Support Local Black-Owned Businesses During Black History Month

Yelp’s goal is to connect people with great local businesses. Many of these businesses are successful, black-owned and operated and this Black History Month, we want to highlight and support them. To celebrate Black History Month, our Yelp Community Managers in association with two of our Employee Resource Groups, Colorcoded and DiverseBurst, have curated a collection of black-owned businesses across the U.S.

We spoke with a number of business owners about their businesses: why they started their business, what their businesses are and their thoughts on being a black owned business. Want to support each business? Click through to individually bookmark a spot on Yelp, or follow Yelp’s bookmark collection to add the whole list to your Yelp app.

The Terminal Cafe

“The only real connection I see with my race and owning the cafe is that it seems to make people feel comfortable no matter where they’re from or what they look like. I do love when people see me making drinks and we get to talking and they realize that I don’t only work at the cafe but I own it. Black customers get really pumped with this discovery and have been so generous in sharing their support for the cafe. What makes me proud is that until recently there weren’t as many minority business owners, period, especially in the speciality coffee industry so I’m definitely happy that’s changing. Now more than ever we see women and minority business owners absolutely crushing the game, which inspires me to keep going even when times are tough. ” – Khalil Davis

Gordons

“Gordons is a melting pot that brings all cultures together. One thing that we all have in common is the need for food. But when you come to Gordons we want you to feel warm relaxed and carefree just like you are when you’re at home. We’re born and raised in Nashville in a sense we are at home!”

SWEAT DC

“SWEAT DC is a community driven fitness studio that lives outside the box. Our studio looks and feels like a club with state of the art sound and lighting, modern locker rooms with waterfall showers, and an upbeat staff who embrace their good crazy!” – Coach G (Gerard Burley)

Revive Events and Catering

“Revive Events & Catering was created to be not only a black business, but a company that celebrates and cultivates diversity.  Above all else, our goal is to deliver excellence, and it just so happens to be that we’re rooted in black excellence. It is very important to us that we provide an elevated service to OUR community. We strive to not only be an example of an exceptional African-American owned business, but a first-class business in general that caters to DC and the beauty of its vast audience whether it’s homegrown or international.” – Charese John

Cupcake Collection

“Being a black-owned business gives me the opportunity to be a part of something that was passed along from my ancestors. My goal right now is legacy building. I want to leave something for my granddaughters. I want my name to mean something to them. I want them to be able to pass the story along about who I was, what I did and how it matters to them. I want them to say, ‘My grandmother was Mignon Francois and she had joy. Everyone who came in contact with her felt that. She got up every day on purpose to leave something for us and that’s what we are continuing the legacy of today.'” – Mignon Francois

What’s your favorite local black-owned business? Share it with us by tagging @Yelp on Twitter or Instagram!