35+ Black-Owned Businesses to Support
February is Black History Month: a time to welcome, celebrate, and educate ourselves about Black American culture. So, we at Postscript want to spotlight some of the Black-owned stores that we love to shop from all year long.
Note: We've updated this list for 2024! Happy shopping!
Founder Dana Chanel has cultivated a community at Curl Bible, a destination for skin and haircare products. She helps women find products and positivity in order to give them confidence.
Kyra's Shea Medleys, born from UCLA undergrad Kyra Nicole's quest for quality curly hair products, stands out as a woman-owned venture led by three dynamic African-American entrepreneurs from South Central LA. Praised by industry influencers and showered with daily testimonials, the brand aspires to be a leading name in hair and skin care. With a commitment to community, they give back to under-served areas. What fuels their journey? Unyielding faith and the unwavering support of the KSM Family—made up of family, friends, and every valued customer. As first-gen graduates and business owners, they pioneer a path for the future entrepreneurial wave.
Ariana Fletcher, a social media giant, has evolved into a trailblazer in the beauty business. She has established her mark with REMEDY BY ARI—an inclusive beauty line. Fueled by her belief in beauty and self-care, REMEDY BY ARI embodies her personal remedy for boosting confidence and overcoming bad days. This revered collection reflects her beauty rituals, jet-set adventures, and commitment to high-quality, vegan products. Fletcher's hands-on involvement ensures a line tailored for everyday beauty routines, free from parabens and phthalates.
Serial entrepreneur and founder Lavida was distraught when her favorite shop discontinued their incredible body butters. Since she couldn't find a proper replacement, she set to making her own. All products from Elle Vie are handcrafted with love and made from the highest quality ingredients around.
Blaq Luxury Hair Products was created out of a need. Founder Cherice Williams tried almost every store bought product that promoted healthy hair growth and moisture only for it to not work or just work for a period of time then her hair would start drying out again. She then decided to make her own hair products and incorporated some of her own heritage and roots within the process by using indigenous plants and oils that were native to Jamaica.
Diggin Her Roots Boutique is a black owned, female founded company that specializes in African inspired statement pieces, sorority paraphernalia, HBCU apparel and all things for African culture.
Hair Spa uses only high-quality ingredients to restore healthy, natural hair and create one of the top hair growth serums on the market, proven to maintain and promote hair regrowth, as well as keep hair healthy and moisturized every day.
The mission of Good Vibes products is to have products in the home that are safe for the planet and for people. The products are all plant-based, safe and easy to use on virtually any surface.
Nichole Lynel, the multifaceted fashion designer, author, influencer, and creative entrepreneur based in Los Angeles, made waves in the fashion industry when her first online boutique soared to millions in under three years. She followed this with a remarkable debut collection at a Los Angeles Fashion Show, garnering swift success and industry recognition.
In a realm dominated by fast fashion, Nichole stands out by prioritizing fabric quality, intricate details, and local manufacturing, embodying a commitment to fashion excellence. With a focus on daily luxury chic inspiration, she caters to the modern working woman.
Founded in 2016 by Shannette Prince following her first visit to the continent, Shannette wanted to bring authentic African products to the diaspora and rest of world. Their social impact mission is to provide study abroad opportunities for Brilliant Black Boys, an initiative that seeks to empower African-American young men through international study abroad opportunities.
A trendy boutique for women, with fashion-forward styles, the brand also hosts popular shopping events and has a huge following, including celeb stans like Taraji P. Henson.
Founded by Mignon Hemsley and Danuelle Doswell, Grounded makes it easier for people to create tranquil spaces by providing a curated selection of plants. If your green thumb is only just blossoming, they also offer virtual workshops and their own picks for beginner-friendly plants.
Estelle Colored Glass presents a luxurious collection of hand-blown cake stands and stemware, a symphony of jewel tones and soft pastels that exudes vintage charm. Crafted by skilled glass artisans in Poland with a rich century-old history, these pieces encapsulate timeless elegance. Rooted in the founder's grandmother Estelle's passion for antiquing, the brand aspires to reignite the allure of colored glass. Inspired by Sunday dinners and cherished memories, each item reflects a commitment to heirloom quality, inviting customers to create their own enduring moments.
