Magugu Davis Is the Director of the Urban League’s Black Business Hub: Taking Care of Business in South Madison
Magugu Davis is originally from Richard’s Bay, South Africa, located on the coast of the Indian Ocean in the KwaZulu-Natal province.
By Jonathan Gramling
Magugu Davis, the director of the Urban League of Greater Madison’s Black Business Hub — commonly referred to as The Hub — left paradise for love and opportunity.
“I was in the city of Richards Bay,” Davis said. It’s on the east coast on the Indian Ocean. It is very beautiful. It’s like paradise.”
Richards Bay lies in the KwaZulu-Natal province, the home of the Zulu language and culture.
Davis originally was interested in education, got her degree and taught high school students. This was at the time when Nelson Mandela was leading the movement against apartheid and led to Mandela being elected the first Black president of South Africa, a very exciting time that spurred people to aspire to greater things. For Davis, that meant the world of business.
“I moved and worked for a mining company,” Davis said. “And I studied public relations. I was doing public relations. I then worked for an IT, state-owned company. I studied at a business school and did my management course there. I studied communications, public relations. And when I became the COO of the Chamber, I was running an organization, which is similar to The Hub. We had the foundation, which had property and we had tenants in the property and ran a business.”
Richards Bay had a sister-city relationship with Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Davis has been working with the mayor and helped host the Milwaukee delegation when it came to Richards Bay. Davis’ future husband was a member of the delegation. The following year, Davis led a delegation to Milwaukee and fell in love.
“I came in April,” Davis said with a laugh. “The weather wasn’t that bad. And Milwaukee is on a lake. I thought, ‘This isn’t too bad.’ And then I came here full time in December and saw the snow. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ Look at me 15 years later and I am still here.”
They married in 2008 and moved to Sun Prairie in 2021. Dr. Ruben Anthony, the CEO of the Urban League, and Davis’ husband were friends. When Davis learned of an administrative position opening at the Urban League, Davis applied.
“The funny thing is I saw a position for an administrator,” Davis said. “I thought, ‘I like this place. I like Dr. Anthony. So let me go and look at it.’ I came for an interview. And when I left, Dr. Anthony said, ‘You know we have this position for something similar to what you were doing in South Africa.’ I was the COO of the Chamber of Commerce. We did another interview and he took me around The Hub. I said, ‘This looks like a lot of work. But I am courageous. And I am going to get into this.’ And that’s how I am here today.”
Davis emphasized that The Hub is Anthony’s baby.
“The Hub is an amazing place,” Davis said. “I give honor to Dr. Anthony and the people who came up with The Hub. The position of president and CEO of The Hub lies with Dr. Anthony.”
The Hub has a contract with a property management company, which is responsible for making sure the leases are paid for — most everything is direct deposit — and the building maintenance. Davis is responsible for the rest including recruiting additional tenants into The Hub’s co-working spaces, booking events, facilitating programming at The Hub and making sure everything is running smoothly.
“We are still in construction mode,” Davis said. “We are working to fill up all of the offices. I’m also in charge of events. If you are looking to have an event at The Hub, get in touch with me. I will show you the space and how to book it. There is never a dull moment. I always have something that needs to be done. Thank God for AI.”
Davis is fascinated with The Hub. She calls it an almost self-contained ecosystem where businesses can find everything they need under one roof.
“We have the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., the Black Chamber, WWBIC, Summit Credit Union and Forward Community Investment,” Davis obnserved. “We have Associated Bank on the third floor. Those are the pillars that help the community with businesses around here. This morning we had our weekly networking breakfast sponsored by Stafford Rosenbaum. Stafford's presentation highlighted the similarities between having a lawyer and having insurance, emphasizing the importance of both in protecting oneself from potential risks and uncertainties. Stafford Rosenbaum told those present that they weren’t promoting themselves as a lawyer. ‘But you do need a lawyer when you are purchasing insurance.’ It was good information. And that is exactly what we want to do. When people come to The Hub, there’s going to be coffee shop and a wine lounge. Soon there will be a restaurant. When they move up to the second floor, they can go to the Black Chamber. They can go to the barber and can go to the spa. They can go to the event on the fourth floor by the end of the afternoon.”
And with so much going on, with people seeing each other every day and having space to meet and share ideas, it is a perfect place to start and nurture a business.
“There is a lot of synergy between the organizations,” Davis said. “For example, we’re going to have the pop-up market again starting in spring. We're excited to have David from Food Safety Madison joining us on site, to train on SERV Safe. The commercial kitchen manager will assist those in the food industry with cooking in the commercial kitchen. If you need to register a business, the Madison Black Chamber will be available to help. If you are ready to export, WEDC will help with that. And if you need funding, Forward Community Investments is there.”
The Hub is poised to grow along with the commercial and residential area around it. And Magugu Davis, the COO of The Hub, is poised to facilitate that growth.
