11 Black Women Owned Businesses in Buffalo You Should Know About
- Jayla Craig
- Aug 2, 2022
- 7 min read
I’m a girl’s girl. I’m always going to root for and support my fellow female-identifying peers on their personal, professional, and creative ventures. I’m especially supportive of black-women run endeavors knowing that we often get over-looked, over-criticized and underestimated.
Luckily, living in Buffalo, there are a plethora of black women doing amazing, diverse things, from serving delicious meals and baking decadent treats, to helping others physically feel their best, and writing thoughtful and empowering books and blogs. I have the honor of supporting these beautiful women, and hope that you would support them too! In alphabetical order, here are 11 of my favorite Buffalo based Black women owned businesses (I dare you to say that three-times fast!):
Bare Skin Esthetics Studio
Owned and operated by Ariee Manney since 2020, Bare Skin Esthetics Studio is the one-stop shop for all of your skincare and hair removal needs.
I’m not much of a girly girl, and I consequentially don’t often treat myself to beauty treatments such as professional waxing. With waxing being such a personal service, I was a bit nervous going into my first appointment with Ariee last summer. As soon as I met her, though, she made sure that I was comfortable and felt safe. She’s professional, kind, personable, a great communicator, and gets you in and out while preserving pride in her work. Most importantly, she always maintains a clean environment. She’s been my go-to esthetician ever since!
Personal Recommendation: The Brazilian Wax
How to Show Support:
Beauty Arise Women’s Empowerment Group
Beauty Arise Women’s Empowerment group is owned and operated by author and motivational speaker Darniece Carter. Despite only being 18, Darniece, affectionally known as Niecy, is determined to encourage and empower black women of every age, shape, and walk of life through sharing her story and encouraging others to do the same. I’ve had the pleasure of getting to experience her speak live and, baby, she’s not to be underestimated or counted out!
Personal Recommendation: The Beauty Arise Motivational Mondays
How to Show Support:
Boujee Lifestyle Luxury Cosmetics
Teray Pointer is the owner and operator of Boujee Lifestyle Luxury Cosmetics. She handmakes all of her beauty products using all vegan ingredients, invests in high quality packaging, and sells some of the best-sourced lashes in the city. Her products are hydrating, long lasting, and always smell SO good. She’s transparent about her product development, and consistently posts Reels and TikToks about how she makes and packages her merchandise. Boujee Lifestyle Luxury Cosmetics never disappoints!
Personal Recommendation: ANY of the lip-glosses and lashes!
How to Show Support:
Compass Career & Development Services
Need your resume refreshed? Are you shifting fields but are unsure how to translate your experience to compliment your future goals? Monica Manney, owner, and operator of Compass Career & Development Services is here to help! Established in 2021, Monica’s goal is to “help professionals ace the interview, land the job, and get paid”. She is passionate about bridging the gap between access and opportunity, and therefore offers flexible hours for her services. Although she's now located outside of Buffalo, her connections with the city remains deep, as she curates career development courses for kids within the Buffalo community.
Monica is professional yet charming, organized, enthusiastic, kind, inspirational and knows how to meet you exactly where you are. Monica has helped me grow into a better professional, and she’s here to help you, too!
Personal Recommendation: Her weekly tips and tips on her Instagram page!
How to Show Support:
Dance Therapy with CanMarie
If you want to get back into shape but are unsure where to begin, check out Candice Barlow’s Dance Therapy classes, where the motto is “Come have fun and dance your stress way”! Suitable for people of all ages and dancing abilities, Candice’s work-out class is extremely fun and effective! She leads her classes with an infectious spirit, always establishes a safe space, and encourages you to just be yourself and try your best. Also- her class playlist is fire! It really is a party every class.
Candice is a certified personal trainer and offers dance therapy classes three days a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. On Tuesdays, she hosts a workout session specially targeted for the arms and booty, cleverly titled “Weight a Band Minute”.
Personal Recommendation: Join the Facebook Group for monthly health challenges and updates on collaborations with other local fitness groups!
How to Show Support:
Hair Youniversity
Now a-days, its really hard to find a good hairdresser that will provide a nice, peaceful environment, good conversation, and will wash your hair without an extra fee. Hair Youniversity, owned and operated by Deonka Martin, is a multicultural salon that provides just that and more. Deonka works alongside Justina Carpenter, and they both are reliable, kind, knowledgeable, and truly care about the health of your hair. They offer an array of services, from protective styles such as box-braids and crochet, to keratin treatments and relaxers. I've seen them both for years now, and I've always left their chair feeling extra beautiful and refreshed.
Hair Youniversity knows that there’s nothing quite like a good hair-therapy session, and they are dedicated to providing the best experience for all of their clients.
Personal Recommendation: A silk press & trim from Deonka, and a loc retwist from Justina
How to Show Support:
Honey’s Exquisite Events & Cupcake Doozies, LLC
Owned and operated by Ternisha Phillips, Honey Exquisite Events and Cupcake Doozies is the event power-duo that you’ve been looking for. With Honey’s Exquisite Events, Ternisha is detail oriented, professional, fun to work with, and is dedicated to bringing your vision to life. She communicates with her clients every step of the way, and makes sure that your event, no matter the occasion, is exactly what you dream it to be and then some. I had the opportunity to work with Ternisha as she decorated for my mother’s bridal shower, wedding ceremony, and wedding reception. It was a beautiful job well done, and my mother couldn’t have been happier with the results!
