Black Owned Small Businesses
Let’s all be real folks. Money is a serious issue for the overwhelming majority of people in America (And probably the world). Childcare, Healthcare, housing, automobiles and ill-informed decisions can cost us all a fortune over the course of a lifetime. The taxes & utility bills are ridiculous as well.
There are many ways to save money (which I do address on my radio show sometimes and will continue to address in future columns) but, what about opportunities to increase your income? Rather you have a Masters degree, a Bachelors or just a High school Diploma/G.E.D, America is still the place where anyone can seize income opportunities as well as create them from the ground up.
Before the 1970’s the opportunities for “Black Americans”, women and any “non-white male” were non existent. Today they are infinite for anyone that is willing to put in the work. Although much of the time I lived in New Jersey I was praying that my car didn’t get stolen, there was enough time for me to acknowledge and admire the way Americans “up north” seized opportunities and were not afraid of putting in the work needed to excel in life. Now, I’m not one to worry about being Politically correct so it’s time to take this column to the next level.
Although this is just my opinion, I have noticed that the Chinese Restaurants & Korean ran Nail Salons are expanding and even flourishing throughout the Midwest and Northeast. Latino Americans have many stores & delis that are staying in business predominantly due to the support from other Latinos. Rather legal or illegal, you must respect the fact that Latinos support Latino owned businesses.
With all that being said an obvious question would be where are the Black/African American owned businesses? Now, I’m not purposely excluding White or European American owned businesses, but this country was founded by White Americans who mastered the art of business a long time ago and continue to pass it down to their heirs (brilliant). But, honestly where are the Black owned businesses?
Although it’s true that Black Americans own more businesses now than ever before, I still believe that Black Americans are more concerned about consuming products and could care less about becoming suppliers (except for drug dealing, which we have mastered). And I do not consider owning a Record Company that puts out violent and negative music a good business.
It puzzles me that Black Americans do not support Black owned businesses, churches or African American Functions in general. Much of this can be contributed to a lack of knowledge, punctuality, professionalism and competence in black owned entities.
Not only that but, Black business owners MUST STOP creating businesses that solely depend on the support of other African Americans. The reason that Hip-Hop/Rap has been so profitable is for 2 main reasons. The first is because the negative Rap music is attractive to everyone as is anything that isn’t considered righteous (Good is bad and bad is good). And the second reason is because of the variety of consumers. Not just a particular “race” of people (Hip Hop is global folks!!).
So I want to tell any potential business owner that wants to have a considerable amount of success to look at it from a global perspective (thanks to the internet) and not just a neighborhood thing. Depending on a few friends and acquaintances to keep your business afloat is a wonderful way to go out of business.
