ABOUT
The Becoming
of The Digital Diplomat™
Known as The Digital Diplomat™, W.E. Da’Cruz believes eCommerce and exports help drive economic development. Awarded the 2021 Minority eCommerce Firm of the Year by the U.S. Department of Commerce MBDA, she is the cofounder of the Virtual Global Consultant (VGC) Group, a global digital consultancy that designs and develops eCommerce systems and mobile applications that help generate revenue online for entrepreneurs, companies and organizations.
Through the use of digital tools and technologies, she and her partner Naomi Cook are responsible for helping to generate millions of dollars a year in at-will donations and business sales for VGC clients, with a special focus on African-based companies and faith-based organizations. As an internationally recognized tech expert and thought leader in her field, she’s been invited to speak at high level events, such as the US-Africa Business Summit (Maputo, Mozambique), World Export Development Forum (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), Africa Fintech Summit 2019 (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), and DHL eCommerce Conference (Accra, Ghana).
Appointed by the White House’s US Secretary of Commercial Services to the District Export Council in eastern Michigan and At-Large Board Member for the national association, she continues to promote global entrepreneurship worldwide. She’s previously secured more than $30K in grant funds to travel to countries such as Malawi, Uganda and Ghana to teach digital technology to entrepreneurs.
W.E. has also served as an International Consultant for the development and delivery of an online training course on technology and innovation for African businesses in addressing the impact of Covid-19 for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
As The Digital Diplomat, her current research topics and interests include the impact of Web 3.0: NFTs, cryptocurrency, metaverse, virtual reality and blockchain to facilitate economic growth in the US and Africa. Her mission is to help governments and institutions develop policies that strengthen the positive impact of digitalization globally.
Most recently, she launched a plant-based burger patty made from mushrooms with her husband called Cruz Burgers. Within months of launching online, Cruz Burgers has expanded to 11 stores in the metro-Detroit area. She plans to use her new experiences in the food industry to support agribusinesses and consumer goods products in the US & Africa.
A proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., the Ghanaian-American New Jersey native is a wife and mother of three currently residing in Detroit, Michigan.
Key Offerings
of The Digital Diplomat™
For Entrepreneurs
Individuals interested in launching business that crosses country borders and for those pursuing entrepreneurial endeavors. Here’s information and tools to get started and scale. This is an opportunity to understand the global marketplace and how you can create your own lane.
For Organizations
Whether virtually or in front of large audiences, book me to teach and speak about digital technology and entrepreneurship, job creation, lowering unemployment rates and more. From local to international speaking engagements, I provide nontraditional and innovative ways to activate all listeners.
For Globalists
Engage in projects and missions that impact people from around the world and make long-lasting changes. From addressing youth mobilization to women entrepreneurship in underserved communities, my business and international experiences bring value to any team.
Instagram @wedacruz
To think it’s just the beginning …. Lord, we trust you and we thank you for what is already done. 🙏🏾
Repost from @eatcruzburgers
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One year ago today, we launched our eCommerce marketplace and began pre-selling our patties online.
We’d been working for months prior perfecting and sampling our recipe to whoever would try it in the midst of the pandemic all while obtaining the necessary licensing to start selling.
It’s been a journey that’s often difficult to put into a few words. From homeschooling the children during the pandemic to teaching them how to start a business to Chef Dom transitioning from his career as a business lender to jumping head on into the business to having another baby (Jubilee) to vending at @easternmarket and then @a2market to securing shelf space in 11 stores across Michigan, it’s been quite a journey in the short one year. And to think it all started from the Daniel’s Fast a few months before we knew the pandemic was going to be a pandemic.
We’re excited to complete our first year with the acceptance of another chain of stores that will push us closer to one of our goals - nationwide distribution so we can get products to all our amazing customers and supporters outside of Michigan.
We’re headed to the American Food Fair also known as the National Restaurant Association show in a couple of days to exhibit to hotel, restaurant and other grocery store buyers in the US and abroad.
We wouldn’t have made it this far without all our early adopters and customers who continue to purchase and sample our products and give us feedback. We appreciate you so much.
