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Scarlet by RedDrop Co-Founders Dana Roberts and Monica Williams are celebrating great success for their business, driven by a vision to support young girls navigating puberty. It all started with Robert’s time teaching fifth graders in an Atlanta classroom. She was approached by a student who had started her period and felt that she was dying, according to Yahoo! News. This would lead her to launch RedDrop, which was rebranded to Scarlet by RedDrop in 2025, alongside physician Williams, to serve tweens and teens. It offers pads, tampons, and period kits that include pads in various sizes, as well as a diary that shares helpful tips, according to its website. “RedDrop was our beginning, born from a desire to fill a gap in puberty care for school-age girls,” Williams told Inc. “But as we grew, we realized our name no longer held all that we were becoming. The rebrand reflects the company’s new educational period-care product line that supports tweens and teens at every stage of their...
CurlMix Co-founder Kim Lewis says her business is on the verge of closing. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, CurlMix is a clean, natural haircare line founded by Kim and Tim Lewis in Chicago. The pair appeared on “Shark Tank” in 2019 and rejected a $400,000 offer for 20% of the company. Instead, they raised $1.2 million on their own in 2020 for 10% of the brand. By the following year, they had launched a crowdfunding campaign, raising more than $3.6 million in 30 days. The business launched a separate crowdfunding campaign in 2024, which led to $5.7 million from 9,248 investors, according to information from its Wefunder. With a mission to protect Black ownership, the business is now fighting to stay open. In an Instagram post, Kim revealed that 20,000 orders are needed to ensure the business’s survival. “This has been the most difficult year in business. This year in business was harder than COVID with tariffs and taxes and ingredient costs going up and shipping time slowing down,”...
Atlanta-based Goodr Co. is stepping up for the community as millions are set to experience a pause in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. In an Instagram video shared Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, Goodr Founder and CEO Jasmine Crowe-Houston issued a call for help. “As many of you may have heard, millions of people will lose their SNAP benefits in just a few days, including hundreds of thousands right here in Metro Atlanta ,” Crowe-Houston said. “What this means is that their grocery budgets will disappear overnight. At Goodr, we’re stepping up to fill the gap,” she continued. The tech-enabled sustainable food waste management company has launched the Goodr Community Fund, allowing the public to make a direct impact. For a $10 donation, donors can sponsor a “grab bag” meal that feeds a family of four. For an additional $5, Goodr will deliver groceries and meals directly to seniors and families. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Goodr Inc (@goodrco)...
Ron Busby, Sr. was born to lead. Dialing it back to his time as an elementary student, the Oakland, CA native would take three-mile hikes to school, which had a donut store nearby. He purchased day-old donuts and sold them for a quarter, his earliest foray as an entrepreneur. In conversation with AFROTECH™ , he admits he was always a “hustler” and “entrepreneur.” What’s more, entrepreneurship runs in his veins. His father also owned a business, and channeled his spirit of leadership as a member of the Black Panther Party. “I kind of understood what leadership was about in reference to making sure that the community understood what your mission was, because there were conflicting conversations about who [the Black Panthers] were because all we saw was the brothers in the leather coats and the shotguns,” Busby, Sr. said. “But the people that were in the community saw something totally different. We saw Black men that were feeding us and helping us with our homework and making sure...
Actively Black is redefining Black ownership. The premium athleisure brand is owned by Lanny Smith and was launched in 2020 in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, during a time when corporations were pouring in commitments to what have since materialized into “empty promises to invest in DEI,” he told AFROTECH™ in an email interview. He recognized it was a marketing strategy, describing it as “performative,” because brands had been profiting from Black consumerism. “We shouldn’t have to ask them to pour back into the Black community. We can do it ourselves,” he noted. Ownership Smith saw an opportunity to pursue ownership in the Black apparel and footwear market, which is projected to reach $70 billion annually , according to a report released by McKinsey & Co. Going full throttle on Actively Black, he aimed to reclaim a portion of the value long extracted by major industry players. “Legacy sportswear giants like Nike, Under Armour, and Adidas have profited off Black culture, Black...
NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley is expanding his business ventures with a new 6,800-square-foot steakhouse and cigar lounge at Valley Forge Casino Resort in King of Prussia, PA, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal. The property’s owner, Boyd Gaming Corp., has not yet announced the name of the steakhouse or its official opening date. The company confirmed Barkley’s involvement and said the new venue will be located near the casino’s food court. Barkley, who played eight seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers after being drafted in 1984, said in a statement that he wanted to “bring something new” to the Philadelphia area, which he described as a place that has “always felt like home.” “We’re creating a spot that’s fun, comfortable, and full of personality,” Barkley said. “I want it to be the kind of place where people can unwind, share a great meal, and feel that same energy and connection that make this community so special.” According to the Philadelphia Business Journal,...
Abiodun Johnson is helping travelers connect to nearby experiences. When Johnson was two months old, he moved to Nigeria to live with his grandparents until he was 6 ½ years old. He returned to Memphis, TN, where he was born. Throughout his life, he has immersed himself in new communities, and told AFROTECH™ it was harder to feel like a local. He has lived in seven cities spanning three countries and two continents. For the last decade, he has lived in New York City and is splitting his time between Puerto Rico. Nearvana His experience living in multiple places sparked his latest tech venture, Nearvana, a local search platform he co-founded with Jay Jackson (CTO), to help people, particularly travelers, easily find nearby events, places, and experiences. “We really wanted to look at the possibilities of location data and how it could be used to shape more meaningful real-world experiences,” Johnson (CEO) said. “That’s when it really clicked for us that the physical world hasn’t...
Chemist Ron Robinson is betting on the next generation of entrepreneurs. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Robinson founded BeautyStat Cosmetics, a bootstrapped skincare company with product offerings including a triple- patented stable vitamin C, notes Beauty Matter. He also is a chemist and key formulator for Rhodes, a multi-category lifestyle beauty brand founded by actress Hailey Bieber. Elf Beauty acquired Rhodes for $1 billion earlier this year. “Proud day for science. Hailey, Michael @ratty Lauren @laurenratner and the entire @rhode team – Thank you for bringing us on as partners from the very beginning,” Robinson wrote on Instagram. “While some may have experts just for marketing, you truly leaned into the science and allowed us to be part of the team. Because of you, brands have taken notice and now value the need for science-led formulations. This has been the journey of a lifetime and we are proud to be a part of it.” Yes Day Robinson is now dedicating some of his time to...
Black women continue to plant their flags in technology. University of Michigan graduate Crystal Brown stumbled into technology after a friend introduced her to a CEO behind a life science startup, TechCrunch reports. She was already nose deep in the automotive manufacturing industry and aiming to become a C-suite automotive executive. The CEO that she had been introduced to was looking for a business manager, and Brown accepted a part-time role. Her friends encouraged her to leave her position in the automotive industry altogether. “I was like, no one’s gonna take me seriously. I’ve never studied biology. I studied poli sci and women’s studies,” she told TechCrunch. Brown stayed with the company and eventually moved up to director of operations. Then the startup went public. With a substantial payout, she decided to launch her own biotech startup, per the outlet. Though she made some rookie mistakes, like hiring too quickly, and the company ultimately closed due to funding, she had...
A Black-owned business has moved into one of the busiest airports in America. Golden Krust Origins Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery (Golden Krust) is a family-led business founded by Lowell Hawthorne, who credits his parents, Mavis and Ephraim, for the idea. The couple ran Hawthorne & Sons Bakery in St. Mary, Jamaica, for more than 50 years with the help of their 11 children. The business was known for giving back to the community through feeding the hungry and supporting education efforts, according to an Instagram post. In 1989, the Hawthorne siblings and their spouses packed their bags with a dream and pooled their savings to move to New York and start fresh with Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery, located in The Bronx, as outlined on the company website. Lowell served as president and CEO until his passing in 2017. PC: Golden Krust Making History Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery reportedly became the first Caribbean-owned franchiser in the U.S. in 1996, notes the company website. Over...
