Change the Atmosphere
Rose Smith coaches black women about business
By Mandy Shelton | Photography by Nan Dickson
Rose Smith likes to tell women to “walk into a room and change the atmosphere,” and that is exactly what happened when she arrived at the Harker Heights Event Center one afternoon in April.
Murmurs of “She’s here!” circulate throughout the spacious venue, and the casually dispersed crowd begins to coalesce in Rose’s immediate vicinity. These women gather for the monthly meeting of Black Women in Business (BWIB), Rose’s statewide nonprofit organization.
“She goes to every meeting, every month, and events in between,” says Katina Barnett, who runs a religious women’s empowerment group and has been a member of the Killeen chapter since its inception in 2017. Rose crisscrosses the state from her home in Austin to attend meetings of BWIB’s eight chapters, the most recent in Fort Worth. A business, branding and motivational coach, she specializes in helping others turn passion into profit.
When she is not present in person, Rose shares her unique blend of inspiration, networking and sisterhood over social media, where she goes by the handle Coach Rose Smith. A former competitive athlete, she loves to use sports metaphors and is writing a book that focuses on the transition “from fan to field,” encouraging spectators to become part of the game, much as she has done with BWIB.
“Black women are usually the backbone of the family, of the community, of the church—and now we’re doing business!” Rose says. “I think it’s a fantastic time to be a black woman.”
“At first, I was a little hesitant about joining,” Khandiese Cooper, owner of Khandy’s Kamera, says of BWIB. “I was just going to sit tight for the meeting and then gracefully sneak out.” That plan changed once Rose began speaking.
“She sparks that flame,” says Khandiese, who is now the membership chair of the Killeen chapter.
It is a feeling the BWIB founder and CEO recognizes. Living in Austin, Rose noticed that she was often the only black woman in a given room. “I try to make sure people come up with a different adjective to describe me: the excited lady, the well-spoken lady. They’re finding different adjectives, not ‘Oh, it was the black lady in the back.’ That’s kind of my philosophy,” Rose says. “I tell my ladies, when we walk into a room, the only thing we can bring with us is our education, our experience and our upbringing.”
Killeen’s diverse population provides what Rose calls a “sense of home” for aspiring entrepreneurs. “Children have a better chance of seeing a person who looks like them running a business here, which is also going to inspire the community and continue to produce the amazing businesswomen we have in our chapter,” Rose says, listing as an example Killeen BWIB president Carolyn Brown, who owns the Harker Heights Event Center. “The Killeen chapter is definitely one of the fastest growing, most successful chapters that I have,” Rose says.
As the gathering gets underway, Ciara’s “Level Up” plays over the sound system and Rose assumes what the ladies refer to as “her stance” at the lectern. A bit weary from her travels, she makes a request of the group: “I need to pull energy off you today.”
Rose also likes to tell her ladies that giving back is a blessing. “You have to attach yourself to your passion, your cause. A lot of times people will do business with you just because they see you giving back,” she says. “Make sure your gift is at the core of your business.”
Replenished from the atmosphere she herself created when she walked into the room, Rose leads the Killeen chapter in a chant of the BWIB motto: “We are better together.”
If you go
The Killeen chapter of Black Women in Business, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, meets at 7pm each third Friday at the Harker Heights Event Center, 710 Edwards Drive, Suite A. Meetings are free for members, $10 for guests.
BlackWomenInBusiness.org, 512-920-0679, or find Black Women in Business on Facebook and look for @CoachRoseSmith on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
