National Black Business Month spotlights often-overlooked entrepreneurs
August is National Black Business Month, and although Black businesses are often staples in their communities, the challenges Black businesses face often go unnoticed.
According to Federal Reserve data, Black business owners are turned down for loans at double the rate of white business owners and during the pandemic, Black business owners were 30 times less likely to get government aid.
"For us, Black Business Month is about leveling the playing field, blazing our own paths and creating our own access in spaces where it has previously been denied," Taysha Pye and Brittney Benson, owners of VIBEZ Training in Bed-Stuy Brooklyn, told "Good Morning America." "We've created a pathway to true ownership and hope to inspire others to do the same for themselves."
"GMA" is putting the spotlight on various Black-owned businesses across the country to mark National Black Business Month and you can learn more about them below.
Vibez Training
Vibez Training believes that everyone should be able to go into a gym and feel comfortable. Clients can expect to have great workouts that are effective, no matter where they are in their fitness journey. Owners Taysha Pye and Brittney Benson aim to provide positive energy, quality information and amazing "Vibez" to everyone that walks through those doors. Vibez Training opened in 2020 during the height of the pandemic, and is now looking to expand and open its second location.
Brave + Kind Bookshop
Kathleen Kelly's Brave + Kind Bookshop is a thoughtfully curated neighborhood kids book (and web) shop that boasts an intentionally diverse and inclusive selection of kids and young adult books -- and a few grownup books to help us all do better as human beings.
Kindred Stories
Terri Hamm's Kindred Stories is a bookstore in Houston's Third Ward that is committed to amplifying the voices of Black authors and artisans.
Pur Noire Wines
Pur Noire Urban Wineries is a husband-and-wife-owned brand founded by Kenneth and Carissa Stephens. While visiting Italy, the couple was inspired and decided to make wines, currently crafting 10 wines, some of which have be awarded gold medals and achieved a 90-plus point rating. Their tasting room is located in the heart of Downtown Houston.
LAMIK Beauty
Kim Roxie's LAMIK Beauty is a tech-enabled, clean-color cosmetics brand focused on inclusivity and global convenience, with a vegan makeup line made with natural and organic ingredients for women of all skin tones.
Semicolon Bookstore & Gallery
Danielle Mullen's Semicolon Bookstore and Gallery is committed to increasing literacy rates in marginalized communities and using books as a catalyst to create lifelong change from its location in Chicago.
MahoganyBooks
MahoganyBooks is a Washington, D.C.-based independent bookstore run by owners and founders Derrick A. Young, Mahogany Young and Ramunda Lark Young. They believe in social entrepreneurship, and 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.
Here's the Scoop
Karin Sellers opened Here's the Scoop DC in 2019, fulfilling a long-held dream to operate a family-friendly ice cream and dessert shop. Here's the Scoop DC is located in the lower Georgia Avenue corridor across from Howard University, serving as a one-stop shop for ice cream, desserts, snacks and more.
Uncle Bobbie's Coffee & Books
Uncle Bobbie's Coffee & Books is a coffee shop and bookstore located in the Germantown section of Philadelphia and was founded by Marc Lamont Hill in 2017. Uncle Bobbie's was created to provide underserved communities with access to books and a space where everyone feels valued, serving up a specially curated book selection and high-quality coffee alongside food products, apparel and children's games, and free author talks, workshops and other events, including weekly story time for kids and back-to-school drives.
Ruby Jean's Juicery
After Ruby Jean's Juicery owner and CEO Chris Goode was introduced to juicing, it led to him discovering a passion for healthy living and trying a juice cleanse himself. Afterward, he felt better than he ever had and immediately thought of his late grandmother, Ruby Jean, who he wished had the knowledge and understanding of the benefits of healthy eating and drinking. Now, Ruby Jeans Juicery strives to create healthy beverages and snacks for those in the Kansas City area.
