Shopping & Dining: Our Favorite Black-Owned Small Businesses in Richmond, Virginia & New York City

A Celebration of Modern Black Excellence 

By The Editors

While Black History Month is only one month of the year, that's no reason not to continue celebrating past, present, and future innovators in the community. We round up some of our favorite black-owned small businesses our editors personally love and celebrate from our very own cities and towns—Richmond, Virginia where executive editor Gretchen Gales lives and New York City where founding editor Christine Sloan Stoddard lives. Our choices include food, cosmetics, art galleries, bookstores, and more. 
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From Richmond, Virginia...

​ModGyrl Cosmetics

Founded in 2013 by Melanie Wade, ModGyrl Cosmetics offers a wide variety of bold and classic lipstick options for every skin tone. They have a store-front in Richmond, Virginia as well as online. Our personal favorites include their affordable classic stick lippies starting at only $10. Each season brings new and exciting colors for both the makeup enthusiast and the casual wearer. They are a cruelty-free brand as well, so you can rest easy knowing your purchase is created responsibly!

Day Three Bath & Body

Inspired by faith and fresh ingredients, Day Three is a natural bath shop that offers bar soaps, lotions, body scrubs, perfume oils, and other quality products without any added chemicals. Their popular scents  Day Three's primary shop even offers soap-making classes for a fun day with friends or for those looking to start a new business! Their commitment to providing the community with fresh products and a means to make their own living is why we believe they should be included on this list. 

From New York City...

La Caye Restaurant and Bar

Located in Brooklyn, New York. La Caye Restaurant and Bar is a Haitian cuisine heaven. Their name means "home" and it feels just like it when you order anything from their menu. La Caye's menu spans from unique Haitian cuisine (creole wings, Akra, Chiktay) to classic favorites like New York Strip Steak, simple rice sides, and red velvet cake for dessert. 

Peaches

Bringing the taste of Southern food to Brooklyn's Stuyvesant Heights neighborhood, Peaches provides the kind of food you remember from home. This one is special because it connects our Southern roots to the big city, just like we honor in our magazine.  

Greenlight Bookstore

With two Brooklyn locations, Greenlight Bookstore carries both bestsellers and local authors' books to highlight all kinds of talent. They have special author signings,  But they bring much more than that to the community: they connect with local private and charter schools to bring them access to library wish lists, author visits, fundraisers, book fairs, and other ways to engage early reading. 

Want to honor a local black-owned business we didn't include? Leave a comment below with your suggestions!