Introducing the Burns Brothers Launching Africa’s inaugural African-American-Owned Private Club

The Burns Brothers will expand their exclusive membership club, HQ, to Nairobi, Kenya, this summer. This will make HQ the first African American-owned private membership club in Africa. Mike and John Burns of The Burns Brothers created HQ, which is located near Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, D.C.

Mike, a war veteran and Fortune 100 executive, and John, a seasoned attorney and community activist, founded The Burns Brothers in 2020 amid civic instability and a rapidly changing global scene, as stated on their website.

John and Mike founded HQ DC House, a hub for Black professionals seeking to enhance their personal, professional, and social experiences in the city through a sense of community, in addition to their company that houses businesses in communications, marketing, and hospitality, according to 7News.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Mike and John left corporate America to create HQ DC House in April 2023. They aimed to bring people together and activate the community, particularly communities of color, by providing a secure and welcoming space.

The brothers claimed that after discovering The Burns Brothers, they noticed that the majority of their clients who came to their premises to work with them found it difficult to leave.

“What we found is every time we interacted with our clients, especially clients that were focused on multicultural activations or had multicultural senior-level leaders inside the organization, is that they would come [to work with us] – our second floor of what is now HQ was our office – and they would never leave,” Mike told the Tennessee Times.

“They were comfortable being among people who excelled in their job, and they couldn’t do it in a pleasant setting other than a bar, hotel lobby, or restaurant. When we observed that people wanted to stay, we realized that many of them were like us.

“There was no space for people on the rise – at the pinnacle of their careers – to just be themselves and be around other people who had similar aspirations or were at similar stages in their careers.We said, “Okay, there is a great need here.” We have some openings in the buildings where we are activating our current offices, which allowed us to sketch out this larger design for HQ,” Mike explained.

According to 7News, despite the fact that restaurants and businesses in D.C. are closing and violence is on the rise, the Burns Brothers are unconcerned and want to construct a restaurant and art gallery in the city soon to meet the requirements of a diverse population.

Last month, the Burns Brothers announced plans to expand their elite private membership club, HQ, to Nairobi as part of their efforts to capitalize on East Africa’s economic and financial opportunities.

“And so, when we consider how we might come together and bridge the divide between African Americans and Africans on the continent to form this global community. “We thought Nairobi was the best place to start,” John explained.

“Africa’s burgeoning status as a global economic powerhouse, its projection to account for one-quarter of the world’s population by 2050, and Kenya’s emergence as a promising economic epicenter underscore our decision to spotlight Kenya in HQ’s expansion,” he said.

Since its inception in Washington, DC in April, HQ has seen what the Burns Brothers characterize as “a fusion of networking opportunities, development programs, and culturally enriching events” tied to creativity and inspiration.

Celebrities including Kerry Washington, Ava DuVernay, Chris Tucker, and Kirk Franklin have visited HQ DC House.

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