Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners...

Harina

Well-Known Member
Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners, But Can They?



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Princess Hill and Kelly Williams standing in front of their beauty supply store in Detroit, MI.



According to some estimates, the Black hair care industry is a billion dollar business. Large companies like P&G, L’Oréal, and Alberto-Culver have traditionally led the market, but as the natural hair movement has grown, Black female entrepreneurs have been the leading voices and creators in the arena. But there’s still one area where Black entrepreneurs have continued to be shut out: beauty supply stores.


Walk into any beauty supply store in a Black neighborhood and you’ll quickly notice Asian entrepreneurs dominate the market. Though African-Americans may be more familiar with the products (and are probably working the counters), the owners of most supply stores are not typically folks who use the merchandise. Economic activist Devin Robinson hopes to change this.


After being chased out of an Asian-owned beauty supply store a decade ago, Robinson founded the Beauty Supply Institute to teach other African-Americans how to open and operate a store. Since founding the institute, Robinson has helped business owners start over 70 stores, including three of his own, which resulted in $13 million in revenues for urban communities.


Recently, Robinson helped Detroit natives Kelly Williams and Princess Hill open a store in their hometown. When asked why they thought more Black entrepreneurs weren’t entering the segment the pair chalked it up to being intimidated by the process.
“[Asian] communities teach their children from young how to become great merchants. We may know more of the products but they know more about the retail business. This is why we were pleased once we began working with Beauty Supply Institute. They focus so much on running the retail business and it made us extremely prepared to be successful and profitable.”
Despite the uphill battle many African-Americans looking to break into the beauty business face, Hill and Williams say they’re in it for the long-haul.



With Robinson’s help, they’re already planning to open another store in Maryland.
“No black beauty business owner is immune to the industry disparities and lockouts. Kizure felt it and now we see Carol’s Daughter undergoing a bankruptcy restructuring. But this industry is constantly growing so I doubt these companies will close their doors for good. They are run by smart people and we should ensure we stand behind them as they re-emerge. We are in this business for the long-haul so you can expect to see us pop up more and more stores across the country.”
Pooling resources, cooperative economics, and learning the business from a season mentor can help many African-American entrepreneurs break into the beauty supply business, and hopefully keep more Black dollars circulating within our communities.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I would love to see more of this! I am not knocking anybody's hustle (well maybe I am)... but I am so tired of the Asian shops in black neighborhoods that refuse to contribute anything to the community that finances them.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

Black people support Asian businesses. Asian businesses DON'T support blacks.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

The reason Koreans dominate the beauty industry is that they refuse to sell to anyone who doesn't speak Korean which is a sneaky way to be racist. I haven't shopped at a Bss for a year now and I'm hoping to continue. It's just ridiculous that our money isn't benefiting our community.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

The reason Koreans dominate the beauty industry is that they refuse to sell to anyone who doesn't speak Korean which is a sneaky way to be racist. I haven't shopped at a Bss for a year now and I'm hoping to continue. It's just ridiculous that our money isn't benefiting our community.

Yep! There's a black guy running a BSS in Dallas who ran into this same problem. He lied about his name to get the products, but when they found out he was black, they stopped selling to him.

I don't go to BSS anymore either.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I welcome that challenge. I've noticed that my local BSS is not as busy as before. Good, they are overpriced and the products are not something a black women want to put on their hair. Now that I'm Natural, I want products that are beneficial to my hair and my local BSS does not carry most of those products so I'll be buying directly from the black entrepreneurs or my local department store - Target, Walmart, or Kmart.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I'm in TO, Canada and last month was at a black-owned store in my zone. It's the last standing black-owned store out of 4 located within 1 mile of each other. In the last year, 3 have gradually shut down.

After a lengthy conversation with the owner, she mentioned that the second biggest shop (which was in the neighbourhood for about 10 years) relocated to the west end because they simply couldn't compete with Asians and Browns who've moved in and started selling cheaper. Note that the neighbourhood is predominantly Caucasian, followed by Brown, Asian and Black (mostly Caribbean).

After barely surviving the last few months, the newly relocated store is shutting down. It seems they can't compete with Asian-owned stores in the west either. So, they're selling everything and the owner even went as far as showing me the Kijiji posting hawking the store furniture, fixtures, etc. I can't tell you the asking price for the business because your jaws would drop. It was painful to see how little, after so many years in business, they were asking.

How is the owner (of the store I was visiting) surviving? When speaking to Asian suppliers, she uses her maiden name which sounds somewhat Asian. If a rep wants to visit, she makes sure she's not there and that her staff answer their questions without giving away any information.

