Dawn Dickson

Award-Winning Entrepreneur | Technologist | Real Estate Developer | Keynote Speaker | US Department of State Speaker | Forbes Next 1000 | INC 100 Female Founders
Dawn
Dickson

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Traveling from

Ghana, Africa

About

Dawn Dickson is an award-winning entrepreneur, pioneering technologist, visionary real estate developer, and sought-after global keynote speaker whose work spans continents and industries.

She is the Founder and CEO of PopCom, a trailblazing company in automated retail technology credited with introducing facial detection and AI to vending machines. Her innovations have been recognized worldwide, and she holds a patent for the PopShop, an innovative robotic storefront dubbed “the iPhone of vending machines.”

A recognized voice on entrepreneurship, emerging technology, and global business, Dawn has been invited to speak on behalf of the US Department of State, sharing her expertise with audiences across the globe. She has also testified before a US Congressional Committee on Small Business on the benefits of blockchain technology, underscoring her standing as a thought leader at the intersection of policy, technology, and entrepreneurship.

Dawn’s entrepreneurial journey began in 2001 with the launch of TheUrbanStarr.com, one of the first entertainment websites in the US, which grew to over 100,000 users in Central Ohio and pioneered email marketing in the region. In 2011 she launched Flat Out of Heels, a women’s shoe brand that generated millions in revenue and gained celebrity endorsement. In 2017 she founded PopCom to solve data collection challenges in retail automation.

Her fundraising efforts made history. She became the first female founder globally to raise over $1 million via equity crowdfunding, and is among the first 25 women in the US to raise over $1 million in venture capital, with over $7 million raised to date from more than 10,000 investors worldwide.

In 2022, Dawn relocated to Rwanda and expanded to Ghana, fulfilling a lifelong dream of living on the African continent. She now lives bi-continentally while maintaining ties to the US.

Through D1 Consulting, she leads luxury real estate development and investment across Africa, and since 2024 has facilitated over $10 million in property sales in Ghana and Rwanda, including the cultural landmark Oasis Beach Resort in Cape Coast. She has helped founders collectively raise over $50 million and serves as a mentor with the Bola Ray Entrepreneur Institute in Ghana.

Dawn’s accolades include Forbes Next 1000, INC Magazine’s 100 Top Female Founders, OBWS Entrepreneur of the Year presented by Snapchat, the Technology Pioneer Award, the Tech Trailblazer Award, the Diaspora Enrichment Award for Real Estate, and coverage in Forbes, Inc., Black Enterprise, Fortune, Fast Company, MSNBC, CNBC, Essence, Harper’s Bazaar, and The Breakfast Club.

She is an angel investor, a 400-hour yoga teacher trainee, and most proudly, the mother of her daughter Nia, whom she homeschooled from second grade through graduation.

CREDENTIALS & RECOGNITION

US Department of State Speaker

Congressional Testimony, US House Committee on Small Business (2020)

Forbes Next 1000 | INC Magazine 100 Top Female Founders

OBWS Entrepreneur of the Year, presented by Snapchat

Technology Pioneer Award (WEDO, 2022) | Tech Trailblazer Award, Black Women Talk Tech

Diaspora Enrichment Award for Real Estate (2024)

Columbus Smart 50 CEO (Smart Business Magazine, 2021 & 2022)

As seen in: Forbes, Inc., Black Enterprise, Fortune, Fast Company, Essence, Harper’s Bazaar, MSNBC, CNBC, The Breakfast Club

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Topics

Topics

AI for Small Business Growth

Built Differently: Building a Business and Fortifying Yourself Against Collapse

The Good, the Bad & the Ugly of Crowdfunding

The Bi-Continental Career and Lifestyle: How to Do What I Did in Ghana

Women In Business

Videos

https://youtu.be/HpFBOxyFh60
Dawn Dickson - Entrepreneur, Inventor, Innovator
https://youtu.be/6hqPWYy9fx0
Who is Dawn Dickson?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_SGmhxEgBs
Dawn Dickson: Sought after speaker on entrepreneurship, investing, and equity crowdfunding
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTD4VnlEW4
A Serial Eentrepreneur's Dance to a Breakthrough Party Product
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gih8D7K39A4&t=119s
Technology Pioneer Award
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BixtPRx-es&t=582s
The Breakfast Club: Dawn Dickson Talks Small Business Growth, PopCom, Vending Machine Retail + More
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN7mFXO2Axs
Fireside Chat with Mr. Wonderful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oejOtgPDkLU&t=15s
The Breakfast Club: Dawn Dickson Talks The Black Tech Community, Breaking Barriers In Black Business + More
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPLg26kNA7g
World Blockchain Forum (Dubai)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y44NAunjNXw&t=1805s
Building Blocks of Change: The Benefits of Blockchain Technology for Small Businesses (Dawn starts at 30:07 till 34:55)

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