After careers in the Army’s Green Berets and in politics, Graves started Black Enterprise to be a news source for and about the growing community of black professionals and to serve as a vehicle for promoting business and economic development. Though it took some time to convince prominent members of the black community of the need for such a publication, Grave eventually garnered the support of over 100,000 leaders and organizations. By 1992, the magazine had national recognition–including advertising support from many Fortune 500 companies–and had revenues of $17.5 million.