Gumbo digital health platform pairs culturally tailored health education with community health workers so patients can navigate care in their own language and context. Free to patients. Licensed by providers.
Black Business Spotlight
This space is dedicated to offer snapshots of Minnesota’s Black-owned businesses.
Escape to Paradise LLC
Escape to Paradise, led by therapist Shantel Seraaj, reopens with 14 treatment rooms and a specialty in post-operative lymphatic drainage massage for faster, more comfortable recoveries. The clinic also offers body sculpting, deep tissue and relaxation massage, and on-site faja tailoring.
Lip Esteem
Lip Esteem, the Rondo rooted brand by Tameka Jones, is rising fast with plant based cosmetics, new products Double Take and Main Character, and partnerships with pro teams.
Spyce Pilates
Black Business Spotlight: Spyce Pilates opens this fall in the Twin Cities, bringing inclusive wellness and representation to the Pilates community.
Beyond New Distribution Center
The Beyond New Distribution Center, founded by Marsha D. Carter, provides affordable furniture for people transitioning out of homelessness, along with thrift, empowerment, and community programs.
Cici’s Cupcakes
Cici’s Cupcakes offers bold, custom flavors made-to-order by Minneapolis baker Ciara Flowers.
Shotspotter
ShotSpotter, the real-time gunfire detection tech developed by SoundThinking, is being deployed in U.S. cities to reduce firearm deaths—but questions remain about its impact on majority-Black communities.
Cornel Beard is building legacy through design
Cornel Beard, founder of Charizma Agency, built his Minneapolis-based creative studio around the idea that design should do more than look good — it should move people. Read how his journey from Army service to art school led to a culturally rooted firm helping organizations tell meaningful stories.
The Birth Revolution
Nadine Ashby is creating a radical shift in birth work. The Birth Revolution centers Black, queer, and trans birthing people through affirming training, support, and joy-filled community care.
Mind the Crown
Adrianna Willis founded Mind the Crown to empower Black women through self-care, affirmation and mental health advocacy. Her work amplifies the message that therapy, boundaries and joy are essential.
W&W Protection
W&W Protection is more than a security firm. Founder Will Dinga built it to offer men with complicated pasts a shot at stability, growth, and leadership — proving that one opportunity can change everything.
Flow Hair and Beauty
Black-owned Flow Hair and Beauty in Uptown Minneapolis offers more than hair products. The shop provides a healing space for people navigating medical hair loss and builds community with care.
36 Lyn Refuel Station
36 Lyn Refuel Station marked its 20th anniversary with a celebration of local culture, clean energy, and community. Under Lonnie McQuirter’s leadership, the store has become a national model for socially conscious retail.
BrightRay
BrightRay blends West African tradition with natural self-care through its triple-butter body products and holistic approach to wellness.
Truly Natural Hair Studio
Truly Natural Hair Studio in Minneapolis offers a wellness-centered approach to natural hair care, led by owner Chanda McDaniel’s 30+ years of expertise.
Justice 929
Selwyn Jones, uncle of George Floyd, turns grief into action. Through Justice 929, he pushes for reform, builds tech for safety, and keeps fighting for justice.
The Kitchen by Baked Brand
South Minneapolis entrepreneur Destinee Shelby built Baked Brand from scratch — growing a bakery into a soul food restaurant and launching the Black Entrepreneur State Fair.
The Coven
The Coven, founded by Alex West Steinman and her co-founders, offers a coworking space that centers women, nonbinary and trans people while remaining open to all, and that grounds itself in reciprocity, community care, and transformative access.
Hotworx Union Park
Natalia Davis, owner of Hotworx Union Park in St. Paul, has merged her passion for community health, family values, and generational entrepreneurship into a project that has already impacted lives, including reducing inflammation and improving mobility for people with multiple sclerosis.
House of KLynn
Katherine Rogers, founder of House of KLynn, is a couture fashion designer who has spent over 37 years in the industry, creating timeless, well-crafted attire for clients and A-listers alike, and is now sharing her journey and expertise with the world.
