Meet Anthony Edwards Jr., co-founder of EatOkra

Army veteran Anthony Edwards Jr. created EatOkra to help connect users to local Black-owned food businesses. He spoke to Play about the story behind the app, what Veterans Day means to him, and what it’s like working with his wife and EatOkra co-founder, Janique Edwards.

Anthony Edwards Jr.: I always knew I would have a career in tech. As a kid, I would play with robotic Legos and use my parents’ computer to try to teach myself how to build websites using Adobe Dreamweaver. After high school, I went straight to the Army as an Aviation Maintenance Engineer. I served for nine years before being honorably discharged. I graduated from Fordham University with a degree in Computer Science in 2014, then continued my education at a coding bootcamp. From there, I got my first job as a full stack developer.

About a year later, I met my now wife, Janique, who gave me the idea to build an app that would help us find Black-owned restaurants in Brooklyn. Together, we built what is now called EatOkra. I handled the tech stuff and she handled the business decisions, plus data. Coming from two separate backgrounds, our life journeys have given us different points of view, which helps us make great decisions to grow the product and brand.

Serving in the military is one of the greatest and proudest achievements in my life. I truly understand what it means to serve your country – the responsibility and the sacrifices that come with it. Veterans Day is an important day set aside to honor and show appreciation for ALL who have served in the United States military – in wartime or peacetime, living, or deceased.

As we all know, people of the African diaspora have faced systematic barriers to entry from education, housing, and business ownership. I wanted to build something that both raises awareness and can grow a business in the community. Black-owned businesses are important to the community because they hire within the community – they hire people who look like them, and they show up and participate in the community during times of celebration or sorrow.

We believe EatOkra can be a solution that will give restaurants a greater opportunity to survive beyond the first, third, or even fifth year in business. EatOkra will bring the entire community together through Black food and beverage. Through strategic partnerships, we can provide additional revenue opportunities and savings to the business owners.

Dashible, founded by Marvin Johnson, helps New York City business owners find new customers and keep them coming back with Dashible deals, loyalty programs, and text marketing.

For four years, I sacrificed sleep, summer nights, and fostering friendships, among other things. There were many times when I got stuck on a problem for days, if not weeks, at a time. Many people would give up but I kept with it. I thought about the problem a lot, I read books and articles, watched videos, consulted with friends, and eventually I solved my issue.

The military taught me to never settle, to keep trying, to overcome obstacles, to make decisions and own it. I take that same mentality with me in my professional life. Good enough is not enough for me. I'm striving to always be better in my marriage, as a CEO, and as a father to my beautiful baby girl, Bradley. I want to teach her that she can do anything she puts her mind to as long as she never stops and never settles.