In our 101 Women Entrepreneur Series, we’ve decided to dedicate this list to our African American #girlbosses. This list outlines the top women owned brands in North America. Make sure to check out their products, purchase their services and FOLLOW them on social medias. Black women owned businesses can only grow with the support of ALL women. We’re here for it. With no further ado, please find our all-time favorite list in alphabetical order as always.
Adaire Byerly
Adaire Byerly is bridging the gap between mind and power. Byerly is a licensed practitioner in neuro-linguistic programing and Neuroplasticity, also certified in cognitive behavioral therapy techniques. Currently, she is a student of continuing education for Neuroscience through Harvard University. As the CEO & Founder of Entertainment Mindframe™, Byerly is leading the way for cognitive sciences to be implemented into intellectual and developmental training for professionals in the fashion and entertainment industry. Ultimately, paving the way for the understanding the brain function of a creative. Byerly has worked with talent agencies, production/broadcast companies, fashion/creative teams, etc. In doing so, she has been able to help them optimize creativity, best business practices and individual/company growth all the while, enhancing professionalism through NLP, CBT, Neuroplasticity, philosophy of human nature and business management.
Alicia Richmond
Aurora James
Brother Vellies was founded in 2013 with the goal of keeping traditional African design practices, and techniques alive while also creating and sustaining artisanal jobs. Now handmade artisanally across the globe, Brother Vellies creates luxury accessories that celebrate cultural histories and timeless design.
Toronto-native and New York City-transplant, Creative Director and Founder Aurora James amassed an impressive resume of fashion industry experience prior to starting Brother Vellies. Her background in fashion, journalism, art, music, photography, and horticulture joins a forever-passion for artisanship, design, and humanitarianism to create truly one-of-a-kind pieces that will remain in your wardrobe forever.
Follow @AuroraJames on Instagram
Ashley L Fouyolle
Areeayl Goodwin
Beatrice Dixon
Beatrice Dixon founded The Honey Pot Company, a natural feminine care product line. Te products range from natural washes, wipes, tampons, panty sprays, pads, lubricants and other herbal products. The multimillion dollar company is sold online and at Walmart, Target, Urban Outfitters, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Walgreens and Whole Foods.
Follow her on Instagram @iambeadixon @thehoneypotco
Brittany Kozerski
JADE Swim incorporates a minimalist aesthetic with innovative silhouettes, and built its foundation on classic, sophisticated swimwear. The Owner and designer of JADE Swim, Brittany Kozerski is a former fashion editor and stylist who saw a void in the marketplace for high quality minimal swim that could also transition from a swimsuit to RTW and double as great layering pieces. She wanted to provide a go-to line of swimwear with styles that shape and accentuate the body, give minimal tan lines and also seamlessly pair with your closet essentials. The collection is made from luxe Italian sustainable fabrics with shape retention technology that smooths and sculpts the body. Each piece provides UV protection and resistance to chlorine and suntan lotions/oils to ensure long-term wearability. The collection has reinvented versatile swim, giving consumers wearable styles which has positioned the brand as the go-to brand for minimal swimwear.
Brittney Escovedo
Brittney Escovedo founded Beyond 8 with the mission to promote multicultural awareness and inclusivity through experiential events. Beyond 8 creates authentic, diverse, interactive experiences across the tech, fashion, art, music and lifestyle industries. Escovedo has worked withe everyone from Solange, Pyer Moss, Culture Con, Essence Fest, Gucci, Red Bull, VLONE and more
Brittiny Terry
Bosco
Slug Global was founded by multidisciplinary artist and musician, Bosco. Their mission is to showcase the art of peers and provide professional opportunities within our creative communities. Their team of young artists from diverse professional backgrounds and disciplines specialize in creating thoughtful visual experiences infused with music and culture.