We also want to thank the @fairfoodnetwork for providing us funding and coaching from JPG Resources. We look forward to continuing our relationship with both organizations.
And all the many other coaches @itsalliball and mentors and advisors, both official and unofficial, we thank you.
PS Who remembers when they were called Angel Burgers? 🤣🤣#KeepCruzin with us! We love y’all. - Da’Cruz Family
KEEP PLANTS IN PLANT-BASED FOODS. Try our clean-label patties made from mushrooms. Order online at https://cruzburgers.com/buy or find in stores/farmers markets @rivertownmktdet @woodwardcornermarket @bridgestmarket @capitalcitymkt @argusfarmstop @westernmkt @westbornmarket @a2market.
Swipe left to hear a taste-timonial 🙏🏾!
Repost from @eatcruzburgers
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Cruz Burgers… a plant-based burger patty made from mushrooms. We never thought we’d launch a food company, but here we are Cruz Burger family. We’ve been assigned this divine mission to create clean-label meat alternatives made from mushrooms and that’s what we will do no matter what’s in front of us. This is an appreciation post to all our original samplers before we launched in the market and to all our faithful customers. We got an important email yesterday with another chain accepting our product 🤯🙏🏾🙌🏾 and we’re so grateful. We needed a push to keep going and we got that dose of encouragement in the knick of time because …. 😅 ..this is hard. We’ll announce the details once all the compliance and paperwork is completed. Know that if you don’t see a post or engagement on our account, we’re busting our butts behind closed doors to scale…smart. We’re just an ordinary family committed to extraordinary things while we’re on this side of the earth. We appreciate all of you! Please visit our stores and continue to help us move products off the shelves. Building locally but impacting globally. 🙏🏾 Website: https://cruzburgers.com/buy of Find in stores/farmers markets @rivertownmktdet @woodwardcornermarket @bridgestmarket @capitalcitymkt @argusfarmstop @westernmkt @westbornmarket @a2market
Brick by brick or more like patty by patty #trustheprocess #godspeed @eatcruzburgers
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Thank you @foodinstitute for inviting us to speak on one of your latest livestreams and giving us a platform to share more about our #plantbased #meatalternative #madefrommushrooms! Swipe left for a read a piece of the article quoting @thedigitaldiplomat.
JUBILEE ☺️ #7MONTHSOLD #BABYMODEL #HAIRMODEL
🗣THE POWER OF CHOICE. IF YOU’RE FEELING STUCK, CONSIDER THE FACT THAT POSSIBLY YOU’VE STOPPED MAKING CHOICES.
Repost from @rivertownmktdet
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Say hello to the @eatcruzburgers family! 👋 Dominique and W.E. started Cruz Burgers (a family business) during the pandemic, and here at Rivertown, we're SO GLAD that they did. These made in Detroit "burgers" are made primarily of mushrooms, allowing customers to be flexible with healthier food choices without sacrificing taste, nutrition, or convenience.
Dominique is more open, and a lover of mushrooms and W.E. was more reserved and did not initially eat mushrooms. Hence where the 💡 of Cruz Burgers came from. The English word for Cruz translates to "cross," which makes PERFECT sense as Cruz is a cross burger, where people can cross paths – vegans, vegetarians, and meat lovers alike can sit at the same table and enjoy the same table meal.
We have to mention these patties are gluten-free, soy-free, and, most importantly, kid-friendly! Grab a burger in aisle ten, and let us know what you think. #RivertownMarket #SupportBlackOwned
You may feel like you’re up against the impossible - literally - but keep building.
Find us in the frozen plant-based meats section of the grocery store nearest you. Check Store Locator for details. Link in bio.
Stocking our @eatcruzburgers with my children.
📸 @rivertownmktdet
Black History Month is hitting differently this year.
And not because I'm reading about new extraordinary past and present heroes who have pioneered in their respective fields to impact change in their communities and around the world, but because we've been able to glean from their lessons to truly begin to write our own story.
From Garrett Augustus Morgan (Inventor of the three-position traffic signal) to Valerie L. Thomas (Inventor of the illusion transmitter), a common theme that threads Black Hero stories together is their commitment to go beyond reasonable service. To take their gifts outside their home to serve people and places they had no prior relationship with in spite of the unknown.
