23 Feb, 2021
TUESDAY, FEB 23, 2021 • MYALINDA MARTINEZ : CONTACT
Tamiko W. Bailey recently joined the College of Business Diversity, Racial Equity & Inclusion Group as a Diversity Partner, which mentor DREI students and contribute to offering internships and jobs. An Air Force Veteran and owner of Bailey’s Premier Services — an aviation defense contractor — Tamiko grew up in Fort Worth and earned a bachelor’s in finance from The University of Texas at Arlington College of Business.
Combining her experience from the Air Force and the College of Business, Tamiko was employed early on with large corporations such as Lockheed Martin, Dyncorp, Oracle and Bell Helicopter. In 2008, she started putting pen to paper and cultivating her business in defense contracting, and by 2013 – while pregnant with her third child and working out of her garage – she started to make her first bids for contracts. Eight years later, the company continues to grow, employing up to 100 people and is soon making a move into a third (3rd) office space. Her aggressive tenacity has seen Bailey’s Premier Services gain loyalty and brand trust among its customers.
“I just try to do a great job; I try to be myself. I found that has helped me more than me trying to go in and modify myself or water down who I am,” Bailey said.
As an black entrepreneur competing against some of the biggest names in aviation and defense, Tamiko always knew she could do it. That passion fueled her to move forward and contributed to the success Bailey’s Premier Services has had. I did think about the fact that I’m a woman and I’m a minority doing aviation and defense. I wondered how people would receive me,” she said.