Hidden Gems: Meet D’Narius Lewis of CornerMarket

Today we’d like to introduce you to D’Narius Lewis.

Hi D’Narius, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in a small town in West Memphis, Arkansas. I’m the younger brother of two sisters, son of a single-parent black mother, an uncle, an entrepreneur, and a life coach. I was not raised in a household where everything was spoon-fed and handed to me, but my mother always made sure we had food to eat and clothes to wear. In no way were we rich; we indeed lived a paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle. I didn’t have many positive African American male role models in my life, and I certainly didn’t always see eye to eye with my mother, but what I can say is she really always did, and does, have my best interest in mind. Before the age of eighteen, I had been suspended from school over ten times from the ages of eight to fifteen. I allowed my anger and my environment, at times, to decide my fate. I used to hang around the so-called “cool kids,” but really, they were the ones that I would get in trouble with because I was willing to be a follower and not a leader.

Deep down, I knew I was making poor choices, but I was lost. The turning point in my life was when I met Bill Soderholm, my high school wrestling coach, who had a lot of faith in me. Through this sport, he taught me to understand what responsibility looked like, showed me what life tools a grown man needed to maneuver in order to lead a successful life, encouraged me to see myself in my best light, and taught me to always stay accountable. Although I barely graduated high school with a GPA of 1.7, I took all of my life lesson experiences with me, and I decided college would be my next step. I encourage you, world changer, to always acknowledge your life, stay humble, remember where you came from, and understand that you do not have to be a product of your environment or a result of what others expect of you. Never let another man create your world for he will always create it too small.

What turned my life and decision-making process around was when I started to recognize that the world views you the way you view yourself. As I started to see myself in a positive light, so did others.

In college, I raised my GPA to 3.5, met friends who didn’t grow up with similar backgrounds as my own, traveled to three different colleges, experienced many different cultures, lifestyles, relationships, some good and some bad, and ultimately decided to live for me. After three transfers, a lot of student loan debt, and an overflow of life experiences, I decided to put a pause on college — one day, I woke up and just knew it was no longer for me. I was sitting in the same math class I had to take for the third time due to my lack of transfer credits, and as the teacher was talking, I was adding up the “real world” math. I started to add up the time wasted sitting in class, the borrowed dollars wasted on classes and books, and time spent following aspirations society had pressured upon the post-high school student culture.

I dropped it all, gave it all up, and decided this is it! That was when I made the choice to become a full-time entrepreneur. I became a business owner for myself. Not only was I the CEO of my own company, but I decided to become the CEO of my life. No matter how hard the struggle and sacrifice, I knew I had and would make it, no matter what.

From 2016-2022 I spent these years rebuilding my life. At the age of 23, I had to file chapter 7 bankruptcy after spending years failing my way forward trying to make life work. All while becoming an activist standing up against oppressive systems while advocating and helping raise the minimum wage in St. Paul, Minnesota, alongside The 15 Now Campaign to $15 an hr. I had the chance to interview multiple influential political figures and introduce the Philando Castile family at the opening of The Philando Castile exhibit at Minneapolis Institute of Art. I sat on the multicultural advisory committee of the Brooklyn Center Police Department for 6 years, building relationships with police officers, which gave me the idea to create my own film.

I created a documentary and political movement called #PoseWithACop to help change the narrative between policing and community. All while doing my best to start a business in which I successfully did during covid alongside my business partner Ekeze Enubuzor. We created our company Optimum Outreach in which the company logo stands for “Two Black Men Putting Their Heads Together For Collective Change.” With us deciding to do more and give back we did so by doing numerous homeless survival kit drives, food donation drives, and we gave out $50,000 worth of Men suits to people in need in St. Paul, Minnesota.

In 2022 I got tired of the political climate of Minneapolis and moved to Los Angeles in April of 2022. Since arriving in LA, life has turned around a complete 360; as soon as I arrived, I began networking and building genuine relationships. I began meeting the change-makers in the city and built some genuine relationships. I hosted a free Intro To Defi workshop biweekly in Koreatown at Crypto Friday’s helping people new to crypto create daily passive income in the crypto space. After having success in this field in August of 2022, I was able to retire at the age of 29 years and fully focus on community givebacks and creating a lifestyle where I can empower others through my testimony and knowledge.

