Cheers! This nonprofit uncorks the wine industry for people of color

Ikimi Dubose-Woodson has come a long way in her career since polishing silverware at 15. But the 41-year-old wouldn’t be where she is now — and as devoted as she is to community service — were it not for that lowly gig at the New York Marriott World Trade Center back in 1997.

It was there that she was introduced to her lifetime mentor, award-winning chef Walter Plender, who went on to support her through college at Johnson & Wales , where she received a scholarship through the nonprofit Careers Through Culinary Arts Program .

Now, she’s the CEO and co-founder of the Roots Fund , a nonprofit created to empower communities of color in the wine industry, based in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

“Along with my mother’s giving heart, I have always been connected to giving back in my community,” said Dubose-Woodson.

After completing two degrees, Dubose-Woodson embarked on a whirlwind adventure in Singapore, South Asia and Europe, “studying food through people and culture.” Upon returning home, she realized that while she loved restaurants, they didn’t pay all that well.

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Thus, she decided to forge a career in hotels, and Dubose-Woodson began her career with Marriott and Ritz-Carlton. Over the next 15 years, she opened hotel restaurants, training chefs around the country in international cuisine. In 2010, the versatile chef decided to leave and venture into corporate restaurant groups.

Another career pivot was in store in 2020 when Dubose-Woodson decided to build her own consulting firm, which thrived in the early pandemic by teaching fine-dining establishments how to become sustainable food delivery operations. Simultaneously, Dubose-Woodson was attending Georgetown’s McCourt School of Public Policy , working through the nonprofit executive certificate program, when she decided it was time “to give all my energy to helping others” in the food and beverage industry.

The inspiration?

“When Carlton McCoy Jr., one of four black master sommeliers in the world, reached out to build a beverage scholarship for communities of color in wine, I was eager to help,” recalled Dubose-Woodson. She started the nonprofit Roots Fund two months later, and it quickly became her life’s work.

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Since its founding, the Roots Fund, which is based in Stamford, Conn. with a physical office in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, has worked tirelessly “to secure the pathway for people of color in wine and spirits.” To date, the organization has raised over $2.5 million and created more than 200 scholarships, “to bring years of change and equity into the wine industry” via financial support for education, mentorship and job placement opportunities.

“The Roots Fund is out ‘doing the work,’ to create inclusivity for communities of color in the beverage industry,” said Dubose-Woodson.

Unfortunately, Dubose-Woodson knows the lack of diversity in the food and beverage industry firsthand.
“As I ascended in my career, I can’t recall seeing many women or people of color leading in the beverage field,” she said. “As I look at the power of beverage, being a Top 10 industry for revenue in this country, it should reflect all people. This cause is personal because my career wouldn’t have been as great without scholarships, mentors or support. I want to give what was given to me to others.”

Giving back to the New York City community is especially important to the Brooklyn native. New York is a food and wine mecca, a “perfect market,” complete with countless wine and spirits events and endless connections.

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Consequently, Dubose-Woodson has found it rewarding to see people who benefited from the Roots Fund also pay it forward.

Amy Wright, a wine buyer at Le Dû Wines in the West Village, is an alum — or “vintage scholar” as they are known — of the Roots Fund, and is paying that generosity forward by being a wine educator for the nonprofit.

“We supported her diploma with the Wine Spirits Education Trust ,” said Dubose-Woodson, adding that Wright happens to be one of the smartest people in wine.

“It’s not just through financial support, but also the mentorship and guidance to ensure she is successful,” said Dubose-Woods. “Our program isn’t about hand-holding, but giving industry professionals a level of accountability that breeds success.”

The Roots Fund has supported the careers of over 200 people of color in the beverage industry so far. Dubose-Woodson often finds herself reflecting on the program’s very first scholar, Daren Clark, an aspiring winemaker.

Thanks to the Roots Fund, Clark has lived in France, Italy and New Zealand, studied with the best wine producers around the world and learned French, and is now working for one of Burgundy’s most prestigious winemaking families. To Dubose-Woodson, he’s a beautiful display “of what support can do to change mindsets and cultivate careers.”

But Clark, Wright and the other program participants aren’t just evidence of success in motion. From the high school students they mentor in a “fermenting the future” enrichment program all the way to “wise restaurant professionals,” they’re testaments to the power of a robust support system, beyond financial aid.

“You don’t just receive money with our organization,” said Dubose-Woodson. “You can get a specific support system made just for you. We provide education, mentorship, mental health services, career placement and a chance to have a community around you.”

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