5 Ways You Can Support Black-Owned Businesses
On an earlier episode of the Black Girl Fly podcast, we talked about the importance of supporting Black-owned businesses and what we can do for them, especially during the COVID-19 crisis. The main way to keep Black-owned businesses alive and thriving, we decided, is simple.
Spend your money there.
In supporting Black-owned businesses, you’re supporting what you’re looking to build yourself: a legacy. So, we’ve put together a list of 5 concrete ways you can support Black-owned businesses, both locally and nation-wide.
1. Support Local Black-Owned Businesses
Need a tree-cutting service? Looking for a cute gift for your best friend’s birthday? Whatever the case, if you’re planning to make a purchase, consider making it at a Black-owned business in your community.
The unfortunate truth is that 41 percent of Black-owned business have been shut down due to COVID-19. Experts believe that more than half of Black-owned business might not survive the pandemic, compared to 17 percent of white-owned business. This means that 50% of the Black-owned businesses in your community may disappear. Considering that only 7% of businesses pre-COVID-19 were Black-owned business, we just can’t let that happen.
We have an obligation to support our local businesses who need us now more than ever. And thanks to the creation and sharing of countless lists online, searching for local Black-owned businesses to support is seriously easy. Just type in “Black-owned businesses near me” or “List of Black-owned businesses” into Google, and you’ll quickly be swimming in options.
Whether it’s a marketing company, stationary shop, boutique clothing store – anything – make sure you spend your money where it counts the most.
2. Support Black-Owned Restaurants
Through the Paycheck Protection Program, a loan designed to help keep small businesses making payroll for their workers, just under 49,000 restaurants received loans of $150,000 or more. Of those 49,000 restaurants, only 130 were Black-owned businesses. One of the major criticisms of this program was that these loans went through private banks, institutions that have a deep history of redlining and other discriminatory practices.
We’re all about crafting a smart budget and reducing spend on superfluous items. For a lot of us, that translates to buying more groceries and cooking meals at home. But if you’re someone whose paycheck hasn’t been harshly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, consider budgeting for takeout a few times a month and support Black-owned restaurants.
We’re all trying to support our community restaurants these days, and there are many tools you can use to support Black-owned restaurants. Here are just a few:
1. EatOkra: a directory app that connects users to Black-owned food and businesses right from your phone. The directory is crowd-sourced, so if you don’t see your favorite restaurant, submit their info!
2. Black People Eats: an online directory, mailing list, and food blog that currently advertises Black-owned restaurants in Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, New Orleans, and Washington, D.C. They publish articles like “5 Restaurants to Visit in St. Louis,” and sponsor events like the Juneteenth $6.19 Special. This growing website has also started to create interactive maps, making finding local Black-owned restaurants even easier.
3. Simply Google “Black-owned restaurants in [your city],” and you’ll discover that someone’s already done all the work for you. Now you just need to choose what you want to eat and order up. Take for instance this massive crowd-sourced directory of Black-owned food businesses in the Bay Area open during the pandemic and searchable by cuisine type. Or check out this Google Doc created by Kat Hong that lists Black-owned restaurants in LA.
3. Support Black Entrepreneurs
Helping Black entrepreneurs is another way to support Black-owned businesses. According to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, only 1.5% of funding for Black start-ups came from investors, compared to 17% of funding for white start-ups. And although Black Women own 12.5 percent of all businesses in the U.S., they receive only 0.02% of investment.
Yeah, we’re not having that.
Supporting Black women to build financial security and realize their purpose is our business, so it makes sense that we’re all about supporting Black entrepreneurs, who are often overlooked by traditional sources of venture capital.
Here’s a list of where you can find Black start-ups, businesses, or venture capital funds to help entrepreneurs take off:
1. fundBLACKfounders: Much like the well-known platforms of Indiegogo and Kickstarter, fundBLACKfounders is a crowdsourcing platform for Black founders. Their mission is to create Black generational wealth – (clears throat) something we can relate to.
2. Backstage Capital: According to their website, less than 10% of all VC deals go to women, People of Color, and LGBTQ founders. This company is looking to change that. Arlan Hamilton, Backtage Capital’s founder and managing partner, has led a $7 million investment in more than 130 companies with underrepresented founders.
3. Republic: an equity crowdfunding platform where you can invest as little as $10 in companies you believe in. According to their website, 87% of VC-backed CEOs were white, 97% were male, and 57% were located in the state of California. Republic makes it easy to support Black-owned business, as you can easily search tags, like “Black Founders” and “Female Founders” plus the industry you’re interested in.
4. Shop Online Nationwide
It’s important to keep your dollar local, but don’t forget about other business all over the country. We’ve compiled a short list of resources for you to purchase the perfect service, gift, or product.
1. Buy From a Black Woman Directory allows you to search their database by category with links to company websites. They also publish a business of the month, provide tools and resources for Black Women business owners, offer financial grants, and connect businesswomen through virtual co-working.
2. Official Black Wall Street: An online business directory for literally anything. Search by category and by city, and you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for. Try it out. We’re telling you: literally anything.
3. Etsy’s Black-Owned Shop: Already an Etsy fan? Use this Etsy resource to support Black-owned businesses on the platform. You’ll find the perfect gift for a loved one while supporting Black entrepreneurs.
5. Spread the Word
It doesn’t stop with you. When you find a business or product that you love, share it with your friends, colleagues, and on social media. Help spread the word about the Black-owned businesses you patron.
All the businesses you support are working on their legacies. Maybe it’s a shop down the street or a startup you found through Republic. And maybe it’s you – raising your business, gaining support, and building something for the next generation. Whatever it is, help them grow their customer base and keep going. Because they need you now more than ever.