Gretta Jackson, who worked as a part-time server at an Outback Steakhouse restaurant for almost 20 years, is now the owner and managing partner of one of the company's franchises in Roseville, Michigan. She is the first Black woman to own an Outback Steakhouse in the Detroit area.
Jackson was just 18-years old and in her first semester of college when she became a mother. At such a young age, she had to provide for her and her daughter, Ashley. That was when she decided to take a part-time job at a local Outback Steakhouse restaurant in Southfield.For the past two decades, Jackson went through a lot and had to make sacrifices as well to make it to the top. In February 2021, she finally became achieved her goal of ownership. After sharing the news with her family and friends via a Facebook post and was quickly overwhelmed with congratulatory messages from all over the world.
"What started off as what I thought was just a simple post to celebrate a milestone in my life quickly turned into something else," Gretta told Fox 2 Detroit. "I could never have imagined [that] so many people would come to say hi and thank you and congratulations to me in person. I've had people send gifts, flowers, Edible Arrangements to the restaurant for me. Just an overwhelming amount of love and support."
Jackson says that she is glad to be an inspiration to Black women all over the world, especially her daughter. She says that if she can own her own restaurant franchise, the possibilities are also limitless for her daughter.