In the world of entrepreneurship, few stories exemplify determination and purpose quite like Antonio McBroom’s. From humble beginnings as an ice cream scooper to becoming Ben & Jerry’s youngest franchisee and building a $20+ million business empire, Antonio’s journey offers powerful lessons for aspiring business owners, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. 

The Bold Question That Changed Everything

Antonio’s entrepreneurial journey began with what he calls a “smart question” – not just intelligent, but Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Reachable, and Time-bound. As a college senior in 2008, instead of asking the ambiguous “What if I could own a franchise someday?” Antonio asked himself: “What would it take for me to buy this franchise by the Sunday I graduate this year?”

This time-bound specificity transformed a distant dream into an immediate action plan. “That’s what made it a bold endeavor,” Antonio reflects. While many laughed at his ambition, he treated the project like a senior thesis, creating a comprehensive business plan and completing all necessary due diligence.

Two days before graduation – which happened to coincide with Mother’s Day – Antonio became the first person in his family’s history to own a franchise business. For his family, including his mother who was only the second person in their family to graduate college (from North Carolina A&T in the 1980s), this achievement represented a dramatic shift in their trajectory.

Selfish Servant Leadership: The Core Philosophy

At the heart of Antonio’s business approach is what he calls “selfish servant leadership” – a philosophy that has helped Primo Partners, his management company, grow to oversee an annual business of more than $20 million.

“We want folks who are true servant leaders at heart, who put others’ highest and most priority needs first,” Antonio explains, “while at the same time acknowledging that, like they say on airplanes, ‘before attempting to assist others in case of an emergency, put your oxygen mask on first.’”

This balanced approach has allowed Antonio to attract and retain exceptional talent while maintaining a workplace culture that stands apart from competitors. The philosophy extends beyond business operations into the very purpose of his entrepreneurial journey.

From Self to Community: Expanding the Mission

What began as a mission to change his family’s financial future evolved into something much larger. After achieving financial success that exceeded his early expectations, Antonio found himself asking: “Can I continue to create growth opportunities for people like me?”

This question has become the driving force behind Primo Partners’ expansion. As his team grew from 12 to several hundred employees across the Southeast, Antonio’s vision of community expanded accordingly.

“At first, the focus was so much on my intimate family,” he says. “Now I look at my community as the larger community of potential franchisees, leaders, and aspiring and developing leaders.”

This expansive vision has led Antonio to share his experience through professional speaking engagements and his book, also titled “Selfish Servant,” available through major retailers including Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and as an audiobook narrated by Antonio himself.

A $10 Billion Legacy Vision

Antonio’s ambitions extend far beyond his own business success. He’s working toward a “$10 billion-plus legacy impact on Black business excellence” – a vision that combines building a remarkably successful, inclusive business with creating pathways for other entrepreneurs.

“I think there’s such a gap to access the key information needed for success in the Black business community.” “My hope is that through my work, through my professional speaking, through my books, and through building a business and showing what’s possible, other entrepreneurs won’t take as long as it’s taken me to achieve levels of success.”

For Antonio, this mission is about removing “vision blockers” – the limitations that come from not seeing examples of success from people with similar backgrounds. “So much of my life was spent with guards in my mind because I didn’t know it was possible for someone who looked like me, from a background like mine, to do what I’m doing now.”

Faith-Centered Business

Antonio’s business philosophy is inseparable from his faith, which he describes as “at the center of everything.” This spiritual foundation extends to his international missionary work through his church, with ongoing projects in the Dominican Republic and Guatemala.

“That’s just this integration of my faith and spreading the Gospel, particularly to communities and children who need that sense of inspiration and hope the most,” Antonio explains. He sees this global service as “a small token of me giving back with all the blessings I’ve been given.”

This faith-centered approach has become integrated with his business leadership. One of his proudest moments came when his three business partners joined him in the Dominican Republic for missionary work – a perfect embodiment of his selfish servant leadership philosophy in action.

Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

For those considering franchising as an entry point to entrepreneurship, particularly individuals from underrepresented backgrounds, Antonio’s advice is characteristically practical and ambitious:

“Ask the big questions. Ask the smart questions,” he urges. And perhaps most importantly: “Look at every 12 weeks, every 90 days, every quarter like it’s its own year.”

This approach to goal-setting – breaking ambitious targets into manageable 90-day projects – has been key to Antonio’s success. “If you set an ambitious target like, ‘I want to buy this franchise in the coming year,’ it’s just a 90-day project, one after another. And then, before you know it, you’ve done something that a lot of folks thought was impossible.”

The Next Generation

Looking ahead, Antonio is most excited about the impact his work will have through the next generation of leaders he’s mentoring – including his business partners, managers, and even his high school freshman daughter.

“I think they’ll be in remarkable places to take this thing to the next level,” he says. “I’m excited to be able to pour in and mentor them even more.”

With his proven track record of turning bold questions into remarkable achievements, there’s little doubt that Antonio’s vision of creating a multi-billion-dollar legacy of Black business excellence is well within reach.