We are committed to doing a better job highlighting and amplifying black-owned ecommerce brands. Today, that looks like this blog post.

It has examples of emails these brands have been sending, posts they’ve been sharing, and products they’re selling. 

Going forward, that will look like using our platforms to share the stories of black entrepreneurs who have built their brands from the ground up.

*For a more extensive list, you can also check out this directory of more than 200 black-owned brands.

1. Golde

Golde is a Brooklyn-born brand focused on making superfood-boosted essentials for health and beauty. Like this Tumeric Latte blend. Or this Clean Greens Face Mask. 

Over the weekend, Founder & CEO, Trinity Mouzon Wofford shared this note with subscribers, committing 100% of their profits from May 30th through June 1st to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Which not only led to thousands of dollars in donations (more than $10k)...

But also encouraged other brands to do the same. 

These are the kinds of gestures that add up.

2. Jungalow

Justina Blakeney started Jungalow as a design blog in her tiny, plant-filled living room back in 2009. It has since grown into a flourishing lifestyle brand that sells everything from planters to wallpaper.

And if you haven’t seen the site before, do yourself a favor and check it out. The bright colors and boho vibe are sure to bring some joy. 

And the Jungalow team donated profits from May 30th to Black Lives Matter.

[Source]

And the feedback they got was pretty great:

"Just purchased, now when your art is hanging in my home, I can remember the cause it supported ❤️"

"I’ve always wanted those rainbow pillows. This was just the push I needed. Thank you Justina and The Jungalow team. 💕"

"I’m buying TODAY – THANK YOU."

Justina also shared a more personal message on her own account:

[Source]

3. Kinky Curly Yaki

We are HUGE Vivian Kaye fans here at Privy. Her brand, Kinky Curly Yaki, sells premium textured hair extensions for Black women.

I was chatting with her recently for the first time and she took her ponytail off. I had no idea it wasn’t her natural hair ‘til then. 

On top of running a 7-figure startup and being a bada$$ single mom, Vivian also helps entrepreneurs from diverse and unconventional backgrounds use their unique capabilities to confidently build the businesses of their dreams.

Her passion is making Black women feel confident. And that’s exactly what her product and coaching do.

4.YOWIE

YOWIE is a home and life shop focused on curating small collections from friends, independent artists, and designers.

You can’t help but smile at this puzzle:

And just look at this gorgeous bath towel:

And earlier this week, they used the windows of their retail store to spread an important message:

[Source]

The message reads:

[Source]

It’s complete with custom QR codes, cost less than $20, and took under an hour to create.

5. Clare

Clare makes paint shopping simple with designer-curated colors, mess-free peel and stick paint swatches, and premium, zero VOC paint delivered to your door.

Nicole Gibbons, Founder and interior designer, saw that no paint brands were offering an easy or convenient way to shop for paint, so she decided to fix that.

Doesn’t this set up actually make you want to paint? (Truly words I thought I’d never say.)

6. Oui The People

Oui the People is committed to changing the language of beauty. No perfecting, flawless, nor anti-aging claims. Just efficacious, thoughtful, and damned good products that help you feel amazing in your own skin. As you are.

Recently, Karen Young, Founder & CEO, shared a heartfelt video. In it, she says: 

“So when you ask what you can do, you can pay attention to your words. You can pay attention to the perceptions that you are bringing to work every day. You can meet people who are different than you – from a place of empathy and kindness. You can stop pattern matching. You can expand your own horizons and welcome folks like myself.”

7. Black Girl Sunscreen

Black Girl Sunscreen is exactly what you’re thinking. It’s sunscreen made by women of color for people of color.

And it was born from Shontay Lundy’s commitment to eliminating the #1 reason women of color aren’t wearing sunscreen, the white residue. 

Just watch this video and you’ll see the difference immediately. 

You can find it in Target stores. And last month, the brand secured a $1 million dollar investment from a private female funding source in the middle of a global pandemic.

8. The Honey Pot Company

The Honey Pot Company is a plant-based feminine care brand. Bea Dixon founded the brand back in 2014 in her kitchen to solve a problem she couldn’t find a solution to on the market. 

Today, you can find her brand in retailers nationwide – think Target, Walgreens, and Whole Foods.

This image perfectly sums up what makes Honey Pot different:

But this one is my favorite on the whole site:

9. NaturAll Club

Muhga Eltigani decided to forego law school to build NaturAll Club, a natural hair care brand for Black women.

She recently shared this note with her subscribers:

Her products only use natural, safe, nontoxic ingredients and have amazing reviews.

