There is an obvious economic shift these days. How can we not only work toward building and sustaining our own businesses, but support each other as well?

What I love about small business is our comrade, and how we rally together in times of need. We are a community and we act as such. I just love that.

As you know, I am always seeking new ways to lift up small businesses. This time, I wanted to bring attention to black owned businesses. 

The crisis facing the economy and the racial unrest is a far more robust and ongoing conversation than this short blog. It’s important to have options when deciding on who to engage in business. In light of this, here are some resources should you be interested:

Independent, black owned bookstores:

Many of you have written to me about buying my books through independent bookstores, and the author in me loves exploring them. Earlier this month, Literary Hub put out a list of independent, black owned bookstores. Thanks Lit Hub! Do they all carry my books? No, but I’m interested anyway! Here is the list: Independent black owned bookstores

Hungry? There’s an app for that

I also found there is an application to help locate black owned restaurants in over 20 US cities.your area. EatOkra can help fill your belly, and support a black owned business. 

It’s not for Wall Street

Official Black Wall Street is the largest platform for black businesses.It includes a robust directory with everything from accessories to construction to finance to writing, all provided by black owned businesses.(And yes, there’s an app for this too!)

We’re in this together in many different ways. Coming together has never been more important for the world, and that includes our businesses. 

What are some of the new things you have been trying to support small business now?

We’ve got this!

-Mike