Jesseca “Judy'' Dupart did not have a quick road to ecommerce. She’s been doing hair since she was a little girl, and she eventually became a stylist and realized her dream of opening her first salon, Kaleidoscope Hair Studio. But after just six months of scaling her salon, it burned down in a fire. Rather than giving up, she launched an even bigger salon less than one year later, along with her first product line, Kaleidoscope Hair Products. Today, Kaleidoscope products can be found everywhere from Sally’s Beauty to Walmart.
Drippy Rags specializes in modern, updated styles of the durag. Durags were commonly worn to help hairstyles last longer after hair is braided, dreaded, or twisted. Waves were first popularized within the African American community and then branched out to everyone. Dripps Rags offer modern and bold durags to men, women, and children.
Yelitsa Jean-Charles never had a doll that looked like her growing up. As a student at RISD, she created a brown version of the fairy tale character Rapunzel with long, kinky hair that friends and classmates adored. Healthy Roots Dolls was born out of the need to create dolls and storybooks that empower young girls and represent the beautiful, diverse world we live in.
A few years ago, Shaina Rainford’s sister lost all her hair to a ringworm that spread across her scalp and was misdiagnosed as dandruff. After visiting with specialists who told her there was nothing they could do, Shaina sought a solution on her own. Her best-selling products, the 100% organic Scalp Stimulator and Hair Elixir, were formulated to nourish, grow, and strengthen hair.
Angela Harris and her husband run this women’s fashion brick-and-click boutique based in Florissant, MO. After spending over two decades in retail sales, Angela makes sure every woman who walks in the door of her boutique receives the white glove treatment. Edgy Chic is size-inclusive and offers fashion-forward pieces for women of all shapes.
Addie Elabor is the owner of D’IYANU, a ready-to-wear bold print clothing line offering quality, trendy, African-inspired fashion at affordable prices. One of the company’s long-term visions is to bring positive change to Africa’s textile industry and cultivate partnerships with African-owned fabric and garment manufacturers. They hope to create a real and lasting influence by producing primarily in Africa.
Boujee Hippie was the manifestation of a desire to provide women of color relief from a world of stressors and negativity. Boujee Hippie identifies and supports spaces where Black women have not traditionally existed: the health and fitness lane, the shapewear industry, and the reproductive care markets.
Created and managed by three brothers (all under the age of 16!) who decided to start their own business when they wanted more allowance to buy video games, Frères Branchiaux Candle Co. is a home fragrance company based in the Washington, DC metro area. Now their vegan, soy-based candle business is spearheaded by Mom, and 10% of all proceeds go to DC area homeless shelters.
This luxury selfcare and lifestyle brand encourages women to unwind and decompress whenever they need to without feeling guilty. All products are sustainable and environmentally friendly products and encourage women to reflect, remove, and reset.
When Tianna Dean and her husband retired after 21 years in the Army, they both had big dreams to start their own businesses. After being unable to find scented candles that weren’t made from harmful chemicals, she decided to make her own. She wanted Hummingbird Candle Co. to marry her biggest passions in life—women’s empowerment and the environment. Hummingbird now creates jobs for women while donating a portion of each month’s sales to organizations that support women locally and globally.
Jazmine Danyell launched My Greek Boutique in 2018 to turn her passion for Greek life into a thriving business. Two years into running her business as a side hustle while working full-time as a nurse, she was able to turn My Greek Boutique into her full-time job.
Jaz Jackson, founder of JSculptFitness, was on a personal journey towards weight loss and health when it dawned on her that there were zero waist belts on the market that provided her with comfortable back support or coverage for her curves. She created a more inclusive waist trainer to support women of all sizes and has since launched an apparel line for curvy women as well.