10. BLK+GRN

BLK + GRN is an all natural marketplace by all Black artisans. Dr. Kristian Henderson’s mission has always been to connect Black women to the tools, resources, knowledge and products they need to lead happier and healthier lives.

And the second you get to the site, you know exactly what the brand stands for:

Also highly recommend checking out their full list of artisans.

11. Bolé Road Textiles

Hana Getachew started Bolé Road Textiles out of a desire to merge her love of Ethiopian handwoven fabrics with her career in interior design. And her products are swoon-worthy. 

She planned to move her Brooklyn studio down the street to a proper storefront, but COVID had other plans and she’s back to being a strictly ecommerce business. 

But how happy do these pillows make you?

She has everything from throws, to curtains, to placemats, and has been featured in Vogue, Architectural Digest, Better Homes and Gardens, and many others.

12. lemlem

lemlem is an artisan-driven collection of women’s, men’s, children’s and home goods made entirely in Africa.

Supermodel Liya Kebede was inspired to launch the brand following a trip to her native Ethiopia where she met a group of traditional weavers who no longer had a market for their craft.

lemlem Foundation, lemlem’s philanthropic arm, is a non-profit organization with the mission to help women artisans in Africa thrive by connecting them to healthcare, education and pathways to jobs. Five percent of lemlem’s direct sales, proceeds from special collaborations, and donations advance this mission.

13. Beauty Bakerie

Cashmere Nicole founded Beauty Bakerie after becoming a single mom at a young age. Once on welfare, she put herself through college, and then nursing school, and started her business on the side.

The whole story behind her brand is really inspiring. You can read the full Forbes article here.

All her products tie into the ‘bakerie’ theme. Like this illuminator in the coolest packaging ever.

14. Kahmune

Jamela Acheampong founded Kahmune when she couldn’t find nude pumps to match her skin tone. 

So she bought a white pair, mixed colors to perfectly match her skin tone, and created her own. Today, her goal is to ensure that all women have "nude" products.

And that’s exactly what she delivers. This color wheel of pumps makes my heart happy:

And if you’re not sure exactly which shade would work best for your skintone, check out this shade match guide to find your nude.

15. Lani Halliday

Lani Halliday is a Brooklyn-based food artist, baker, mom, founder and owner of Brutus Bakeshop, a gluten-free cake and pastry company.

And you can purchase her famous Miso Chocolate Chip Cookies here. 

16. Harlem Candle Company

Harlem Candle Company is a luxury home fragrance brand specializing in scented candles inspired by the richness of Harlem. 

Founded in 2014 by travel and lifestyle expert Teri Johnson, the Harlem Candle Company is the manifestation of her love affair with fragrance, jazz, and Harlem.

This limited-edition candle features the “Nightclub Map of Harlem” illustration by E. Simms Campbell from 1932 which portrays the speakeasies, nightclubs and musicians who were the shining lights during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920’s and 1930’s. 

Once it burns completely, it becomes a cocktail glass!

17. PUR Home

PUR Home was created by Angela Richardson. Her journey into eco-friendly living began 7 years ago when she made her first ever natural bar of soap. She has been obsessed ever since.

Today, PUR Home is a natural, non-toxic eco-friendly laundry detergent and household cleaners product line.

You can shop for everything from dish soap to glass cleaner.

18. Goodnight Darling Co.

Aycee Brown founded Goodnight Darling Co., a lifestyle brand dedicated to teaching women how to get perfect sleep, after suffering from insomnia since childhood.

After a ton of research, she finally found a regimen and created products that work.

She sells everything from pillow spray, to tea, to bath salts.

So if you’re struggling to catch z’s or just need a better way to unwind, I highly recommend checking out her site.

19. Red Bay Coffee

Red Bay Coffee was founded in 2014 by Keba Konte, a renowned artist and successful food entrepreneur with deep roots in the San Francisco Bay Area.

With six retail stores, they have been impacted heavily by COVID. But online sales have spiked 350%.

He also introduced a mobile coffee service just before the pandemic hit which has been an incredible source of exposure since he’s been parking it in heavily-trafficked areas like grocery store parking lots.

You can purchase single bags or stock up in larger quantities. Because no one wants to talk before you’ve had your morning coffee.

20. Brother Vellies

Brother Vellies was founded by Aurora James in 2013 with the goal of keeping traditional African design practices, and techniques alive while also creating and sustaining artisanal jobs. 

Her line is pricey, but amazing. Just look at these sandals…💀💀

And she started the Fifteen Percent Pledge pretty much overnight, urging major retailers to pledge 15% of their shelf space to black-owned businesses because Black people account for 15% of the population in the United States.

