I decided it would be nice to honor Black History Month by showcasing some black owned businesses that I think are fabulous.

“Not only have Black-owned businesses historically had a harder time accessing loans and capital, but they've also also been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, the number of working African American business owners fell more than 40 percent amid the coronavirus—a much steeper drop than other racial groups experienced. In response, both individuals and brands are raising awareness about the importance of investing in Black-owned businesses in order to help elevate and uplift the marginalized right now. From Warby Parker pledging $1 million to organizations working against racial injustice, to Brother Vellies founder Aurora James asking large retailers like Target and Sephora to buy 15 percent of their products from Black-owned businesses, with just one purchase, you can also play a part in helping to create lasting change.” ~ Oprah Magazine

I feel this is not only important for black owned business, but for our society as a whole.

Estelle Colored Glass - Charleston South Carolina

Stephanie Summerson Hall named Estelle Colored Glass after her grandmother, who loved antiquing and adding to her collection. Stephanie combines jewel tones, soft pastels and vintage inspiration into modern-day jewels for your table. Each heirloom-quality piece is hand-blown by artisans at a century-old Polish glass making company! I’m linking some of my favorite pieces below!

Mahogany Books

Mahogany Books is a local independent bookstore that believes in social entreprenuership. They take a leadership role in the African American community by promoting reading, writing, and cultural awareness as tools to improve self-esteem, self-love and ultimately our communities to enrich the lives of motivated individuals.

At its roots, MahoganyBooks was founded in 2007 to meet the literary needs of readers nationwide in search of books written for, by, or about people of the African Diaspora.  For the first ten years, they were solely online and engaged authors, bookclubs, conferences and publishers to ensure Black Books were accessible to anyone eager to read about Black culture.  In 2017,  they opened the doors to their very first physical location in Washington, DC.  Founded by an enterprising husband and wife duo Derrick and Ramunda Young,, the award-winning MahoganyBooks is the result of Derrick and Ramunda's love for culture, community and connection and their desire to see books empower others as it had empowered them. With over 20 years of combined retail book industry experience, the Young's witnessed a variety of market highs and lows which armed them with insight needed to develop a bookstore model capitalizing on technology while staying true to independent community bookstore roots that define core values of the owners.

Mahogany L. Browne is a poet and author coordinating the Women of the World Poetry Slam at New York's Pratt Institute. She gives her Brief But Spectacular take on “Black Girl Magic” and the struggles facing African-American women in modern society. Chlorine Sky is a novel-in-verse about a young girl coming-of-age and stepping out of the shadow of her former best friend.

McBride Sisters Winery

Newly found sisters who had been raised across the world from one another, Robin and Andréa McBride’s love affair with wine was planted within them from an early age while growing up in two of the world’s most iconic wine-growing regions. Read their story here and find out more about how to shop their Black Girl Magic wine here!

Lorraine West Jewelry

Made from brass, copper, precious gemstones and metals including gold, platinum and sterling silver. Inspired by symbology and geometric shapes, Lorraine West creates strikingly elegant pieces that allow clients to connect to their own beauty and power. Lorraine West Jewelry is proudly handmade in NYC with Love. The Lorraine West shop is on holiday but you can shop through these links…

https://rstyle.me/+2IWTaM4vOvjhFkUOMt-U3Q

Greenwich St.l Jewelers

Brother Vellies

Brother Vellies was founded in 2013 with the goal of keeping traditional African design practices, and techniques alive while also creating and sustaining artisanal jobs. Now handmade artisanally across the globe, Brother Vellies creates luxury accessories that celebrate cultural histories and timeless design. 

Toronto-native and New York City-transplant, Creative Director and Founder Aurora James amassed an impressive resume of fashion industry experience prior to starting Brother Vellies. Her background in fashion, journalism, art, music, photography, and horticulture joins a forever-passion for artisanship, design, and humanitarianism to create truly one-of-a-kind pieces that will remain in your wardrobe forever.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this post and that you’ll check out these amazing businesses!

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