This is happening north of your border too, as you can see. The owner said it plainly - we don't support each other's businesses; we tend to be cheap; when it comes to "saving a buck", we'll do it, even at the expense of long-term community growth and prosperity. She's struggling herself and being in marketing, we bounced some long-term promotional ideas around. But if she disappears, there will be no black-owned salons/shops I can go to without commuting. Which I will do, simply to support another black-owned business.

What's wrong with us? Why are we so economically retarded?
 
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Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

i dont understand how you can open a store for customers you hate? the asians be treating everyone who walks in like a criminal
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I welcome that challenge. I've noticed that my local BSS is not as busy as before. Good, they are overpriced and the products are not something a black women want to put on their hair. Now that I'm Natural, I want products that are beneficial to my hair and my local BSS does not carry most of those products so I'll be buying directly from the black entrepreneurs or my local department store - Target, Walmart, or Kmart.


Misseyl, I can't speak to price because I don't know what your idea of overpriced is. But why not just tell them what you want? You're the customer - you're in charge. If you tell then what you want, they should respond.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

i dont understand how you can open a store for customers you hate? the asians be treating everyone who walks in like a criminal

They don't care - they're in it for the buck and their own prosperity. Find a niche they can enter, get 50 family members to fund it, then dominate.

Imagine a successful Japanese or Korean restaurant. Run by Africans.
I can't either.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

Im all for it! Lemme get that address in Maryland tho...
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

Yep! There's a black guy running a BSS in Dallas who ran into this same problem. He lied about his name to get the products, but when they found out he was black, they stopped selling to him.

I don't go to BSS anymore either.

topnotch1010, what is the guy's name or where was he located?
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

i dont understand how you can open a store for customers you hate? the asians be treating everyone who walks in like a criminal

Because we allow it. We continue to fork over our money and put up with being treated like criminals :yep:
 
Because we allow it. We continue to fork over our money and put up with being treated like criminals :yep:

I quit them. Thank LCHF AND BHM for that. Once I learned about quality hair care products and where I could get them (online) I quit Chinese bss. I buy on the ground items like ponytail holders and kinky curly brand at target or drugstores.

Even half wigs...i'd rather pay shipping.

I won't spend my money where I'm not appreciated or respected. Their monopoly is awful.
 
I don't understand why products for OUR hair have to be bought through a Korean distributor. So all those cheap products like B&B, Hawaiin Silky, African Pride, etc are being manufactured in Korea??

Sent from my iPhone 4S using LHCF
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I love this. And you know what's sad? The beauty supply stores in my neighborhood have young black teens and black women as cashiers on the forefront to give the illusion of black owned to get more business. :lol::lol:

Glad I'm not dumb.
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I don't understand why products for OUR hair have to be bought through a Korean distributor. So all those cheap products like B&B, Hawaiin Silky, African Pride, etc are being manufactured in Korea??

Sent from my iPhone 4S using LHCF

B & B (Bronner Brothers) is a black owned line. In fact, I go to the church of one of the brothers of the owners (Dale C. Bronner).

Now, Hawaiian Silky and African Pride are manufactured by whites. There is a sticky that lists lines for black hair owned by whites or other races.

It's the fact that they are distributed in Asian Beauty stores that poses the issue. You can get them at Walmart, Target, Sally's, etc.
 
B & B (Bronner Brothers) is a black owned line. In fact, I go to the church of one of the brothers of the owners (Dale C. Bronner). Now, Hawaiian Silky and African Pride are manufactured by whites. There is a sticky that lists lines for black hair owned by whites or other races. It's the fact that they are distributed in Asian Beauty stores that poses the issue. You can get them at Walmart, Target, Sally's, etc.

I know they can be bought in Target, etc. I'm talking about the black people who want to open a BSS & have to go through Korean distributors who don't want to sell to them to get the products. Why do they have to go through them? I'm not understanding that part.

Sent from my iPhone 4S using LHCF
 
Re: Black Entrepreneurs Hope to End the Dominance of Asian Beauty Supply Store Owners

I know they can be bought in Target, etc. I'm talking about the black people who want to open a BSS & have to go through Korean distributors who don't want to sell to them to get the products. Why do they have to go through them? I'm not understanding that part.

Sent from my iPhone 4S using LHCF

It's because Koreans also have a stronghold/monopoly on the distribution. This is especially true in human hair products (which come from mostly Asian countries). We need more black distribution companies as well.

I've been seeing a lot of Shea Moisture, Mixed Chicks, and other natural lines in the BSS.
 
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