Today we’d like to introduce you to Apryl Fort.
Hi Apryl, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
Hi, thank you for having me. As a former commercial banker for 15 years, I knew I was on a path to become President of the bank one day. It was the path I had made up in my head to use my skills to one day operate a black-owned bank. I knew it was the journey I was on and trailblazing like the other black women I looked up to in the financial world, like Mellody Hobson, Kiko Davis, Roslyn Houston, and Tashunda Duckett’s of the world.
One day, my “new” boss came to me and said, “People are impressed by you, but I am not impressed. You don’t impress me.” I felt my eardrums and heart break into pieces. This sent me into a spiral of depression. I honestly didn’t know what to do at this point. It was already hard being a woman in commercial banking, but more so being a black woman made it 10 times harder. There are not many of us in the Commercial Lending Field. Matter of fact black people only make 3% of the commercial banking industry, and 2.5% of that 3% are men. I took a leave of absence from work to get my mind together. Mentally, I was no good. How could someone without the finance degree, accounting degree take away all I had worked for in school and in the field. I literally laid in the bed all day while my kids were at school. I was newly divorced, soon to be out of a job, and mentally drained.
While lying in the bed my friend Tamir “Nokio” Ruffin called to check on me, and he said he always saw me as an executive and felt I should run a company. I really didn’t know what I was going to do at that point, but I knew if I never wanted to be spoken to like that again, I had to create a space for people like me. Tamir told me to come work with him in the meantime on projects for his record label where he has written the most incredible songs for groups like Dru Hill, Trey Songz, DMX, and many more. We then started a CBD line call Nokalicious that we received a little traction, but while watching his live before one of his Dru Hill shows he was drinking tequila. Now, he drank tequila all the time, and I would tell him I hated the burn of tequila. I joked and said you should have your own.
Later that day, I started looking into owning a tequila company and what it took. I researched and found a company based out of Mexico that would let me work on a formula. Tamir offered to buy me a purse and a watch for all my hard work during the year for him, but instead, I took the money along with the remainder of my retirement account and I invested in me this time. I knew that would be the only way I could prove to myself that I was impressive, and I was motivated by all the women who were told they weren’t “Impressive” for no reason.
I learned so much about tequila that it became a passion for me. I was able to create a formula that even those with certain illnesses in my family could enjoy it because it was 100% a plant-based. NO SUGAR! I learned how to remove the burn and even the hangover. I was able to create a product with my manufactures that not only was better than 99% of those I tasted before but was made for everyone to enjoy!
N-Finite is a testimony to strength, resilience, passion, and success! I am proud of our amazing partnership with the Hard Rock Cafe in Baltimore, where we had our R&B Karaoke night this summer featuring Dru Hill, and we are currently in a partnership with the Baltimore Ravens to be proud partners, as well as the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks. We are currently working to bring the N-Finite Nights experience to Scott Gertner Rythm Room by the end of this summer. You can order us in 38 states as well as find us on the shelves in 6. Check out our website https://n-finitespirits.com/ for more details on where to find us.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not at all; there are a lot of barriers in the spirits world. I think I have been turned down more than when I was brace-faced and trying to find a date to prom! (Just joking) but seriously, the hardest part is finding a distributor in each state that is willing to take on your product and really work it into the market, especially being a new product is always hard.
You literally have to find people who are passionate about your product and believe in you and that others will, too!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
Sure. N-Brands, Inc. is comprised of three parts. We have N-Finite Spirits, which consists of N-Finite Blanco and Reposado. We have the N-tity, where Nokio does the music, and we have N-Productions, where we create content for television and YouTube.
Our products are actually really good! Our Agave Spirit is definitely the best on the market. Everyone who drinks it first words are always, “It’s smooth” every single time! N-finite will make you enjoy drinking. You won’t need a lime! The lack of burn and no hangover makes drinking N-finite different.
I am super proud of N-finite Nights. Not only did the partnership with the Hard Rock make my dreams come true, but we also gave participants a chance to sing with their favorite R&B artists and make their dreams come true. When I saw the different people on the stage singing their hearts out, I felt full.
Thank you again for the opportunity to share a little about my life and work.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was always a big dreamer as a child. I always told my granny, Vinez Fort, who was my biggest cheerleader and still my favorite person to walk the earth, that I would one day talk to Oprah. Oprah was her favorite. I loved everything cheer, gymnastics, and entrepreneurship. One time, I had cut the comics into sections and tried to charge my brothers a quarter to read them. In 8th grade, I had a math teacher named Mr. Dew; he was the first to challenge me and make math fun. He would put a problem on the chalkboard, and if you figured it out, he would give you 50 cents. I loved soda that much that we couldn’t afford it, so I would catch a ride with my grandmother, Meme, who worked in the cafeteria so I could go to his class early, figure out the problem, and sell the answer to others so I could have more money and buy a soda for home as well. He finally caught on to me and offered me a case of soda a week if I stopped giving his answers away.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.n-finitespirits.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nfinitespirits/
Image Credits
Brian Pride Photographer