With all these years of experience, it led me down the road to become the CMO of CornerMarket. CornerMarket is a Web3 marketplace that connects customers with local merchants while helping business owners save time and money on fees. We aim to be the bridge for Web 2 & Web 3 to be able to purchase real-life items in cryptocurrency.
As I spend these next few years developing my philanthropy arm to my lifelong empire. I plan to use my experience building a decentralized platform with CornerMarket to my advantage to tackle & dismantle the establishment when I run for President of The United States in 2028.

My life experiences have led me to become the CMO of CornerMarket, a cutting-edge Web3 marketplace that connects consumers with local businesses and aims to be the bridge between Web 2 and Web 3 technologies. We aim to develop a decentralized platform that prioritizes transparency, efficiency, and user empowerment. Armed with this experience, I plan to use my expertise to challenge the status quo and dismantle traditional power structures when I run for President of the United States in 2028 as the leader of the United States of DAO political party. By introducing fresh and innovative policies and governance methods that harness the power of decentralized autonomous organizations, or DAOs, we can create a more equitable, inclusive, and accountable society that prioritizes the needs of the people rather than those of the establishment.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Building a decentralized platform is no easy feat, but what makes CornerMarket’s efforts truly remarkable is the company’s commitment to supporting and empowering small businesses. By creating a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), CornerMarket has embraced a challenging but highly rewarding approach to organization that offers numerous advantages over traditional business models, including greater transparency, accountability, and efficiency.

Despite encountering obstacles along the way, such as team members departing and the challenges of the startup phase, the team at CornerMarket has persisted in their efforts to build a successful platform and business. Through determination and perseverance, they have overcome these challenges and continue to thrive. The result is a platform that not only serves as a valuable resource for small businesses but also embodies the ideals of decentralization and empowerment that are at the heart of the blockchain movement.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
CornerMarket is a revolutionary platform that leverages blockchain technology to help small businesses eliminate swipe fees, which can be a significant burden for them. Swipe fees, also known as interchange fees, are charged by payment processors every time a customer makes a purchase using a credit or debit card. These fees can add up quickly and eat into a business’s profits.

By using blockchain technology, CornerMarket is able to cut out the middlemen and provide a direct connection between businesses and their customers. This means that there are no payment processors involved and therefore no swipe fees to worry about. Instead, transactions are processed directly on the blockchain, which is a secure and decentralized digital ledger.

In addition to eliminating swipe fees, CornerMarket also helps businesses receive USDC as a form of payment for their products and services. USDC is a stablecoin that is pegged to the US dollar, which means that its value is always stable and predictable. This makes it an ideal form of payment for businesses, as they don’t have to worry about the volatility that is often associated with other cryptocurrencies.

CornerMarket has also created an online marketplace that connects businesses directly to their consumers. This marketplace is powered by web3 technology, which is a decentralized and open-source framework for building decentralized applications. By using web3, CornerMarket is able to create a platform that is truly peer-to-peer, where businesses and consumers can interact and transact directly with each other.

CornerMarket is a game-changing platform that is helping small businesses thrive by eliminating swipe fees and providing them with a secure and efficient way to receive payments. With its online marketplace and web3 technology, CornerMarket is making it easier than ever for businesses to connect with their customers and grow their business.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Success is not achieved by giving up but by pushing through the discomfort and challenges along the way. Whether you’re looking to build a successful business or improve your personal life, it’s essential to build a strong network of contacts. By getting out and meeting people who are working in the same space or occupation as you, you’ll be opening up a world of possibilities.

Networking is an invaluable tool for discovering new opportunities, gaining insights and knowledge, and finding potential collaborators or mentors. It’s important to put yourself out there and engage with others, even if it feels uncomfortable at first. As you connect with people and build relationships, you’ll gain valuable insights and perspectives that can help you achieve your goals.

So, if you want to achieve success, don’t give up when things get tough. Instead, push through the discomfort and focus on building your network. Get out and meet people in your industry, attend conferences and events, and don’t be afraid to strike up a conversation. With the right mindset and a willingness to connect with others, you’ll discover all the possibilities that life has to offer.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cornermarket.co/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cornermarketapp/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087488453626&mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/corner-marketco/mycompany/?viewAsMember=true
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/CornerMarketApp
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq49huiZyHfpH8GkQg0XkHw
• Other: https://beacons.ai/cornermarketapp 

Image Credits
Photos by CornerMarket