Archyn Brew-Butler's greatest passion is connecting all African descendants together and contributing to the development of Africa, which he does through his lifestyle brand, Orijin Culture. Orijin is inspired by Africa and designed to bring the African culture to the forefront globally.
Before they were even old enough to hold a job, Nicholas Clark and Marlon Watts designed and sold t-shirts on the streets of New Orleans. The two continued to work together as they grew up. While Watts became a college athlete, Clark was cementing his interest in graphic design. They came to a fork in the road when all of their inventory, along with the laptop of all their designs, were taken in a car robbery. The duo ultimately decided to go all in and currently run this thriving apparel line full-time.
Lashay Greenwood has over a million TikTok followers who watch her reenact hilarious interactions with her students. When she isn’t teaching, she’s running The Mane Attraction, a line of all-natural hair and skincare products that she manufactures herself.
Joi Cobb is a single mother of three and a high school teacher who sought to create an apparel line that celebrates Black culture and promotes a growth mindset. Her dream had always been to become an entrepreneur—and to use that experience as a business owner to assist her students in pursuing their dreams of becoming their own boss.
Founder April Showers wanted to create a line of apparel to remind women and children of color how unique, divine, and magical they are. After growing a thriving community around her brand, a once-in-a-lifetime offer came in this past year to collaborate with Walmart—a significant win for a community-based brand focused on representation.
Gogo Lush is an online boutique that features high-quality and handmade jewelry. Cici Wright started her career in the corporate world but quickly realized the ones who thrived there looked nothing like her, both in gender and skin color. She decided to take her career into her own hands and launched GoGo Lush, which marries her passions for jewelry and entrepreneurship.
The name “Orijin Bees” is a clever acronym that reflects their mission: Our Representation is Just Inclusion Normalized, Beautifully Empowering Every Soul. Melissa Orijin and her 6 year-old daughter Esi are the founders of Orijin Bees, a doll company whose mission is to normalize inclusion within the toy industry. The company also has a “get one, gift one” program where a doll is given to a disadvantaged child for every doll sold.
With over 10 years of experience in the raw hair industry, Yummy Extensions know the ins and outs of everything in the beauty industry. They work with small family-based factories to control and maintain the quality process of their extensions and with an audience of over 390K fans on Instagram alone, they remain a customer favorite for high-quality hair.
Designer Shane Justin creates glitzy and high glam apparel for both men and women. His designs for women are meant to emphasize curves rather than hide them. His designs are available online and in his Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta and Brooklyn locations.
Mental health and your skin go hand-in-hand for this beauty brand. Their mission is to relieve the burden of needing “perfect skin” and instead help customers feel comfortable in the skin they’re in, along with science-backed products that drive great results.
Established in 2016 by NorCal native Tenisha Wilde, Ten Wilde is a jewelry brand that produces a range of gold plated, gold filled, and solid gold pieces at an affordable price.
Known for its health benefits to Caribbean people for centuries, Sea Moss has seen a recent rise in popularity since it’s a "superfood" that contains all of the essential minerals the human body needs. Lovers Rock harvests their moss directly from the ocean and are infused with 100% organic ingredients.
From unicorn eyeliner to vibrant eye palettes, Glitter Realm knows how to serve a glam look. All cosmetics are cruelty-free and vegan.
When Pup Wax® founder Julie couldn’t find a balm for her dog’s scorched paws made from ingredients she recognized, she sought out to solve the problem. Pet owners can rest easy since Pup Wax® is made with clean, safe, and fast-working ingredients that lock moisture in and seal irritants out.
Cee Cee’s Closet’s headwraps were born out of a more practical need. When founder Uchenna Ngwudo wanted to take better care of her curls with protective yet fashionable headwear, she couldn’t find anything in the market that reflected her own style. She worked with tailors in Nigeria and found beautiful fabrics that weren’t available in New York. Since they started, Cee Cee’s has sold over 30,000 headwraps and has since added apparel and home accessories to their line.
If you’re looking for additional resources during Black History Month, the Center for Racial Justice is a good place to start. Shopify also has its own directory of Black store owners to support.