You can read her full post here – it’s powerful and worth the read.

Supporting that mission takes less than 30 seconds. You just need to share your name, email address and phone number (optional).

21. Jade Swim

Jade Swim is a swimwear brand by fashion editor and stylist, Brittany Kozerski. It combines her minimalist aesthetic with innovative silhouettes and unique design details. 

The line has been featured on Vogue, Who What Wear, Elle, and many others.

Her designs are simple, flattering, and timeless. What more could a girl be looking for in a swimsuit?

22. KLUR

Lesley Thornton is committed to helping others achieve skin wellness through clean, ethical, and inclusive beauty. That’s exactly why she founded KLUR. 

Start with Gentle Matter, a daily cleanser, followed by the Elements of Comfort oil. Use Stellar Restoration before bed for a radiant complexion and healthier skin.

Lesley shared this note on the KLUR Instagram: 

"To the entire KLUR community:

You are truly a lighthouse movement.

Thank you for sharing, following and supporting a BLACK OWNED, eco-inclusive, woman-operated business.

You are using your voices and platforms to bring awareness to the injustice black people face daily. I am humbled by your love and remain grateful your support. I, too, am committed to using this platform for the greater good. And for the time being will not be posting beauty related content." (For the full post, click here.)

23. Nubian Skin

Nubian Skin was founded by Ade Hassan because she was frustrated by the lack of skin-tone choices for hosiery and lingerie. So she launched a carefully edited collection to provide the essential underwear needs of women of colour.

The line has also expanded into nude swimwear.

Like Kahmune, Nubian Skin also has a guide to make matching your skin tone easier than ever. 

[Source]

24.Third Crown

New York based co-designers Kristin and Kofi Essel, a husband-and-wife team, launched a gender neutral jewelry line, Third Crown.

Their #powerofthepair sets feature a combination of their favorite pieces that are designed and paired to be shared.

And the Marcy Link Necklace was featured on HBO’s “Insecure.”

25. BlackTravelBox

BlackTravelBox is a travel-ready hair and body care brand. Orion Brown founded BlackTravelBox with the goal of bringing natural hair, skin and body products to travelers of color.

After she found herself with virtually no options on a trip to Japan, Orion wanted to help other women avoid the same situation.

The Carry On Starter Box has all the basics in one bundle that fits perfectly into your carry on for a flawless travel experience.

26. Peak and Valley

Peak and Valley makes plant-based elixirs to enhance your beauty, mood, and mind. 

Nadine Joseph is on a mission is to bring inclusive, fun, and honest products to the world of wellness. Keeping in line with that mission, their ingredients are always organic or wildcrafted, vegan, and ethically sourced.

Each blend is formulated to protect your body against stress while enhancing brain function, fighting inflammation, or balancing mood.

From June 1st – June 5th, they are donating 80% of proceeds to The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and the remaining 20% to the BLM Seattle Freedom Fund.

27. LIHA

LIHA is a beauty brand founded by UK-based duo, Liha Okunniwa and Abi Oyepitan.

They created a 100% vegan, cruelty-free beauty brand beauty with products that are a mixture of their natural African roots and a quintessentially British attitude.

You can purchase their two hero products, 100% ethically-sourced, fragrance-free, shea butter and  Idan oil together in this bundle. 

Here’s what one happy customer had to say, “Shea butter is great for rough and dry areas of skin like hands and feet. Both products smell amazing. If you're struggling to find time to look after your skin in the cold season, this is perfect for making it a daily self-care and self-love routine. Also a pleasure to support a small, independent, ethical business!”

28. Linoto

Jason Evege couldn’t find a linen sheet set for less than $1,000 back in 2007.

He was so frustrated by his search that he decided to make his own set. That’s where Linoto was born. 

Today, all their products are made in Westchester County, New York and they have just under 2,000 five-star reviews. 

If you’ve never tried linen sheets, I highly recommend them. They’re the only sheets that actually get better with age.

29. Scotch Porter

Calvin Quallis quit his corporate job to open a barber shop. He started to experiment with making products in his kitchen, which eventually became a full-fledged brand, Scotch Porter.

The Scotch Porter promise is to provide healthier, multi-purpose beard, hair and face care products that are highly effective and easy to use. 

The Head to Toe Collection is jam-packed with 11 products, but you can also purchase them on a one-off basis for the men in your life. 

30. Scent & Fire Candle Company

Scent & Fire Candle Company was founded by Monisha Edwards to help manage her anxiety, depression, and ADHD. 

Monisha uses organic ingredients for clean and smoke-free burning, as well as sustainable packaging.

