By: Genn Bugg
Using your consumer dollars to patronize Black-owned businesses circulates money into communities, creates jobs, and narrows the racial wealth gap by increasing Black household incomes. We encourage you to buy Black, order Black and leave reviews about your experiences year-round. In celebration of Black History Month and through our ongoing commitment to our communities, Brown & Crouppen is proud to share a few of the Black-owned businesses our firm loves and hopefully, you will, too.
Lady J’s Kitchen
St. Louis, Metro east, Dallas
(314) 437-2027
Craving a home-cooked? Lady J’s Kitchen has you covered! A Brown & Crouppen employee suggested the delicious home-style cooking of Regina James, AKA Lady J, for our Women’s Equality Day lunch back in 2019. We loved it so much, Lady J’s Kitchen returned to cater our Thanksgiving celebration that year. Managing Partner Ed Herman says, “When Lady J’s Kitchen catered our firm’s entire Thanksgiving feast for over 200 people, everything I ate tasted like it came right out of my mom’s oven. It was truly delicious.”
There are a few ways you can try Lady J’s Kitchen from the safety of your home, like the “Take & Bake” menu, cheesecake delivery, and more.
The Black Pantry
https://www.instagram.com/theblackpantry/
Kansas City
Need essentials in KCMO? Try The Black Pantry. Owner Brian Roberts created this mobile store in response to Black Out Tuesday in 2020. His pop-up shop acts as a general store and provides a variety of products such as toothpaste, pancake mix, candles, and much more from Black-owned brands. Brown & Crouppen’s Tammie Holland recently hosted Brian on her weekly show. He gave This Week with Tammie Holland viewers a live tour of his mobile shop as it sat parked outside of Ruby Jean’s Juicery, a Black-owned juice shop in Kansas City.
Follow The Black Pantry on Instagram for updates on goods, pop-up shop locations and business hours.
For The Culture STL
https://www.fortheculturestl.com
St. Louis
We love this gold standard online directory of Black-owned businesses and products. It’s searchable by category and location, so you can really find it all here.
