“Dr. Lakeysha “”Key”” Hallmon, EdD, is a transformational social entrepreneur, speaker, civic leader, and author of No One Is Self-Made. Dr. Hallmon is reshaping the future of economic power by building ecosystems where small businesses thrive and communities flourish. She is the founder of The Village Market, Our Village United, The Village Retail, and Village Books, enterprises that have supported thousands of small businesses, facilitated over $10 million in direct sales, delivered services to entrepreneurs valued at over $15 million, and deployed more than $1 million in grants and technical assistance.
Her retail model spans high-foot-traffic locations including Ponce City Market in Atlanta (3.6 million annual visitors), the Google Visitor Center in Mountain View (80,000 annual visitors), and an upcoming storefront at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (108 million passengers annually). Collectively, these strategic placements give small businesses access to more than 111 million potential consumers each year through her groundbreaking Village Retail model.
She partnered with the Atlanta BeltLine to launch the BeltLine Marketplace and served as program partner for both Beyoncé’s BeyGOOD Foundation and the Fearless Foundation. A proud advocate for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Dr. Key serves on the Board of Trustees at Tougaloo College. She also sits on the Board of Invest Atlanta, the city’s official economic development authority, which manages over $1 billion in active investments to foster inclusive economic growth. Appointed by Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, she served on the Women’s Advisory Council and previously on the ethics and procurement committee during the City’s 61st mayoral transition.
Dr. Key’s leadership and impact have earned prestigious recognition: she was named a Forbes 50 Champion, recognized on The Root’s list of the 100 Most Influential African Americans, and honored with the Atlanta Business Chronicle 40 Under 40 distinction. She also received the Atlanta Business League Trailblazer Award and was named one of Georgia Trend’s Top 500 Most Influential Leaders. She is the author of No One Is Self-Made: Build Your Village to Flourish in Business and Life.
Dr. Key has appeared on national platforms including Good Morning America, The Tamron Hall Show, CNN, The Today Show, iHeartRadio’s The Breakfast Club, and Good Day Atlanta. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Essence, Black Enterprise,
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