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AUSTIN, Texas – Black women have faced unimaginable obstacles in recent years. Not only did black women develop COVID disproportionately, but their businesses were also disproportionately affected.
On Saturday, Texan entrepreneurs celebrated their success at the 8th Annual Black Women in Business Extravaganza in Austin.
What you need to know
- The 8th Annual Black Women in Business Extravaganza is back for the first time since the pandemic
- Black women are disproportionately affected by COVID and economic inequalities
- The nonprofit that runs the Black Women in Business event has ten offices across Texas
- Austin Black Population Is 7.8% According to 2020 US Census Data
This is the first time since the pandemic that black women have been able to come together. Fittingly, this year it was all about resilience.
In a room filled with black entrepreneurs, business owners, and executives, Katii McKinney shook hands, hugged, and introduced herself.
“It feels good. I’m excited – I’m excited to see where we’re going,” McKinney said.
They all came together on Saturday to rise at a time when many black women were being struck down.
McKinney lost her job with the company due to layoffs due to COVID. At the height of the pandemic, she turned her sideline into a full-time business.
Her company, Elegant & Dapper, sells black hair and skin care products.
“We wanted to find products that were made by other small companies that didn’t have the money, like most companies, to advertise themselves,” she said.
Events like these are of great help in starting businesses, especially for black women like McKinney, who face disproportionately high levels of economic uncertainty.
The black population in Austin is around 8%, which is declining unlike other races in the city. Because of this, Black Women in Business CEO Rose Smith said the community needed such events.
Rose Smith, CEO of Black Women in Business. (Spectrum News 1 / Robin Richardson)
“Some of them lost their jobs, got laid off, things like that, and now they have loved ones to take care of,” she said. “It was a one-two punch, it was really, really tough.”
Smith said the event typically draws around 1,000 people, but this year they had to downsize. In any case, this was an important milestone in order to be able to come together personally.
“Black women have always found a way to get some strength and courage to do a little more, and that’s exactly what we’ve done this year,” she said.
Black Women in Business has 10 chapters across Texas and more across the country. Smith said the organization served free groceries to more than 71,000 families without government funding during the pandemic.
So this extravagance is more than just a mixture, it is an important reminder of the never wavering resilience of black women.
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https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/austin/news/2021/11/20/black-women-business
