Mission:
To provide thriving platforms for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Curated to the Black American experience — the BLCK Market provides an opportunity to showcase quality brands and products to tens of thousands of consumers.
Vision:
To bring value back to our community byway of financial literacy, wellness and creativity.
Our Story
BLCK Market, was born out of necessity.
Founded by J.O. Malone in July 2017, BLCK Market was built to help put wealth back into the Black communities of Houston and beyond, while assisting aspiring entrepreneurs in obtaining a solid foundation and empowering them through self-reliance and financial independence.
BLCK Market began with a marketplace featuring seven vendors in Sawyer Yards’ hallway, where we could fulfill the growing demand for easy access to support and purchase products from Black-owned businesses and creators. Over the years, the marketplace has grown into a city treasure with over 50 vendors and thousands of attendees each market. As we continued to grow through the pandemic, we adapted by adding an online storefront in August 2020, called BLCKMarket.com, to ensure our vendors and community had a platform to help keep their businesses operational. With that came even more success, leading us to open our own brick-and-mortar retail location in September 2021 at the Pearland Town Center.
We host brands that are unique and may not be found in your traditional retail store. It’s not just about curating products for the Black consumer, but empowering entrepreneurs to utilize the fruits of their labor and invest in their respective communities to ensure economic growth. That is our essential purpose at BLCK Market. We hope to grow and inspire all people to Shop BLCK—that is, buy more goods created by Black talent—and to uplift Black entrepreneurs to make our beautiful community, our vibrant culture, much stronger. #ShopBLCK
Why BLCK Market?
Culture
Our culture symbolizes creativity, innovation, and individuality. As a Black-owned enterprise, we want to demonstrate to the world our greatness and our talent through the products provided in our marketplace. These products come from the hands and minds of talented individuals from all corners of the world representing our culture to its greatest extent.
(Centered on) Community
We are centered on the power of community. We aim to create a marketplace for aspiring Black retailers to share what they have to offer with those who are interested in supporting us. This is how we can fortify our communities and make them prosper.
Creating Opportunities
Whether you are a seasoned retailer ready to expand and enter into different marketplaces or you’re just beginning your entrepreneurial endeavors, we encourage people to make opportunities for themselves as independent contractors. The BLCK Market wants to create opportunities for those seeking to become more self-reliant and obtain financial independence.