Black SnoCo: Lifting up Black-Owned Businesses
Editor’s note: Originally published April 13, 2021. Republished February 17, 2022. Header image: Black SnoCo founders // courtesy of Black SnoCo
I like to support local businesses because it helps keep our local economies strong. I also like to support Black and other minority-owned businesses because it helps to close the racial wealth gap, among other things. A Google search for local businesses usually results in the nearest big-box store, so locating the businesses I want to support is challenging and usually more a matter of luck or chance than I’d like it to be.
Luckily, Adja Maïmouna Fame, Avianca Walker-Loundermon, and Carissa Fathye Walker recognized this problem and founded Black SnoCo, a directory of small, local, Black-owned businesses in Snohomish County. They saw that our county is home to many diverse and innovative businesses and entrepreneurs, that many people are unaware of. Their inspiration came from fellow Snohomish County resident, Ashley Kay Smith, who shared a list of local resources to support her community in the summer of 2019.
A well organized website puts access to Black-owned businesses at your fingertips.
On their site, they state the goal of Black SnoCo is to “connect all residents of Snohomish County to local Black leaders, entrepreneurs, and creatives”. The Black SnoCo organizers believe the best way to do this and to ensure the success of our community’s small, Black-owned businesses is by making these organizations more visible.
The Black SnoCo site has many features in addition to their directory including a calendar and store with featured products. Local businesses can easily join the directory by completing a short form.
Black SnoCo organizers are personally supporting their community partners and living out the phrase “it takes a village” by providing consultations and ad hosting with certain membership tiers and purchases.
A favorite Holly Neighborhood business is included in the directory.
Adja Maïmouna Fame, Avianca Walker-Loundermon, and Carissa Fathye Walker have dedicated their time, their talents, their vision, and their hearts to strengthen our whole community by shining a light on the “many Black folks innovating, organizing, and sharing their diverse talents in our own backyard”.
As we start the process of reopening after a very long and isolating year, let’s invest in what makes our neighborhood our home. We build community by investing in it, by shopping local, and by supporting local creatives, consultants, hair stylists, and so many more. So next time you need something, before you Google, go to Black SnoCo instead.
Angela Di Filippo currently works in State Social Services and recently earned her Masters in Industrial/Organizational Psychology with extensive training in evidence-based leadership coaching. Angela moved from North Carolina to Washington 6 years ago and has proudly called Everett her home for 5 of those years. When not helping others solve problems in creative and strength-driven ways, Angela enjoys her time painting, hiking with her terrier-mix, Indy, and eating waffles.