Candace Reels
Carly Cushnie
CUSHNIE is a luxury women’s ready-to-wear and bridal brand designed by Carly CUSHNIE. Established in 2008, the label was founded on the desire to serve the modern woman. Artfully crafted with clean, sculptural lines, the CUSHNIE collection is precisely tailored to achieve the perfect fit for the female form. Defined by the balance of proportion, structure and fluidity, the CUSHNIE aesthetic embodies a refined sense of cosmopolitan minimalism and femininity.
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Cashmere Nicole
Chari Cuthbert
Established in 2012, BYCHARI is a reflection of designer Chari Cuthbert’s approach to life and style. Effortless, unique and modern, each handmade piece is designed for women who appreciate simplicity, but demand luxury-just as she does. All of the jewelry is handmade sustainably in Los Angeles. Cuthbert and her team remain committed to supporting local small businesses so that each BYCHARI piece can be worn with confidence.
Chantal Davis of Castamira
An entrepreneur at heart with a rebellious streak that helps her defy obstacles, Chantel pushed through more than a year of research and design, endless fabric samples and unforeseen manufacturing delays to launch CASTAMIRA’s debut collection of one-piece swimsuits. Fusing feminine elegance with modern edge and a touch of old world romance, Chantel’s designs reflect a timeless sensibility that is all her own. Her love of nature and respect for the earth are reflected in her use of eco-friendly fibers and Green packaging to reduce environmental impact.
Castamira, a luxury swim brand founded by black female entrepreneur Chantel Davis. The former Wilhelmia model had trouble finding high-quality swim options to comfortably enhance her own curves. She became fascinated with designing body contouring swimwear that would accentuate women’s most alluring features. She created her luxury swimwear brand that enhances the beauty and sexuality of your body. Chantel’s love of nature and respect for the earth are reflected in her use of eco-friendly fibers and Green packaging to reduce environmental impact.
Follow @ChantelDavis_
Shop directly on Castamira.com
Cheryl Sutherland
Charlesha Harris
Cynthia Watkins
Darlyn Feythe Valentine
L.Woods PR is a luxury boutique Public Relations company based in Los Angeles, CA. Owned by Darlyn-Feythe Valentine, they specialize in fine jewelry and accessories.
Drea Wheeler
Dr. Caroline Robinson
Denise Woodard
Effie
Evelynn Escobar Thomas
Felicia LaTour
Felisha Noel
Felisha Noel is a womenswear designer Brooklyn based designer. Her brand Fe Noel is heavily inspired by her Caribbean heritage and large close-knit family. Noel also founded the Fe Noel foundation to help young women who are passionate about entrepreneurship that aspire to start businesses.
Holly Carter
Holly Carter helms Relevé Entertainment LLC, a multi-platform production and talent partnership boutique that curates content across media and has managed award-winning, multi-platinum artists including Usher, Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, Kierra Sheard and Michelle Williams. Inspired by a passion for artist development, this twenty-five year industry veteran began her career in television casting The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Roc, and Martin ultimately expanding into content creation and brand development.
Jamika Martin
Jasmine Lewis
Jemila Bwanhot
After I became aware of my God given formulating skills I quit my day job and pursued my passion. My small business was fast growing in Nigeria and I eventually relocated to the US which meant starting afresh. I began doing more research and gaining first hand knowledge about the beauty industry. I enrolled in a diploma course with one of the best natural formulating schools, Formula botanica. Doing this has helped me to achieve the knowledge and professional experience that makes Alimaj Essentials stand out in the beauty industry. I am driven by my passion to create high performing, non-toxic natural hair care products, tailored to afro textured hair that deliver tangible results. Part of my goal includes educating the public on natural hair care which in turn will encourage more studies and research to be done, adding value to my community.
Jenne Claiborn
Jewel Gould
Balanced Women is founded by Jewel Gould, a non-profit who curates spaces and initiatives that are all geared towards encouraging women from all walks of life to lead a well-balanced life while executing their various rolls. Most recently Balanced Women launched their first initiative called Sister-Sister, designed to assist their community with not just essential needs, but also to aid with furthering education, tools and resources needed to pour into purposeful dreams as well.
