11 Brilliant Black-Owned Businesses for Your Year-Round Needs

The Darnley’s found themselves in a familiar parental predicament; their sweet baby girl started teething early and did not have a good time. Mom and Dad tried everything to help her find relief, but her two-month-old wittle handsies weren’t able to hold a teether yet. Necessity is the mother of invention, so Mom (and Dad) designed the Yummy Mitt Teething Mitten for their daughter’s ailing gums, and it worked like a charm!

So began Darlyng & Co., a line of high-quality, eco-friendly essentials you’ll be reaching for in every room of your home. A bunny rabbit suction bowl, so dinner ends up in your kids’ bellies (mostly) and not on the floor? Check. A gentle, no-tears, 2-in-1 shampoo and body wash, so you can efficiently wash away the bits of dinner they managed to get all over themselves? Check. The soothing glow of a mermaid night light for an easier bedtime? Check!

While most of us will take advantage of Happy Mango’s online shopping experience — which includes everything from life-saving car seats to nip-saving salves —  examples like the following highlight the level of compassion, customer service, and community support the Atlanta, Georgia-based company offers in addition to its products:

Say you need to pick up a new crib, but the baby is finally asleep in the car seat for what seems like the first time in her brief life. Do you dare risk playing the most dangerous game since the beginning of time? A game so treacherous, the repercussions of which are so egregious, that its very name is uttered as a whispered threat: “Do not wake the baby!” Happy Mango is here for you with curbside assistance with whatever you need.

But then you get home, and suddenly all the big talk you did earlier about how of course you’ll be able to put this thing together — because you’re practically the Bob Villa of flat-pack furniture — completely evaporates out of thin air, just like the sleep-filled nights you used to know. Not a problem, just give Happy Mango a call, and they’ll send out a friendly representative who will have it together before her last feeding, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll all get a little rest tonight.

Grab the mic, your best hype man (it’s always Mom), and challenge your crew to an epic rap battle-royale right in your own living room! A quick-thinking game of poetry and teamwork, Rhyme Antics encourages players to flex their vocabulary skills, so you’ll be developing confidence and creativity while you’re spitting flows.

In addition to the game, the company offers a creative language arts curriculum available for classroom use for students in grades 6-11. The course combines vocabulary building with music and art therapies for a unique learning experience designed to improve standardized test scores.

Few dolls promote self-love and self-care like the Zoe Doll, the darling companion doll by Healthy Roots, the curl care education champions. Zoe is beautifully detailed and has a relatable, touching backstory surrounding the complicated feelings she has about her hair.

More than just a toy, Zoe encourages creativity, empowerment, and educational play. She’s 18” tall, making her perfect for practicing your box braids, twists, or whatever you’re feeling. Need some setting lotion for those rollers?  Go for it! Zoe’s hair is made from fibers designed to look, feel, and be treated like real hair. Keep your locs looking fresh by washing Zoe’s hair with real shampoo, let dry, and let the styling start all over again!

Pre-bot Learns Not to Hurt is the first book in a planned series by Fiwi Toys. Timmy is given his very first robot, Pre-bot, who learns through imitation. Timmy struggles to set a good example for his robotic buddy, but when Pre-bot starts acting not-so-nice, Timmy realizes he might need to make some changes! A thoughtful, and richly illustrated adventure, this is a wonderful story for promoting accountability because our actions have consequences, and what we say and do matters.

Jumping right off the page and into real life is a fully poseable, cleverly constructed Pre-bot of your very own. No heavy metal for this robot; its chunky shapes are made from wood with a pleasing, smooth texture, and the colors are as vivid as they are on paper. Intriguing to pick up and hard to put down, your new robot friend is a cheery reminder that it’s not nice to push people’s buttons!

Little Likes Kids was created by a loving mother who wanted to give her son toys that reflected his own life experiences with friends of every color, offering screen-free fun for every age. Their puzzle selections grow with your skill level, and each completed puzzle looks like a page from a richly detailed children’s book, the image telling the story on its own so vividly, you can almost hear the melody at this Musical Crossroads!

When playtime becomes clean-up time, the packaging gets an A+ in sturdiness and practicality; the double-thick cardboard goes a long way to thwart destruction-by-toddler, and the rope handle makes it easy to carry off to your next puzzling destination.

Their main mission is to inspire young minds to be Empowered, Positive, Innovative, and Creative, and EPIC Everyday does just that with their charming, cheerful designs featuring adorable, smiling children, advancing the “Mocha-hued Movement,” which endeavors to “Manifest positive self-reflection to combat colorism and hair discrimination all over the world.”

Founded by two amazing Mom-trepanuers that recognized a huge gap in a market that features primarily caucasian princesses and casts brown-skinned people as stock-character sidekicks. This joyously-hued collection of backpacks, linens, and wearables is a celebration of color diversity, gravity-defying hair, and positive self-reflection.

No gray skies around here! Catering to boutique babies and tots, Cute n Cozy Kids Boutique legit has me wishing I could fit more than just my forearm into a 2T. Cheery colors are masterfully combined with neutrals, and simple, delightful graphics, for an easy-wearing, playful vibe. The pieces are so adorable, reasonably priced, and practical, you’ll want them in every color — for the kids and yourself!

Modern essentials for modern babies! With Miles and Milan, fashion is child’s play; their modernistic line of fashion-forward clothes offers effortless style with pieces that’ll grow with your children from infancy through kindergarten. Monochromatic, gender-neutral, and fashionably practical, these are classic items with a twist, like this brilliantly designed and utterly adorable baby bodysuit with a built-in t-shirt.

No writing or slogans, or itchy fabrics, or garish colors — the only designs you’ll find here are super comfy, filled with simple smiles, and single-toned speckles that’ll complement even the wildest of closet color-schemes.

I see riches in your future! Or is that a Community Chest card taking you back three spaces? With the help of Kaleidadope, you can light a candle, unwind, and see what the future holds in a unique selection of card decks for entertainment, self-discovery, and meditation. If your chakras need more help than you’ve got energy for, you can also check out their intuitive consultations for more in-depth advice and guidance.

Alaffia is on a mission to better the world through fair trade, economic empowerment, gender equality, and sustainable production, making shopping from their website basically a striking blow to all that is evil. A portion of their proceeds is used to fund the Alaffia Empowerment Projects, which works to build schools and offer programs for maternal care across Togo, in West Africa.

Their products have no nasty parabens or sulfates to worry about, and they offer a varied selection of unscented products that can be impossible to find in conventional stores. There are hair and skincare products for the whole family, like their bestselling Everyday Shea shampoo and conditioners. Still, no one would blame you for using the kids’ bubble bath so you can relax with just your head sticking out of the water and pretend to be the hippo that’s chillin’ on the bottle.