Nearly 6 years ago, when @domdidash told me we were moving to Detroit, MI from our home on the East coast, I was devastated because we had no relationship with the state or city. At that time, it was just him and I and our eldest daughter who was one years old. To leave everything we knew, our community and our home as young parents and professionals was truly the unknown.
Fast forward to now, we've grown as a family (adding 4 year old Geody and 6 month old Jubilee to the crew) and we've also grown the vision to impact our city, our state and communities beyond our immediate proximity through @eatcruzburgers .
Neither of us food entrepreneurs until recently when we launched our first SKU, a plant-based burger patty made from mushrooms, at the height of the pandemic, like our fellow Black Heroes , we've committed to take our recipes outside our home and go beyond reasonable service to help other families come together through healthier eating.
Our journey has only begun but we thank our store partners like @rivertownmktdet by @meijerstores for capturing our journey in this photo and highlighting us this month. Currently, you can find us in 11 stores across Michigan or order online https://cruzburgers.com/store-locator/.
If I can leave you with anything to support your journey, it's that sometimes you have to let go of what you know to come into something greater in the unknown. What God is getting ready to give you is connected to what you're willing to let go.
🗣 A mentor once said to me, “God is always willing, but are you?”
Since that moment, I stopped adding this phrase in my prayers: “God willing..”
This is because …
The gap between where you are today and where you want to be has very little to do with God often, but everything to do with what are you willing to let go and let God.
For us @eatcruzburgers, it was releasing meat from our diet. It was instituting fasting as a lifestyle. We had no idea that a fast from meat would catapult the launch of our first SKU, a plant-based burger patty made from mushrooms. In less than a year, we’ve secured selling at 11 retail stores across Michigan.
We have a hefty goal to reach 100 stores by the end of the year. God is willing and we are too! Are you? If you had any inclination of the emails and calls we’ve gotten this week about Cruz Burgers, you too would be able to see how close we are to that goal. 🙌🏾😭
Swipe left to see our store locations! Visit our site cruzburgers.com to learn more and be part of our journey. Let’s get our patties into all the homes across the world. It starts with a purchase from you. Thank you in advance for supporting this vision!
Ask for Cruz Burgers 🍔 @westbornmarket @westernmkt @woodwardcornermarket @capitalcitymkt @bridgestmarket @rivertownmktdet @argusfarmstop
🗣 Don’t let your circumstances stop you from hearing. God speaks to you in the desert.
I am the original owner of this minted #NFT from the Alien Ape Yacht Club numbered 02164.
It was stolen from me. Here’s my story and warning: Don’t fall for the NFT scam.
Link in bio for full story.
🗣 YOUR BREAKTHROUGH IS IN THE ASK
🗣BABIES BIRTH BLESSINGS BUT NOT WITHOUT LABOR PAINS (SWIPE LEFT TO SEE WHY WE FIGHT 🙄 #5MONTHOLD)
Let's get right into it. Swipe left to see how we went from a cookie cutter to a patty-o-mattic machine for @eatcruzburgers.
Ever feel like your growth is stunted? No matter how you move or what you do, there is no visible progression? Whether it's loosing an extra pound or merely getting to your meetings on time, your ability to breakthrough and meet your goals feel stunted?
If you feel stuck at your current level, experiencing the same thing over and over again, whether you are in business or not, let's explore the power of building systems.
With the cookie cutter, we made no money from our patties. In all fairness, we weren't selling them, only sampling. With our burger press, we began to generate revenue. We officially launched our website May 2021 and began shipping nationwide. We were able to generate a healthy 5-figures in our first few months of sales. Within those initial 6 months, we were able to begin selling into 5 stores across Michigan.
Remember, wealth is like oxygen. It's all around us. The difference between how much you have vs the person next to you is dependent upon the difference in your systems.
Link in bio to read full article to learn how we are working towards our 6-7-figure goals.
Gosh, have you ever been frustrated because your circumstances just don't reflect your consciousness? You feel everything around you is moving except for you? Except for your dreams and goals?
I've found over the years that this becomes my reality when I sit on my gifts. We've all been given many gifts in life but it's our responsibility to activate them - all.
