For Chicago entrepreneur Early Walker, building a successful business was never just about making money. His journey from a modest investment in a used tow truck to running a multimillion-dollar operation has been closely tied to his commitment to creating opportunities and supporting communities in need.
In 2013, Walker used less than $10,000 from his Chicago Public Schools pension to purchase a used 1984 Ford F-350 and launch W&W Towing in the city’s South suburbs. What started as a one-truck operation grew rapidly. By its second year, the company was generating nearly $300,000 annually.
At its peak, W&W Towing had 23 trucks, 12 drivers and 17 municipal and public-sector contracts throughout the Chicago Southland. The company averaged more than $1 million in gross sales annually during its final five years, becoming one of the region’s larger minority-owned towing businesses.
Walker eventually sold the company, but the story took an unexpected turn when the company that acquired it hired him back. Today, he uses that experience to discuss the importance of negotiating from a position of strength and understanding the value of a business before making an exit.
His entrepreneurial success, however, has unfolded alongside a decade-plus commitment to philanthropy.
Walker founded I’m Telling Don’t Shoot, a nonprofit focused on violence prevention and community safety. Its tip line helped Chicago police recover a loaded assault weapon within its first month of operation.
His philanthropy has also extended beyond Chicago. Walker has personally funded and delivered disaster relief in Flint, Michigan, during the water crisis, assisted Houston residents following Hurricane Harvey and provided support to an HBCU in Memphis during a winter-storm water crisis.
Closer to home, his efforts have included covering emergency housing for families displaced by fires, paying funeral expenses, organizing holiday grocery giveaways and providing Christmas gifts for children who lost parents to gun violence.
The work has earned recognition from former President Barack Obama, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and former Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
Walker now brings together his experiences as an entrepreneur, investor and community advocate to offer a broader perspective on Black business ownership and philanthropy.
His story offers lessons on bootstrapping a company, securing government contracts, navigating the sale of a business and giving back while still building wealth.
For Black Business Month and Black Philanthropy Month, Walker’s experience provides an example of how entrepreneurship and community investment can exist side by side — demonstrating that building a successful business can also create an opportunity to strengthen the communities that helped make that success possible.