Nation's Leading African American Entrepreneurs And Corporate Executives To Gather In Atlanta At The 20th Annual Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit

Steve Harvey, Lisa Nichols, and more to keynote at the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit in Atlanta, GA May 13-16

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May 11, 2015, 05:46 ET

NEW YORK, May 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --BLACK ENTERPRISE will kick off the 20^th annual Entrepreneurs Summit hosted by Nationwide on Wednesday, May 13 through Saturday, May 16, at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia. The three-day power conference, which brings together more than 1,000 of the country's leading entrepreneurs and corporate executives, is designed to provide attendees with the innovative strategies and networking opportunities critical for their businesses to reach the next level of profitability.

Confirmed speakers include:

Steve Harvey, Entrepreneur, Media Personality, Comedian and Author
Lisa Nichols, CEO, Motivating the Masses
Roland Martin, Journalist, Host, News One Now
Paul Judge, Managing Partner, Judge Ventures; Adviser, Opportunity Hub
Michael Lee-Chin, Chairman and President, Portland Holdings Inc.
Cris Carter, NFL Hall of Fame Inductee; ESPN Anchor; and Chairman; Carter Brothers Security Services
Ken Coleman, Chairman, Saama Technologies; Special Adviser, Andreessen Horowitz
Wes Moore, Author, Founder and CEO, BridgeEdU
Don Peebles, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Peebles Corp.
Reginald Hudlin, Writer, Film Director, and Producer
Necole Parker, Founder and CEO, The ELOCEN Group
Jermaine Dupri, CEO, So So Def Recordings
Samuel Gilmore, Founder and President, Overnight Success Inc.
Tom Chikoore, Founder, Techstars Risingstars Program; Founder, Startups Illustrated
Kim Kimble, Celebrity Hairstylist, Owner, Kim Hair Studio and Kimble Haircare System
Chris Bennett, Co-Founder and CEO, Soldsie; Founder, Black Founders (NewME)
Lamman Rucker, Actor, Educator, and Activist
Egypt Sherrod, HGTV Host; CEO, The Egypt Sherrod Real Estate Group and Author

"As the U.S. economy is recovering, African American businesses must restore their momentum by aggressively positioning themselves to exploit new opportunities, seize emerging markets, and gain new access to capital," says BLACK ENTERPRISE President & CEO Earl "Butch" Graves Jr. "With this goal in mind, our Entrepreneurs Summit is designed to provide business owners with the tactical thinking, innovative strategies, and networking opportunities they need to reach that next level of profitability."

The 2015 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit boasts high-powered sessions on critical business topics such as How to Secure Millions for Your Business, Need for Speed: Accelerating Your Tech Startup, The Art of Raising Money, and It's Called Show BUSINESS, and. We will also host a special solution-focused Town Hall, Black Males Matter.

For the aspiring entrepreneur, The Small Business Success™ Boot Camp offers practical advice on how to take your business to the next level. Plus, the Black Enterprise Elevator Pitch Competition will award $10,000 for the best new business idea.

"Nationwide is proud of our relationship with Black Enterprise and excited to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this outstanding event," said Terrance Williams, executive vice president—chief marketing officer, Nationwide. "This is a great opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to minority businesses and to multicultural communities. Connecting with the attendees at this conference is important to us – it's part of what Nationwide's promise to be On Your Side^®is all about."

For the first time, attendees of the 2015 Entrepreneurs Summit will also have the opportunity to tap into all the latest BLACK ENTERPRISE developments taking place in and around the Summit courtesy of the new dedicated BE Events app. Available for free on Android, iOS and other smartphones (attendees with Windows and BlackBerry devices can go here), the app allows visitors to access the full event schedule, browse the event social media updates, receive information on the speakers taking part in the Summit, as well as develop a personal event planner to remind them of their must-attend sessions. It also features a detailed interactive floor plan to help attendees navigate the session rooms as well as keep attendees fully up-to-date with the latest developments through a link to the #BESummit social media tag. Attendees will also receive push notifications in the event of room changes and BLACK ENTERPRISE giveaways.

To download the app for free, visit the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

The 2015 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit hosted by Nationwide is presented by American Express OPEN, AT&T, Georgia Pacific, KOCH Industries and Walmart. Platinum sponsors include Chevrolet, Cigna, FedEx and Southern Co. Corporate sponsors include The Coca Cola Co., and Delta. For updates, follow Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit page on Facebook and search the #BESummit hashtag on Twitter.

BLACK ENTERPRISE, your ultimate source to build Wealth for Life, is the premier business, investing, and wealth-building resource for African Americans. Since 1970, BE has provided essential business information and advice to professionals, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and decision makers. Every month, BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine provides 6 million readers with information on entrepreneurship, careers, and financial management. A multimedia company, BE also produces television programming, business and lifestyle events, Web content, and digital media. Visit www.blackenterprise.com for more information.

About Nationwide
Nationwide, a Fortune 100 company based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the largest and strongest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the U.S. and is rated A+ by both A.M. Best and Standard & Poor's. The company provides a full range of insurance and financial services, including auto, commercial, homeowners, farm and life insurance; public and private sector retirement plans, annuities and mutual funds; banking and mortgages; pet, motorcycle and boat insurance. For more information, visit www.nationwide.com.

Nationwide, Nationwide Financial, On Your Side, and the Nationwide N and Eagle are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.

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