In support of ending racism, systemic racism, hatred, brutalities and dehumanization, the funding collected for their first initiative will be dedicated to pour into the lives of black women who are wholeheartedly working on becoming the best versions of themselves for their families and communities. They will be utilizing these donations to pour into their lives, dreams, aspirations, and businesses.
Joyce Fuerza
Karen Okonkwo
Katherine Theobalds
Katrina Thompkins
K’dara CBD is a Black-owned health and wellness brand founded by Katrina Thompkins, an ICU nurse currently serving on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic in NYC. Since launching K’dara CBD in February, Thompkins has been dutiful to continue her service as a nurse in one of the hardest hit cities in the country. Additionally, with the recent social upheaval across the country, Thompkins is working to unite people through her company by sharing positive messages of wellness and unity. As a Black female business owner, she is continually motivated by the current conversations and movement. The product line offers an extensive variety of high-quality organic CBD products ranging from oils, edibles and topicals, to pet treats and bath bombs.
Kathryn Finney
Kenyata Gant
Khloe Hines
Hungry Bunny is a virtual donut shop Khloe Hines. Hines was laid off due to the pandemic when she decided to launch Hungry Bunny as she saw the opportunity to serve the community with a healthier, baked donut alternative. Each donut is baked in her home with love, and premium ingredient that are egg-free, dairy-free, and cruelty-free.
Kilee Hughes
Six One Agency is a bicoastal agency specializing in beauty, wellness and lifestyle public relations founded by Kilee Hughes. In today’s constantly changing media landscape, Six One’s goal is to create individually tailored programs for their clients through public relations, content strategy, brand marketing, social media and events that leave a lasting impact.
Follow @KileeHughes on Instagram.
Kristen Noel Crawley
Kristen Noel Crawley was strolling through Don Quijote in Tokyo, when….BAM, love at first sight. A wall of lip masks caught her eye, and she became obsessed with the idea of perfect, kissable lips. When she discovered there were no natural lip masks on the market, the solution was obvious: she had to create her own. Two years and countless trials later, Crawley created the first all-natural, collagen-infused lip mask.
Kristen Daniel
Kristen Daniel is an Atlanta based entrepreneur who founded Ateaelle. Her company is an urban lifestyle and fashion company creating apparel and brand experiences that blend messages rooted in black excellence, pop culture and hip hop. Ateaelle’s mission is to create a sense of nostalgia while evoking conversation and continued adoration through Atlanta.
Lesley Thornton
KLUR
Lisa Price
Nancy Twine
Founder of @Briogeo
Melissa Butler
The Lip Bar is a vegan and cruelty-free beauty brand that exists to help change the way you think about beauty. Melissa Butler founded The Lip Bar with inclusive ideals. Her journey from stocks and bonds to beauty is one that she describes as natural, not because she loved makeup, but because she was frustrated with the industry and therefore created a solution. Butler wasn’t willing to accept cosmetics filled with chemicals because she believes beauty doesn’t have to compromise health. She also hated traditional beauty campaigns and their linear approach of beauty.
Merah Vodianova
Merah Vodianova founded by Merah Vodianova is a British shoe brand providing maximal minimalism for the modern woman. Each piece from start to finish is handmade by experienced artisans in an Italian seaside town ensuring attention to detail and the highest of quality. Since the labels launch Merah Vodianova has been identified as the emerging shoe designer to watch out for, receiving the Tommy Hilfiger Micam ’18 brand of the year award as well as being seen on a cult following of IT- girls and taste makers. Vodianova also plans on launching The Cutt Label this summer which aims to disrupt the fast fashion industry with affordable sustainable and ethically sourced clothing.
Monti Landers
Founded by Monti Landers, Riot Swim boasts luxe, minimalistic swimwear with versatile colors and styles.
