To kick off Black History Month, EatOkra announced a five-year partnership with Pepsi Dig In. The preeminent, user-friendly app connecting people nationwide to Black-owned culinary creators and restaurants will partner with the new multi-faceted Dig In platform to help people discover and celebrate Black-owned restaurants.
“For me personally, Black History Month means reverence. For EatOkra, it means informing our community of users about the contributions Black people have made to the culinary space in this country,” explained Anthony Edwards, Jr., Co-Founder/CEO of EatOkra. “My wife Janique and I are always trying to learn more ourselves, and we want to take people on that journey with us because history provides a lot of context for the present.”
Together, EatOkra and Pepsi are addressing the digital challenges that can hinder success for many Black, independently-owned restaurants – namely exposure. Dig In is making strategic investments to propel growth for restaurants by closing the digital divide. Pepsi’s partnership and significant multi-year investment will help EatOkra scale its app and expand its central database to include even more restaurants. The collaboration comes at a pivotal time as the app’s success has been met with a high demand from consumers wanting to support Black-owned restaurants and eateries waiting to be featured.
“Restaurants need digital visibility to thrive and it’s become a ‘make or break’ situation over the past year. We’re honored to work alongside visionary leaders who saw the consumer and business opportunity to help Black-owned restaurants grow five years ago,” said PepsiCo Global Foodservice Chief Marketing Officer Scott Finlow. “Together we want to multiply EatOkra’s power as the go-to source for discovering delicious menus at Black-owned restaurants across the country.”
Pepsi Dig In aims to generate at least $100 million in sales for Black-owned restaurants over the next five years. With Pepsi’s support, EatOkra anticipates adding 2 million users to its database over the course of the five-year partnership.