Scent & Fire has expanded to include loose leaf teas, wax melts, room sprays, and diffusers.

There’s even a collection dedicated to quarantine, complete with product names like, Socially Distant, Shelter & Chill, and Therapy in Place, we can all relate to.

31. Partake Foods

Denise Woodard founded Partake Foods when she couldn’t find allergy-friendly, healthy snacks for her daughter. 

All of their products are free from the top 8 allergens – peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, wheat, milk, soy, fish, shellfish – as well as mustard, sulfite, and sesame free.

Try their classic chocolate chip cookies. Celebrate a small win with a birthday cake cookie (or 7). Or taste test them all with the variety pack. 

And pssst. Last year Jay-Z’s firm, Marcy Venture Partners, led a $1 million seed round.

32. Nude Barre

Nude Barre makes long-lasting intimates for dance, performance, and daily wear in 12 shades to match every skin tone.

Erin Carpenter spent 15 years in the entertainment industry – as a model, actress, and Knicks City dancer.  She has experienced the hardships of not finding hosiery that matched her skin tone first hand. So in 2009 she created Nude Barre. 

To spare others the pain of not having intimates that match their skin tone. 

33. Zou Xou

Zou Xou (pronounced zu-zu) produces small-batch shoes handcrafted by Argentinian shoemakers using age old techniques and premium leathers.

The brand was created and founded in New York City by Katherine Theobalds.

You can almost smell the leather when you look at this photo. How gorgeous are these?!

34. The Lip Bar

The Lip Bar is a vegan and cruelty-free beauty brand that exists to help change the way you think about beauty.

Melissa Butler started The Lip Bar in her kitchen while working on Wall Street because she was tired of the beauty industry's lack of diversity, lack of inclusion, and excessive amounts of unnecessary chemicals.

And the site encourages visitors to find the shade that matches their skin best using the shade finder. 

35. Tree Fairfax

Tree Fairfax is a line of handmade leathergoods. 

The brand is named after its founder, Tree. She is a cancer survivor and mother. And her products are stunning.

Tree is dedicated to cutting back on waste, so the hides have natural imperfections. Each bag is made to order, hand cut, burnished, and sewn by hand.

You can listen to Tree on this episode of hey, girl. 

36. Harriett’s Bookshop

Harriett's Bookshop is named after Harriet Tubman. And Jeannine Cook’s mission is to celebrate women authors, women artists, and women activists. 

Her physical store in Philadelphia was designed to “mirror her own ideal reading conditions,” but you can shop her collection online here.

37. Pholk

Niambi Cacchioli lived in Europe for 12 years, researching the African Diaspora in the Middle East and working with cultural outreach programs for the Africa Centre and UNESCO. So she traveled a lot. But struggled to find products that worked for her combination skin.

So she made simple skin remedies for herself, which eventually turned into Pholk.

Her calling is to welcome women of color into the natural skincare space by thinking about both lifestyle and skin needs, and crafting a brand narrative that celebrates women of color as innovators of culture.

Pholk’s best-selling product is the daily detox face wash. At just $20, it’s a natural face wash that’s clean and affordable.

38. HarperIman

HarperIman is a line of handmade, linen keepsake dolls made by mother-daughter duo, Cynthia Watkins and Kathryn Burnett. 

“We found that dolls of color are underrepresented. There aren't many choices, and the ones available do not accurately represent our different skin tones and hair textures. Our children are left playing with and trying to identify with dolls that look nothing like them. We wanted to change that." (Source)

And that’s exactly what they did.

They also have a full collection of clothes and accessories for the dolls. Like this 3-piece set that comes with camo pants, a white tee, and coat. Or this giraffe onesie.

39. Unsun

Katonya Breaux founded Unsun in 2016 after much frustration with the lack of clean sunscreen products for women of color.

Their award-winning Mineral Tinted Sunscreen is a 100% mineral sunscreen primer and color corrector all in one.

A few of the reviews read:

"I finally found a sunscreen for women of color 🧡”

“This doesn't leave a white cast on my skin which is great.”

“Finding a brown girl friendly mineral sunscreen has been like finding a needle in a haystack.”

40. UNWRAP

For Ashley Fouyolle, gifting is about the experience and the revelation of unveiling something special.

Her brand, UNWRP,  offers a curated selection of fun and cool gifting options that everyone will love.