Need sweet treats for your occasion, too? You don’t have to go far, because Cupcake Doozies is available to make sure that your dessert table looks as great as it tastes with specialty cupcakes, brownies, cookies, pies, and more! Ternisha’s detailed eye also translates over to Cupcake Doozies, as she has a special talent for decorating on-theme treats for any occasion. Check out the sugar cookies she made for Juneteenth last year!
Personal Recommendation: Book for any celebration + The Holiday Treat Boxes
How to Show Support:
Contact Honey Exquisite Events: honeysexquisiteevents@gmail.com
KMB5 Boutique
Founded by twenty-three-year-old CEO Melanie Minor, KMB5 is both an online and brick-and-mortar boutique based in the heart of downtown Buffalo’s theater district, that offers fun, one-of-a-kind pieces that will have you stand out in the best way. Melanie’s mission is to promote women’s empowerment for all women, through selling size-inclusive clothing that is fun and stylish, because she believes that “when we look good, we feel good”.
KMB5 goes the extra mile to encourage women’s empowerment by sharing inspirational posts on their social media, and by promoting financial literacy with their in-shop Financial Literacy Library. Melanie is supported by a team of her family and friends, who are all also women of color. Together, they execute the vison behind KMB5 in an eloquent and enticing way. I love the material and the mission, and I look forward to seeing how the brand grows overtime.
Personal recommendation: The brand t-shirt and a funky pair of sunglasses!
How to Show Support:
Shop in person at: 700 Main Street Buffalo, NY 14202
Something Sweet Bake Shoppe
If you’re looking for a beautiful cake that tastes as good as it looks, Something Sweet Bake Shoppe, owned and operated by Angelica Robinson, has you covered. They provide gourmet cupcakes and cakes that are absolutely beautiful and 1000% Instagram worthy.
Angelica exceeds expectations and is transparent about her professional journey with the bakery by sharing her ingredient shopping, baking, and decorating methods on the company’s Instagram page. She’s a beautiful soul who takes pride in her work, and always ensures that her client’s visions are brought to life.
Something Sweet Bake Shoppe offers an array of cake flavors that include strawberry crunch, double chocolate fudge, red-velvet, German chocolate and more. Their motto is simple, “Everyone needs something sweet to eat!”; Let me just say, I agree and know for myself!
Personal Recommendation: The Fresh fruit-topped cupcakes!
How to Show Support:
Contact Something Sweet Bake Shoppe: somesweetshoppe@gmail.com
SneakVibing Blog
Buffalo is a city full of musical talent – and Schondra, “Schondy” Aytch has made it her mission to give local artists the exposure they deserve. She writes thoughtful reviews on Buffalo artists, promotes their work and showcases, curate’s playlists on both Spotify and AppleMusic showcasing Buffalo talent, and hosts events creating space for local artists to perform.
Schondra hosted a showcase at this year’s Juneteenth festival, of which I had the pleasure of attending. While I only came to vibe out to some music outside in the sun, I left inspired and with a few new additions to my personal current rotation playlist. She offered a free mimosa bar and water, had fun accessories to take pictures with, and had an artist actively working on a piece while the musical artists preformed. It was a heart-warming family affair, as she had her father alongside her on the “Ones and Twos”, keeping the crowd energized, and occasionally sharing words of encouragement. It was evident that a lot of time and effort went into making sure that the audience had a unique and fun experience.
Schondra is a force to be reckoned with and has been a huge inspiration to me as I’ve watched from the sidelines. I look forward to seeing her continue to excel, and hope that you too would check out her blog, follow her journey, and support the movement.
Personal Recommendation: The 2022 BuffaCold Playlist
How to Show Support:
TOP CLASS EATZ
Buffalo is also a city full of amazing culinary experiences, and Top Class Eatz is definitely one of them. Owned and operated by CEO Devonna Johnson, Top Class Eatz provides great, friendly, professional service, amazing food, and offers both delivery and pick-up options. I had the chance to try the oxtails – and baby listen! It felt like a hug from the inside!
Top Class Eatz offers an array of soul food and Jamaican inspired dishes including jerk chicken, oxtails, pot roast, Rasta-Pasta, and more. They also offer catering services for any occasion at a fair price, and it’s a guarantee that your guests will leave full and happy. Devonna & her team are super responsive to requests, and are timely with their services. Be sure to be on the lookout for their daily specials and don’t wait too long to order, because Top Class Eatz always sell out!
Personal Recommendation: The Oxtail Dinner
How to Show Support:
Contact Top Class Eatz: chefdev@topclasseatz.com
Who's your favorite black-woman business woman? Who should be shouted out next? Leave a comment!
Special thanks to all of these ladies for allowing me to show them love and feature them here!
Please note: This is not paid advertisement. All parties were asked to be featured, reviewed the content, and granted permission to be published. If you would like your business to be featured, please contact me.
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