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When The Gathering Spot opened the doors to its first brick-and-mortar location in Atlanta in 2016, there was an understandable amount of hype surrounding the advent of a private, members-only club catering to the Black community of business owners, community stakeholders, entertainers, political figures, and more.
Best of all, the company was Black-owned and co-founded by two bright-eyed Georgetown graduates, Ryan Wilson and T’Keel “TK” Petersen. The professional network’s growth was fast-tracked by investments seemingly overnight, though both men can attest to years of sacrifice helping to make the organization become recognized across the country. That sweat, equity, and determination paved the way for many entrepreneurs’ dreams of being acquired in six years.
In May 2022, it was announced that TGS was purchased in a multimillion-dollar deal by Greenwood, a digital banking platform catering to Black and Latino communities. By that time, TGS had clubs in Los Angeles and Washington D.C., and satellite communities in several metropolises, such as Detroit and Houston.
Though the partnership was short-lived, concluding in December 2023 with the re-installment of Petersen and Wilson at the helm of TGS, the mission remains the same: To be intentional about convening Black professionals who are actively working to shift the world for the better.
In an exclusive chat with REVOLT, Wilson says that among his vision for the future, is to make it clear that the concept of “Black excellence is about continuing to promote more excellence across the community, not some specific group of us that that’s reserved for.” Read more of what he has to say about where TGS is headed in the interview below.
This era of The Gathering Spot is about “all of us,” so what was the first iteration focused on?
Yesterday was -- I don’t want to steal from Michelle Obama -- but it was becoming, right? It was [about] formation. It was us trying to figure out — again, I started this when I was 24 and the idea that it was going to be rooted in community, that was there from the start. But we had to make a lot of things; we had to come together. We had to mold that thing over time.
When I say, “In this season, it’s about all of us,” a big part is making sure you understand that TGS is a community asset. I want more people, folks that are interested, to be able to own that asset.
We’re in an election cycle, and politicians come through The Gathering Spot to speak to people who want to know, “What can you do for me?” So, it seems everything fell into place at the right time after falling apart.
A thousand percent. Look, on the political front, it’s agenda setting, right? So, yes, let’s hear from these politicians and see why they’re running for office and, ultimately, what their vision is. But at the same time, what is our vision? There are a lot of things at stake right now. This is a very, very serious time for small-business owners. It is a very serious time for folks that work in a corporate context.
That’s TGS’s role. It always has been.
I think a lot of folks, when you’re first introduced, you think of it through the lens of space and workspace, and event space, and restaurant space. That actually is not the mission of the organization. It never has been. It’s about convening and building community.
Have the voices of entrepreneurs been tapped into by politicians, other leaders, and big businesses who need Black dollars?
I think that there’s definitely been engagement. Are we there? We’re nowhere near; I don’t even know where there is, but we’re not at that place.
When we started TGS, so much of the conversation around small businesses was starting them… This season, for me, and where I think we have to stay focused, is about scale. We have to get our businesses to higher heights. We have to have more REVOLTs.
I want Black folks, when it just comes to employment, to have options. That’s where we’re at. Real, meaningful options… that are competitive as whatever other option may be out on the market. And unfortunately, that is not everyone’s reality… I don’t imagine a world where everyone needs to be working at a Black-owned organization, but I don’t imagine this world either where most people will never have the opportunity to. And that’s statistics — the stats show us that, statistically, you will not work at a Black-owned business in your lifetime, given [that] 96 percent of our businesses don’t employ anyone. So, we’ve got to disrupt that, and that is what I’m coming back to do, among other things… We can make a difference.
What hurdles do you anticipate as a disruptor in a time when DEI initiatives are being challenged at every level?
I guess the entrepreneur in me doesn’t look at it that way. I look at it as there’s a ton of opportunity, right? I sincerely look at it as we’ve got to put the work in because the desire for us to want to see it happen means confirmation that it should. So, it is really about execution and not about any other force. I don’t believe there is any force stronger than a community coming together on an issue.
For some of this stuff, like, we have to get there, right? And so, if you look at it from that perspective, we have to. Our companies have to scale. We have to make sure that the advancements that we’ve made in the DEI space, we have to make sure those happen because, unfortunately, the consequences if we don’t … that is not a world where my two kids can live.
After organizations like the Fearless Fund received pushback for excluding white and Asian people from accessing capital specifically set up to help Black female entrepreneurs, is there concern about TGS facing similar backlash?
I’m not introducing a new frame here. I’m just being clear about no, I don’t spend my time thinking about what middle-aged white men are looking for in a city club experience.
My work is focused on middle-aged Black men and mostly women, and young women, and young men, and senior folks — that’s my focus. The Black folks. And I do not think that in this moment we should get shy about the fact that the Fearless Fund specifically supporting Black women, the most underfunded group of anyone... that we get into a space of being concerned at all that, that work isn’t legitimate or is unfair.
This idea of creating spaces where we come to be self-congratulatory and exclusive for the sake of it... That is not what The Gathering Spot is about. It is not ever what The Gathering Spot has been about. We have to engage [in] the things that are meaningful to our community at every single turn.
What does supporting TGS and its mission look like?
We need you to bring who you are to the table. Right now, diversity, equity [and] inclusion [are] being attacked. Well, there are a number of DEI professionals within The Gathering Spot community — all markets. I need them to help inform that discussion.
Participation is lending the thing that you are passionate about professionally, the thing you are passionate about personally, to the community and doing so knowing that we are better off with that contribution than we would be with it not being shared.