Love and Business: Stan and Chereace Richards

Power entrepreneurs Stan and Chereace Richards are redefining what it means to be successful and in love. With a growing business and an appreciation for helping others reach their dreams, the Richards fully embrace the notion of being in love and in business, and happily confess that you CAN have it ALL!
Growing up poor in Washington D.C.’s inner city, Stan, who was raised in a single parent home, knew no luxuries and relied on public assistance to get by from day to day. Reading only on a sixth grade reading level and having no aspirations to be create his own business opportunities, Stan’s goals were limited to working for someone else. However, after years of employment with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Stan honed in on his business strengths by teaching himself the ins and outs of entrepreneurship and discovered a way to be profitable from the growing D.C. nightlife scene. In 1992, Stan created the Positive Black Men Coalition (PBMC), bringing together the top figures in city nightlife to host upscale entertainment events.

Chereace, also a D.C. metropolitan area native, knew from early on that she would not follow the status quo. She excelled in school and received degrees in computer science. Chereace’s focus and dedication to her career allowed her to go from IT Specialist to Software Sales Engineer, more than quadrupling her salary, in less than five years. This success, however, was short-lived after a sudden lay off forced Chereace to reevaluate her life and motivated her to act differently. At that moment, she realized that working for someone else wasn’t what she wanted for the rest of her life.

Stan and Chereace quickly realized that they wanted more out of life, for them and the betterment of their family. After spending years trading hours for dollars, the couple began a career in the direct sales industry in 2006 and quickly rose to the top of the company. This move gave them both the mental boost and challenge they needed, and the means to leave their corporate fulltime jobs where they were working diligently for someone else.

Stan and Chereace’s individual and collective successes have been featured in several national media publications, including Black Enterprise, Success From Home, Your Business at Home, and The Washington Post Magazine, and have gained the attention and admiration from a large number of peers. Stan, a master entrepreneur in various industries, urges people to challenge themselves by tapping into their talents to create their own business enterprises, while Chereace’s mission is to empower women to use faith, focus and action to tap in to their authentic personal power and live the full lives they are called to live. Stan released his inspirational autobiography, From the Bus to the Bentley: No More Limits, in March 2011 and Chereace is working on a book to inspire women to go after their life’s purpose. She believes that women can run a successful business, raise a happy family, and still have time for them selves.

Together and individually, Stan and Chereace travel all across the country speaking to entrepreneurs and business owners on topics including, but not limited to, building successful organizations, practicing teamwork, embracing the journey to achieving your dreams, and showing couples how they can be happy in love and in business. Their messages are ones that resonate with many generations and walks of life. Their mission is to change the world one person at a time and show families how to break the curse of poverty on future generations.

To be in love and in business is indeed a blessing, and after 11 years of marriage, the Richards are still growing and learning together. As they work to build a legacy for their sons, Stanley, Jr., 10, and Isaiah, 5, they never forget to give praise and thanks to God for making all of their dreams come true, allowing them to work part time and live full time. The Richards’ ventures, in love and business, are successful because they are firmly grounded in faith and purpose. For this power couple, the possibilities are endless!