JoAnne Sabir has made her mark on Milwaukee as a community development leader and entrepreneur. She currently serves as an advisor at American Family Insurance, but is better known as the co-developer and co-founder of Sherman Phoenix.
The central city entrepreneurial hub houses 25 Black-owned businesses, which have approximately 150 employees, and has raised $4.1 million to date from venture philanthropists and impact investors.
In 2017, Sabir was recognized as BizTimes Milwaukee’s Best in Business Community Leader of the Year for her leadership of the Sherman Phoenix project.
Sabir is also co-owner of Shindig LLC, a fresh-pressed juice company that she started with her husband, Maanaan Sabir, almost a decade ago in Milwaukee’s Lindsay Heights neighborhood. The business has scaled production and recently launched an online store to distribute its juices nationwide.
Sabir will make her debut as a mogul on the upcoming season of local Shark Tank-style show “Project Pitch It.”