“Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”
– Booker T. Washington
Since 2004, August has been the time to celebrate National Black Business Month. It’s meant as a time to recognize the achievements of Black-owned businesses, including the challenges their owners faced and overcame, and to encourage support and investment by everyone in Black-owned businesses. There’s a lot to celebrate.
Stars
Black entrepreneurs have created brands and impacted the lives of all Americans. As the Library of Congress notes, “several historic African American entrepreneurs were heavily involved in beauty, health, and fashion,” while “several contemporary African American entrepreneurs became prominent businessmen and businesswomen only after reaching celebrity in other fields such as music and sports.”
Historic Black entrepreneurs include:
- Ann Lowe (stores featuring her gowns, such as those worn by Jackie Kennedy)
- Annie T. Malone (beauty products)
- Anthony Overton (manufacturing; banking; insurance)
- John H. Johnson (Johnson Publishing Company)
- Madame C.J. Walker (Madame C.J. Walker Laboratories for beauty products)
- Robert S. Abbott (The Chicago Defender, a newspaper)
- Rose Meta Morgan (Rose Meta House of Beauty and founder of Freedom National Bank, a Black-owned commercial bank in NYC)
Contemporary Black entrepreneurs include:
- Berry Gordy Jr. (Motown founder)
- Daymond John (FUBU founder; Shark Tank investor)
- Janice Bryant Howroyd (founder of The ActOne Group, an employment and consulting agency) (mentioned in a previous blog)
- Jay-Z and Beyonce (various music-related companies)
- Oprah Winfrey (Oprah Winfrey Network)
- Robert L. Johnson (founder of BET; founder of RLJ Companies)
- Steve Harvey (Harvey Ventures)
- Sean Combs (Combs Enterprises)
In addition to company founders, there are many Black men and women were inventors and obtained patents for products and technologies that serve the entire business community. From Thomas L. Jennings, the first Black to obtain a patent for dry-cleaning clothes in 1821, there have been many others for inventions and processes such as the improved fountain pen to a mobile device finder system; find a list here.
Statistics
According to DC.gov, Black-owned businesses are growing.
- There are about 3.12 million Black-owned businesses in the U.S.
- Black-owned businesses in the U.S. employ 1.18 million people
- Black-owned businesses generate $133.7 billion in total sales
- Black women-owned businesses are showing the most growth. In 2020, they grew by 20.2%, outpacing the overall growth of Black-owned businesses at 14.3% and women-owned businesses at 3.1%.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has a list of resources—organizations and government agencies—for Black-owned businesses to use to start-up and grow.
Final thought
The best way for most people to support Black-owned businesses is to buy from them and for businesses to partner with them. Reader’s Digest has a list of 161 Black-owned businesses that you can support.