“I really wanted to showcase digital artists that don’t really get a chance to see their stuff in the physical world. Designing paper is a great way to do that. I also wanted to emphasize the art of gift wrap. A lot of times when you get a gift in really nice paper, you say, ‘oh this is so pretty,’ but you don’t get to enjoy it outside of that moment. This way you can save the paper and even frame it, and keep it as art because that’s what it is.” (Source)

41. Movita

Movita creates organic vitamin supplements that address the specific needs of women.

Tonya Lewis Lee built Movita to help women gain a baseline of good nutrition, and a practice of positive choices that support a lifestyle of well-being. 

Movita has a multivitamin, a prenatal vitamin, and a beauty vitamin, designed specifically to support healthy hair, skin and nails.

42. Grounded

Grounded is a virtual plant shop and subscription service that just launched a month ago. Mignon Hemsley and Danuelle Doswell are DC natives on a mission to help people disconnect and decompress through the appreciation of plants. 

They’re sold out (for now!), but go follow them on Instagram to find out when their next restock is happening. And when it does, jump on it ASAP. 

43. The Tiny Closet

Natalie Harris founded The Tiny Closet, a capsule collection of simple, beautiful statement clothing, because she was on a mission to find the most effortless way to dress, shop and build a closet she loves. 

Sustainability is a huge focus of her business. All items are handmade in LA and are made to order, so she doesn’t have inventory. And she only uses deadstock fabric.

I’m obsessed with these Linen Lounger Pants which pair perfectly with The Tourist Top (both shown in the image below).

44. Coco and Breezy

Coco and Breezy Eyewear was founded in 2009 by twin designers, Corianna and Brianna Dotson. 

They have both optical and sun lines and are a creative force to be reckoned with. On top of their eyewear line, they also DJ and create visual art. 

And they just launched a podcast – check out this clip.

45. The Coy Collection

The Coy Collection is a line of small batch earrings and ceramics handcrafted in Austin,TX. 

Coy strives to make the entire shopping experience as rewarding as possible for everyone. No matter your size, color, shape, there is something for you in the coy collection.

These smile mugs are sold out for now, but you can subscribe to Coy’s newsletter for the latest restocks, updates, and workshops.

46. Sienna Sauce

Tyla-Simone Crayton is the sixteen-year-old CEO of Sienna Sauce, a brand out of Houston, Texas. 

When she made the move from Brooklyn to Houston, she wanted to recreate a flavor of sauce she missed from back home, so she experimented and stirred up some flavors she loves. 

In the spring of 2017, she launched Sienna Sauce from her home kitchen. Today, her sauces can be found in more than 70 retail stores and she took home $10,000 after wowing the judges in a pitch competition. 

Start off with the Sauce Lover 3-pack for just $29.85 – you can choose from Sweet & Tangy, Spicy, and Lemon Pepper.

47. Oh-Mazing!

Oh-Mazing! was founded by Stephanie Williams after she developed a granola recipe as an alternative to some of the unhealthy snacks found on grocery store shelves.

It’s nut-free, wheat-free, and made with organic ingredients. It comes in 5 flavors: Original, Oatmeal Raisin, Cranberry Orange, Lemon Bar, and Caribbean Delight. You can try all 5 with this sampler pack. 

It can also be found in select retail stores in Maryland, DC, and Virgina.

48. BLK & Bold

Rod Johnson and Pernell Cezar, two childhood friends, created BLK & Bold, a coffee brand that educates and gives back.

5% of their profits go to supporting at-risk youth, both locally and nationally. You can purchase individual bags of fair trade coffee or subscribe so you never run out of coffee again.

And if you still need a Father’s Day gift, check out their World’s Best Dad Coffee Care Package.

49. McBride Sisters Collection

McBride Sisters Collection is the largest African-American-owned wine company in the United States.

And it’s a pretty incredible story. Robin and Andréa McBride are half sisters who founded the brand in 2010. They both grew up across the world from each other, thinking they were only children.

They both grew up in wine regions and their shared passion for the industry brought them even closer once they met. 

Their Black Girl Magic Collection, “is an ode to our culture and story, inspired by the magic and resilience of Black women, to be enjoyed by all. These are premium wines that respect her palate and showcase the flavors of the finest single vineyards in California. These are wines that SLAY.” (Source)

50. Pet Plate

Renaldo Webb was trying to find a healthy solution for his dog, Winston, but was underwhelmed with the options. That’s when Pet Plate was born.

Their products are made with real ingredients in a human-grade kitchen.

"When I learned what was being used to make traditional dog food - and how it was made - I was horrified. When I got my dog Winston, I started cooking for him and he loved it. That's when I knew it was my mission to create healthy, fresh-cooked food for pups everywhere. We've served over 9 million meals and the results have been remarkable." (Source)