In an effort to support and promote Black business-owners and entrepreneurs, we feature Black-owned sustainable brands & businesses on our Sustainable Marketplace. As a harsh light is being shed upon the systemic racial injustice that has plagued our country for centuries, it is becoming increasingly clear that if we hope to eradicate racism and lift up the BIPOC community, it is vital that we support and promote Black-owned businesses.
We are committed to diversity and inclusion in everything that we do, including our Sustainable Marketplace, so we’d like to share 5 black-owned sustainable brands & businesses that we have recently discovered and that will be featured on our Sustainable Marketplace.
Sami Miro Vintage is an eco-conscious clothing line specializing in sourcing and reconstructing one-of-a-kind vintage garments curated from around the world.
Sami Miro Vintage launched its first cut and sew collection, ECOTERROR, made solely from vintage and recycled fabrics to take its green initiative to new heights.
“Our one-of-one reconstructed vintage pieces were only an introduction to the Sami Miro Vintage vision. And now, with our first collection, you can see the spark of our brand identity. Pushing eco-conscious boundaries is the foundation of Sami Miro Vintage and ECOTERROR encompasses that initiative. Enrooted by the radical environmentalist movement from the 1960’s, ECOTERROR alludes to our prominent support for the betterment of our planet.” – Sami Miro
Omi Woods is a sustainable jewelry brand that creates contemporary heirlooms that celebrate our connections to Africa and the African diaspora.
Their jewelry is individually and ethically handmade with fair-trade African gold and globally sourced conflict-free fine metals. “Omi Woods jewelry is intended to be worn everyday, gifted for special occasions and passed down to future generations so its meaning can live on for generations to come.”
“We believe in paying people fairly for their resources, time and labour. Our solid gold jewelry is now made with fair-trade African gold. The gold is sourced from small-scale artisanal mines that support the well-being of miners and their communities by paying miners a fair wage and contributing to improved health care, education, safety and living conditions on the continent.” -Omi Woods
Brother Vellies was founded in 2013 with the goal of keeping traditional African design practices, and techniques alive while also creating and sustaining artisanal jobs. Now handmade artisanally across the globe, Brother Vellies creates luxury accessories that celebrate cultural histories and timeless design.
“Brother Vellies is committed to honoring the people who make our products and the places where they are made. Because of this, we treat each step of our process with the utmost care for our artisans, our customers, and our planet. At our core, you will find vegetable-tanned leathers, soling from recycled tires, hand carved wood, floral dyed feathers along with a collection of other by-product materials sourced from farmers across the globe. We strive to lessen the impact of our production practices by continuing to ask questions and make changes each season. We put a lot of thought into what we make for you and we wouldn’t have it any other way.” – Brother Vellies
The Brother Vellies collection is produced across the globe – South Africa, Kenya, Mexico Morocco, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Italy, Haiti and at home in New York City.
We hope this has inspired you to start discovering more Black-owned sustainable brands and shopping consciously! Businesses like these are truly paving the way for a more diverse, eco-friendly, conscious, sustainable and humane future; and by supporting them you are changing the way business is done—for good.
Head over to our Sustainable Marketplace for more recommendations of brands just like these that you can feel great about supporting.
If you liked this and want more, join us by subscribing to our weekly eNews Get Real— an Innovation for Good mash up of marketing and lifestyle tips and positive news about cool sustainable brands and innovators changing business for good. Get Real inspires and offers practical pro-tips to help individuals and businesses increase their positive impact.
Let us know in the comments below if you enjoyed these recommendations, we’d love to hear from you!
Have a question or issue with sustainability, branding, digital marketing, or social media for your business that we should cover in our next blog post? Don’t hesitate to reach out to us in the comments or by email—our goal is to provide insightful and valuable information that will help you grow your purpose brand.
Live Creative Studio is a marketing + sustainability agency based in Durango, Colorado with global impact. We work with purpose brands and companies of all shapes and sizes interested in or already launched on the sustainability path. We offer branding and logo design, graphic design, web development, digital marketing, and sustainability strategy.