smith, decided to answer these questions with our book, “Tidbits for the Emerging Pineapple Professional.”

While the Vonne Group helps to empower others to own Commercial Real Estate, I was often asked by investors that were inspired, how can they own, when they don’t have millions of dollars. That’s when I started Epiq Collective, a partnership with a friend from Georgia State University. We wanted to give people who wouldn’t normally have access to invest in multi-million-dollar commercial real estate projects, the chance to do so.

Our quality, service, and experience set us apart from the rest. Losing my father and becoming a mother, has helped me to realize the importance of legacy and generational wealth. As I handle his affairs, I’m excited to build that same network for other budding investors.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over, I would probably go to more entrepreneurship classes. Because there, I probably would have learned the value of business credit. I may have learned to pay yourself consistently from your business to establish business credit and payment history which is extremely helpful when trying to obtain personal or business loans.

I would have initially partnered with someone else, because together you can do epic things, and two minds are sometimes better than one. Especially when strategizing or executing a plan.

Pricing:

  • $19.99 – Tidbits for the Emerging PineappleBook

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Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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