Gary O. Shelton’s late maternal grandfather, Lexington E. Sanders, died when Gary was only four years old and inspired him to become an entrepreneur. Lexington and his brother, Eugene R. Sanders, were landowners in the Jim Crow South, built and operated a funeral home, grocery store, and motel in Monticello Georgia. They also built the community center which has done much commendable work with the youth in Jasper County, resulting in the street Sanders HTS being named in his honor. Following are businesses Gary has acquired, founded, co-founded, merged with, or led:
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), EZ Financial Group, LLC: Helps real estate entrepreneurs and small business owners get their business set up the right way to meet lender and credit issuer approval requirements and provides access to working capital.
Vice-Chairman, Strather Academy: real estate developers teaching the next generation of urban developers.
CEO, With Ownership Wealth, LLC: Black Wealth Matters movement
CEO American Business Angels launch Team: A social finance venture that bridges corporate VCs, hedge funds & other institutional investors to help create a more efficient startup capital market.
Chief Operating Officer (COO), B3C Capital, LLC: Advises technology startup founders on their equity rounds of funding.
Co-Founder, Near Infrared Imaging, Inc.: A medical and biometric imaging device business owned in part by UCLA, City University of New York, and Lawrence Livermore National laboratories.
FMM: Tell us about EZ Financial Group, LLC.
EZ Financial Group, LLC helps real estate entrepreneurs and small business owners to access business credit. This is credit in the business’s name, and it is based on the business’s ability to pay, not the business owners. When done right, it is possible to get some business funding based on a business credit score without a personal guarantee. Also, the business owner, isn’t personally liable for the credit the business gets.
FMM: What resources are you providing to clients?
When clients work with us, they’re not working with a faceless and gigantic banking organization. Right away, they’ll be assigned to their own personal Finance Officer who will work directly with them to develop their Finance Blueprint with all the funding options they can qualify for now.
And, their blueprint maps out the steps to get them even more (and perhaps even better) loans and credit lines in the future. It’s easier when you know what you want and need and how to boost your own business credit profile.
Once our client chooses the funding, they’d like from the options that they can qualify for, our team goes into action working with lenders and investors to get them approved.
Their Finance Officer helps them get approved, negotiates rates and terms, and helps them through all aspects of the funding process until their loan proceeds are in their bank account
FMM: EZ Financial Group, LLC streamlining the process for individuals for financial success?
We provide wealth building strategy for our clients.
FMM: Do you see any trends?
Recently, the National Federation of Independent Businesses released a report on small business economic trends. And that reality is, business owners are concerned. Hopes seem to be getting replaced with the possibility of a worst case scenario.
According to the report, business owners are concerned about the growth of inflation. Other issues include finance and interest percentages, poor sales, and taxes. Contrast this to last year, when they were more preoccupied with the quality of labor.
Interestingly enough, the cost of fuel is not on the list, although energy could be under the overall inflation “umbrella”.
Gary O. Shelton’s unique accomplishments include,
Raised over $5 million with crowdfunding for the first Obama/Biden
Campaign.
Acquired Source One Communications, a long-distance reseller, merged
with Lightcom International, the only Black-American owned facilities-based
telephone company in America, and grew revenue to over $70 million,
providing telephone service to the Department of Defense, the White
House, and Camp David.
Co-Founder, Mortgage America: Sold it to Ocwen Financial
Acquired E3 Engineering, and became a Tier 1 supplier to General Motors,
Ford, And Chrysler. Increased annual revenue from $8 million to $20
million in one year.
Developed Evergreen Estates Apartments (Renamed Renaissance Village
Apartments) 350 units, Detroit Michigan.
Completed 450+ buy, Fix & Flip transactions.
Provided investment advice and strategic planning consulting to The Lewis
Company for the $1 billion acquisition of the Beatrice Companies.
Provided strategic planning consulting to Don Barden the first Black-
American to own a Las Vegas casino and the first to own a major cable TV
franchise.
Co-Founder, Teeze: Won contract to provide design, marketing, and
fulfillment services to the Michigan State Lottery. Negotiated licensing
agreements with Lamborghini and General Motors to design custom logo t–
shirts, caps, leather jackets, polo shirts, sweatshirts, and pants. Then sold
apparel to car dealership service stores, Kmart, and Macy’s.
While still in his twenties: investment advisor to pension funds and credit
unions.
Your portfolio of accomplishments is impressive. You raised over $5 million with crowdfunding for the first Obama/Biden Campaign. Tell us about your experience and what this meant to you.
Barack Obama’s presidency stimulated thinking about new possibilities for race relations in America. I was happy to contribute to the possibilities.
FMM: Tell us about the Strather Academy and how you are helping to bridge the “racial wealth gap.”
I came back home to Detroit from Los Angeles to join my friend, Herb Strather, to mentor the next generation of urban developers. The experience of helping thousands of people to achieve their life goals has been awesome.
FMM: What advances are you seeing towards breaking down financial and socio-economic barriers?
Our life experiences have taught us that it doesn’t matter where you come from. You don’t get to pick your parents. You simply need to have a burning desire to accomplish something, plan, act, learn from your mistake, don’t make the same mistake twice, adjust, and most important never quit.
FMM: Tell us about The Black Wealth Builders Summit. What are some of the takeaways?
We’re challenging Black people to wake up and seek financial freedom by harnessing our $1.6 trillion economy to develop our own businesses and communities rather than be totally leveraged by other ethnic groups.
FMM: What is the key to generational wealth?
Is it possible for you not just to leave your kids better off than you were, but to spark a financial legacy of wealth and empowerment that lasts for generations? Yes, it is. It’s possible to create a family fortune that lives on in perpetuity—benefiting generation after generation after you—and it’s possible to do it without creating “trust fund babies” who know how to spend money and little else. Instead, your wealth can be used to empower future generations. It can act as a launching pad for all of their endeavors, whether professional, academic, charitable or entrepreneurial in nature.
FMM: You are the CEO of the American Business Angels launch Team. Tell us about your work with startups.
American Business Angels was one of my past business endeavors. Unfortunately, Black people tend to not be a part of the tech startup ecosystem either as angel investors or startup founders. Because of my experience with startups I endeavored to increase Black people’s participation.
FMM: What do you want your legacy to be?
I want to help many people live their dream.
