SHE became the first woman of color to own a hotel in Memphis, a city with a predominantly African American population, in 2022.
Duke Ventures LLC, a real estate investment firm founded by Amina Gilyard James and her husband Norland James, a U.S. Army veteran, in 2019, tested the hospitality market during the pandemic in 2020 by investing as a limited partner in a Hilton-branded Home2Suites in Oklahoma.
The couple made another passive investment in a Hilton-owned Hampton Inn property in Georgia in 2021 before acquiring their first property – a 70-room Quality Inn in the Raleigh neighborhood of Memphis, Tenn., for $4 million in 2022.
“Five years ago, while juggling a 9-to-5 job, I explored franchising, gyms, and restaurants,” she recalls. “Conversations with Indian American friends revealed the hotel business's potential for family entrepreneurship. I was drawn to hospitality entrepreneurship as it offered the combination of business operations and real estate ownership.”
As a Black woman in an industry where fewer than 2 percent of hotels in the U.S. are owned by Black people, and even fewer by Black women, Amina faced numerous hurdles due to her identity and relative newness to the business. A major challenge for Amina was securing lending. Some lenders didn’t take them seriously, and others advised against pursuing hotels. They ultimately opted for an SBA loan, which was still challenging.
“Navigating the lending process was arduous, but we persevered,” Amina told the Women of Color Power List 2025. “Institutional discrimination is prevalent, especially in banks and some brands. Long-held biases against certain communities pose significant challenges, and I’ve certainly faced this type of discrimination. For people of color, we often must work twice or even three times as hard as our white counterparts to achieve the same progress.”
Amina's family roots in the U.S. trace back to the era of the slave trade. Raised in Queens, a New York City borough, she is a second-generation college student from an inner-city background. Her father, Dr. Keith Gilyard, was the first in his family to pursue higher education and is a professor.
Finally, her participation in the 2022 She Has a Deal Pitch facilitated the deal, enabling Amina to secure funding for her hotel acquisition and showcase her leadership nationally. The Memphis project attracted 30 new hotel investors, including African Americans and Hispanics, many of whom were first-time investors.
“The SHaDPitch competition and its curriculum gave me a deep insight into the hotel industry, providing a roadmap and network essential for understanding hotel acquisition and ownership,” she says. “The SHaD equipped my company to make informed investments.”
Amina is dedicated to her community's development. At their Quality Inn, situated in a predominantly Black neighborhood, she prioritizes diversity among their staff to mirror local demographics. The hotel intentionally hires individuals from various backgrounds, including Indian Americans, Hispanic Americans, and African Americans.
Through Duke Ventures, Amina fosters opportunities for minority entrepreneurs in hospitality, championing diversity by cultivating a varied workforce and advocating for underrepresented voices in the industry. The first two hotels she and her husband invested in as limited partners are owned by Black women, a deliberate choice.
While Amina knows Black hotel owners in her personal network, she recognizes that outside this circle, hotel ownership isn't widely known as an entrepreneurial path. “A lack of African American participation in hotel franchising often stemmed from perceived or actual resource and knowledge gaps,” Amina says.
“I'm uncompromising about preparedness and knowledge,” Amina adds. “In my current partnership group, which includes three Black women and two Black men, I emphasize being well-informed and proficient in industry concepts. We must leverage our opportunities by being knowledgeable and prepared. This focus on knowledge, influenced by my educational background and our collective struggles, has shaped my leadership approach.”
Amina earned her doctorate in human and organizational learning from George Washington University, and holds a master of education in health education and a bachelor of science in biobehavioral health from Pennsylvania State University. Additionally, she is a Gallup-certified CliftonStrengths coach and a certified health education specialist and served as an adjunct professor in organizational leadership and learning at George Washington University.
Meanwhile, the couple plans to acquire two to three more hotels in the South, East, and Mid-South regions, potentially expanding into the Midwest. They are acquiring a hotel in Lake Charles, La., and recently completed their first successful fundraising campaign on Vester, a Black woman-owned crowdfunding platform.
“Following our acquisition of the Quality Inn, our next endeavor will likely be our only full-service hotel,” says Amina. “Subsequent acquisitions will focus on limited-service hotels. Ultimately, we aim to transition to development projects, though this is a gradual process. Our initial deal was a straightforward acquisition, while our current project involves a conversion, requiring renovations and a brand change. This presents new challenges, especially with implementing a property improvement plan.”
Looking ahead, the couple aims to explore development opportunities, potentially venturing into independent boutique hotels or soft-branded establishments such as Marriott Design or Hilton Curio. These ventures offer greater creative expression and upscale offerings, marking an exciting progression for their portfolio.
“We aim to focus on Hilton and Marriott properties, like Hampton Inn, Fairfield, or Home2 Suites,” says Amina. “While we've worked with Choice and Wyndham properties, we see greater potential in the Hilton and Marriott brands. Our modest $4 million investment in the Quality Inn was our entry point, teaching us valuable lessons and setting the stage for further growth and success.”
While Amina focuses on strategy, her husband oversees logistics and asset management, including interactions with property managers. The couple adopted Joshua, born to a Japanese mother and African American father. “We're dedicated to ensuring he experiences diverse cultures as he grows, nurturing his fascination with Asian cultures, especially Japanese culture, and guiding him to understand and appreciate it,” she smiles.
Speaking about challenges as a woman entrepreneur, Amina said, “During our first hotel acquisition, the seller would only engage with my husband, ignoring my efforts to communicate. This challenge wasn't just about race but gender; as a woman, it was difficult to establish rapport and have my voice heard as a buyer. This struggle persists in the hospitality industry, especially for women in leadership and ownership roles.”
“In our current deal, with a larger investment of around $12 million, I still encounter skepticism when representing myself in meetings with lenders, sellers, or brokers,” she adds. “Even the seller questioned my husband's absence, assuming I needed male representation. It's disheartening to face such biases, highlighting the need for more women in leadership roles within brands and across the industry. Though progress has been made, there's still much work to be done.”
In 2019, Amina published her first book, “Power 31: A Working Guide to Goal Setting and Progressing with Purpose.” With a passion for coaching and certification as a strengths coach, she designed the journal to aid individuals in setting goals, featuring inspirational quotes, and focusing for 31 days to track their progress.
“For newcomers to hotel ownership, understand that success doesn't come overnight,” she emphasizes. “Know your stuff. While some hotels may generate substantial revenue, they're not a quick path to wealth. Hospitality is a long-term commitment that requires genuine passion. It's a challenging field demanding perseverance and dedication, evident from the myriad tasks and challenges faced daily. So, persevere, become well-versed in your field, and remember that success in hospitality is a marathon, not a sprint.”