After several shoe collaborations, designer Salehe Bembury is venturing into ownership and launching his own independent sneaker company. The Syracuse University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in industrial design has spent over a decade in the footwear space, with his first role tracing back to 2009 as a footwear designer for Payless Shoesource, according to his LinkedIn profile. He went on to secure various roles, including innovation designer for Cole Haan, men’s footwear designer for Yeezy, senior director of sneakers & mens footwear for Versace, and more. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Bembury has collaborated with several companies, including Crocs, after he was named 2020 Designer of the Year by Footwear News. He most recently partnered with New Balance, according to an Instagram post shared by Bembury. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Salehe Bembury (@salehebembury) Several years ago, Bembury’s talents caught the attention of Nike, who suggested a...
Bourbon Steak San Francisco and The Eighth Rule are set to open at the Westin St. Francis, the only hotel located directly on San Francisco’s iconic Union Square, according to a news release shared with AFROTECH™. Bourbon Steak San Francisco offers a bold new take on award-winning chef Michael Mina’s steakhouse franchise. The Eighth Rule — Stephen Curry’s first hospitality venture — is a bourbon-forward bar developed in partnership with The MINA Group, which operates over 30 chef-driven concepts worldwide. This will mark Mina’s return to the Westin St. Francis. In 2004, he debuted his namesake restaurant there, earning two Michelin stars and cementing his place as one of San Francisco’s most influential culinary voices. “As my team and I have worked tirelessly to bring the evolution of Bourbon Steak back to the Westin St. Francis, I have felt a sense of overwhelming gratitude thinking about the early days when I was just cutting my teeth as a new chef in this incredible city,” Mina...
SKIMS co-founder Emma Grede has lent her expertise to a wellness venture launched by Hoda Kotb. Leaving ‘Today’ Kotb, a Virginia Tech University graduate with a degree in broadcast journalism, had been a host on the “Today” show since 2007, ultimately becoming co-anchor. She left many in shock when she departed the show on Jan. 10 after turning 60, according to NPR reports. She shared that the decision resulted from reaching a peak on television and wanting to have more time for her family. Joy 101 Kotb has now turned to entrepreneurship, serving as the founder and CEO of Joy 101, a wellness company that offers intimate retreats and happiness hours with live conversations held on Zoom between Kotb, guests, and experts, according to its website. The company also launched an app with a daily joy plan backed by research tools and led by experts, with courses that center on various topics such as self-love and acceptance, mental health, reclaiming joy, and calming anxiety. PC: Joy 101...
Founder Elizabeth Abunaw believes a good business should solve a problem, so she launched the Chicago grocery store Forty Acres Fresh Market, the Chicago Tribune reports. Its inception dates back to 2016. While on a walk to get some cash, Abunaw was unsuccessful because there was no nearby bank or grocery store in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago. “That’s when the ‘wheel started to turn’ — something that I thought would be simple, wasn’t simple. What is this?” Abunaw explained to the Chicago Tribune. “When I live in these predominantly white areas, I can find whatever I want, but now in a Black neighborhood, I can’t? It’s just harder,” she continued. Forty Acres Fresh Market After being laid off from from her job at Microsoft a few months later, Abunaw discovered a new purpose inspired by her 2016 experience. This led to the launch of a fresh produce pop-up market on Jan. 20, 2018, with a mission that “every hood should be healthy.” “We have not looked back since,” she said in a...
A search for a creative outlet led Naimah Belin to the floral industry. The Milwaukee, WI, native — the youngest among her four siblings — was raised in a single-parent household. She told AFROTECH™ she grew up with a creative spirit and was an avid reader. Later in life, she still wanted to maintain a creative outlet beyond her 9-to-5, even as a senior sales professional in tech or as a strategic customer success manager. Project 1952 As part of her creative pursuits, Belin explored blogging and thrifting but did not find fulfillment until becoming a certified florist in 2022. The following year, she launched Project 1952, a self-funded, Chicago-based floral business dedicated to her mother, Virginia. Since its inception, Project 1952 has partnered with the Emmys and the NBA All-Star events. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Chicago Florist & Creative Director (@project.1952) “I’m still in sales tech within the video industry, and it can be very Black and white, cut and...