This year, I promised myself that I would lend my voice in a more meaningful way within my areas of expertise. I've known since I could remember that my writings/speeches - whether in the form of poetry when I would slam at the famous Nuyorican Cafe in New York or submit to a contest at school - could move mountains and create breakthroughs.
I've known that getting into trouble as a child because "I talked too much" was mere practice for the work I'd be doing today as an entrepreneurial storyteller (just made up that phrase, I think it works).
Today, I published my first post on "Exports". Exports is a fancy word for selling (goods or services) to another country for sale. For all my business owners, it is my belief that you start local but the end goal is to finish global.
I share why in this post titled "Here's why exports will make you dance". Thanks for lending your ear. Click link in bio to read full piece. Then, swipe left to see more pictures from the wedding too.
THE PEACE YOU CANNOT BUY BUT CREATE
Repost from @eatcruzburgers
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We left the East Coast almost 6 years ago by a leap of faith and moved to Detroit, MI with no family or friends (or connections) as young newlyweds and parents to a 1.5 year old. We can thank Chef D @domdidash for that wild and crazy 😜 vision that’s only making sense some years later. Neither of us food entrepreneurs prior to now BUT turned around in the middle of a pandemic (while giving birth to our 3rd child) launched a plant-based burger patty made from mushrooms and launched across the state into stores within 6 months. People ask how are we doing it? We get up everyday and handle our responsibilities as parents and spouses to one another. Then together, we move on the vision because where there is vision, there will surely be provision. #Keepcruzin, we’re just getting started! Don’t you dare stop at the start of your vision! We’re crazy but only crazy faithful 🙏🏾! #madeinmichigan #madeindetroit #globalbusinessrevolution
I lost my whole self somewhere along the journey.
Perhaps..
After I got married young and close friends and family questioned our actions.
Or after I found out about my first pregnancy unplanned during my graduate program.
Or after I received 30 plus job rejections after my masters program.
Or after I moved back into my old room in my mothers house and filed for unemployment as a newlywed and new mom.
Or after my husband unexpectedly decided to move us to a new city with no family or friends.
Or after prospective clients turned down our proposals as a new company.
Or after team members you pour your heart and soul into unexpectedly transition from your company.
Or after clients decide to not pay your invoices on time so you can pay your bills to take care of your family even after working hard on their accounts.
Somewhere along the journey, I lost my whole self.
Or so I thought..
Not realizing the entire time, God was teaching me how to be whole by allowing me to be broken.
Reminder: Every season has its assignment for your life. This is what it looks like to stay the course and make it to the other side.
If you got used to me operating at 10%, this is your reintroduction to W.👏🏾E. 👏🏾 Da👏🏾Cruz👏🏾. I figured out how to turn my 10% to 100%. I’m tired of giving out my power. You go create yours too. #unapologetically #lockedin
📸 @jermme
💄 @abaforewa
💇🏾♀️ @styles_by_nea
👗 @soukandsepia
On behalf of our entire family, we are happy to announce that we welcomed our daughter Jubilee Aba Gyaema Da'Cruz on Thursday, August 19, 2021 full of hair. She was so kind to allow her older sister Autumn Eve to enjoy her birthday just two days prior before putting me in active labor. My daughters now share a birthday week. This is going to be fun.
We're both home and healthy. Thanks for all the warm wishes, messages, gifts, flowers sent to the house, prayers and love.
It's been quite the transition these last few days nursing around the clock while preparing our other two for the start of school this week and pushing out @eatcruzburgers orders, but we wouldn't ask for it to be any other way.
Thank you Lord for entrusting @domdidash and I on this journey together and we pray the life of our child is a blessing onto you as she already is to us.
In a later post, once I muster up some more strength, we will take the time to fully explain the meaning of her name for us.
Until then, do know I will get back to everyone that has messaged me over time. I have unplugged a bit while I care for our newborn and myself. Thanks for understanding.
Waiting on our baby sister like … we about to show you how it’s done ‘round here 😅
#fullterm #praiseGod #baby3 #dacruzpartyof3 #allfiresigns #cruzburgerbaby
