Black women business owners who become prominent success stories have come to the realization and embraced the reality that they must work harder, serve better, be more resourceful, produce more with better quality, be more efficient, financially astute and through metamorphosis change negatives into positive attributes. Black women business owners are at a disadvantage because first they are a double minority: black and female. Furthermore, in order to become prominent success oriented black women business owners, they must make sacrifices and chose the business over family, personal lives, femininity, and popularity. Essentially, these women must somehow level the proverbial playing field in order to effectively compete and succeed in a predominately white male dominated environment.
First, being black can be a disadvantage in an ethnically biased society. Although there are many successful minority business owners, the most successful 30% are Caucasian. However, the old adage, where there is a will there is a way is aptly stated and invariably true among black women business owners who do the research the market, find a niche, and pursue success. There are some exceptions to the rule, but in today?s business world, the financial business icons such as the Carnegies, Bill Gates, and the Rockefellers are not black females. The exceptions are, for example, the first black millionaire, Madame C.J. Walker. Because of her race, gender, and lack of financial resources, she had minimally three strikes against her. By any stretch of the imagination, Madame Walker was destined to failure. She used her intelligence, instincts, and keen business sense to become a prominent success legend. How? She researched her market and discovered a ?need? for her hair care products, a market that was not addressed by predominately male Caucasian owned businesses.
Most prominent, successful black women business owners have come to the realization that their goods, services, and products must be inherently superior, which causes consumers to disregard, ignore, and become oblivious to their race or gender: so superior that consumers will start to ignore, forget, and disregard the racial ethnicity. These black women business owners know that they cannot be average or mediocre; in order to be a prominent success story, they must be excellent in every respect. Theoretically, if company AAAB offers free delivery, the successful black business owner will offer a better product at a lower price, with free gift-wrapping and delivery. The successful black women business owners acknowledge and accept that in order to be successful, they must go the proverbial extra mile and smile in the interim.
Finally, in order to be successful, black female business owners comprehend that the price for being successful includes sacrifices. Many have had to choose business over families, marriage, children, leisure time, and a personal life: at what price glory? But for a few, becoming prominent, successful black women business owners is not elusive; they have proverbially been able to ?grab the brass ring? and are holding on to it.