Meena Osei-Kuffour
Vintage Royalty, is a female Black-owned lifestyle and jewelry brand, designed and handmade by artist Meena Osei-Kuffour. Osei-Kuffour influences are a combination of her proud Ghanian heritage, background in fashion design, and love for vintage art. As one of the originators of acrylic jewelry, a highly popular trend in 2020, the products are personally curated, with colorful products ranging from handmade jewelry to fabric masks. She began her business in 2008, after discovering that she could make art pieces out of everyday materials like Japanese folding paper and craft goods from Joann’s Fabrics. After the success of making earrings for her friends in college, Osei-Kuffour was inspired to take her skills to the next level and began creating jewelry under the name Vintage Royalty. The brand’s goal is to instill confidence in the buyer, as each product is uniquely designed to allow everyone to explore their own individuality. Vintage Royalty’s product is about versatility – you can throw on the jewelry with a tee shirt and jeans as easily as you could with black tie attire.
Myrlaun Walker
Petrona Joseph
Petrona Jacqueline Joseph featured on Breakfast Television is a tri-lingual Linguistics Graduate, operating as a Public Relations Consultant in Montreal and New York. Having worked with brands like BMW, Aston Martin, Jaguar and Range Rover, she was the first Black Woman to ever work for the prestigious Bentley Motors brand in Montreal. However, it was her passion for writing and oration that opened numerous doors for her, namely as Vice President of Marketing for Montreal Caribbean Fashion Week, Honorary Delegate in the Film Festival Views of the World, Ambassador for BMW Canada, and working with numerous Fashion Designers. She is also one of the few Black Women to work alongside the Mega Shopping Destination Premium Outlets Montreal, where she created countless Marketing Campaigns, proving her strength in the Fashion Industry.
In 2016, while approached by Breakfast Television, she took the risk and purchased air-time from the power-house Rogers Communications, which made television more accessible to local Montreal Designers. With hard work and infused passion, her fashion segment was the number one in online views on the Breakfast Television platform, a success that continues to follow her today.
Get her latest book “Stigmatized” on Amazon
Follow @IamPetronaJoseph on Instagram
Rose Adkins
Leveraging her extensive experience from roles at The Hollywood Reporter, NBC Universal, and The Sundance Institute, Rose Adkins first launched ScreenHits in 2012 as a B2B platform focusing on programming distribution for worldwide content creators. More recently, Rose saw the proliferation of streaming services, the resulting consumer fatigue and how quickly the home viewing landscape was changing. Her solution is ScreenHits TV, a free integrated super-aggregator that brings together your subscription services, video, and live channels – all in one cohesive interface. To date, she has raised an impressive £4 million for her business.
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Sharon Beason
Sharon Chuter of Uoma Beauty
Nigerian born, Sharon Chuter, has taken a very hands-on approach to create a makeup range that is forward thinking, radical and uncompromising. She draws inspiration from her Afro heritage and infuses it with fierce modernity to create a truly fresh aesthetic. The Uoma Beauty collection is made of products that are ground breaking in innovation, esthetically pleasing with instant payoff, skin loving, delivers maximum pleasure to all the senses and most of all suitable for all skin tones.
Chuter just launched #pulluporshutup calling for beauty brands who have donated to Black Lives Matter causes to publicly release the number of Black executives they have working at the corporate level. The social media campaign also hopes for a creation of an independent diversity board for beauty companies with representatives from every marginalized group.
Shontay Lundy
Black Girl Sunscreen was founded by Shontay Lundy as a sunscreen catered to melanin skin. Black Girl Sunscreen uses no parabens, or other harmful chemicals while infusing the finest ingredients to shield and moisturize melanated skin without the dreaded white residue common with most sunscreen.
Taj Alwan
Founded by Taj Alwan, The Hyphen8 is a PR and digital management company representing creative multi-hyphenates and culture-driven brands. With expertise across various disciplines, The Hyphen8 creates tailored strategies in collaboration with their clients to achieve meaningful partnerships and effective brand building.
Trinity Mouzon
GOLDE
Victoria Fazio
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Come back next month for another list of 101 SuperWomen! #BeGOSSY
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