Seshat Walker, owner of The General Store
Seshat Walker uses tech savvy creativity to help budding entrepreneurs, “especially people who look like me and people who are underserved,” she told the AFRO, Sept. 14.
In 2005, Walker founded The General Store, a D.C.-based agency that works with independent artists, organizations, and small businesses to come up with big ideas. “My philosophy is ‘make do,’” she said. “Ever since I was little, I’ve known that everything around you can be used to build greatness.”
A main ingredient in Walker’s recipe for success is the Internet. Whether accessing information about licenses and tax exemptions or marketing products through websites and social media, reliance on virtual resources is necessary for today’s small business owners. “The main issue in working with older African-American entrepreneurs is getting them in the mindset that you have to use the Internet if you want to compete and keep your business open,” Walker said.
A resident of Deanwood in Northeast D.C., she has witnessed many small business owners starved for resources. “It’s unfortunate,” Walker said, “because there’s a digital divide, they might miss out on a grant that a new restaurant on H Street might get.”
In meeting with a client for the first time, Walker stresses the importance of utilizing existing relationships to build an online presence. “You already have your own arsenal and you can go to those resources to create and build your business,” she said.
Walker also works with clients to present their brands in the best light. “I try to pull out what makes each person different and each business unique from the business next door,” she said. “And in those stories, you find that thing that’s going to be the center of their brand.”
Walker assures clients that using the Internet doesn’t have to be an overwhelming experience. After one client learned to manage her emails and communicate through Twitter and blogging, that was enough, she said. “I told her you don’t have to use every channel that’s out there – find what works for you and you use it.”
A native of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Walker studied print journalism and political science at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She then moved to the District and began her path to providing strategies for innovative projects. In 2013, she furthered her education, earning a masters in design management at Savannah College of Art & Design.
“I’ve volunteered since I was 12 so it’s just natural for me to want to help people,” she said. “But now that I understand what my skills are and what I’m good at, it’s exciting to help people build their own businesses and see their passions fulfilled.”