Growing a movement from a blog with Nikki Porcher, founder of Buy from a Black Woman
Episode 305: Show Notes
Hey everybody we are super excited to have our friend Nikki Porcher on the show today! Nikki is the owner and founder of Buy From a Black Woman, which is an online non-profit organization that is bringing awareness and funding to businesses owned by black women! Nikki has had an amazing journey since starting this initiative and she now showcases a large number of black women business owners in her directory, Instagram, and in her shop. A fearless and natural creative, Nikki is so much fun to talk to and we know you are going to love this conversation too! During the episode we hear about this incredible journey that she has been on, starting with a blog, which became a hot Instagram account, then a directory and now a non-profit organization.
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She currently gives out grants to black women to start their business and get off the ground, providing a network of support and knowledge to aid them in their pursuits. We have to admit we learned a lot in this conversation and Nikki is so open in sharing with us and we ended this chat just wanting to know more, support more and spread the love! There are so many great businesses in her directory and we should all be buying from them! It is so easy to do a little research, branch out a little further and diversify your world! Nikki is such a great example of turning your passion into something amazing and impactful and to be honest her story really reiterates a lot of what we always say!
An Introduction to Nikki’s Organization and What They Do
Nikki’s company, Buy From a Black Woman empowers, inspires and educates black women business owners and those that support them. They have webinars, mentorship programs and business grants and it is all hosted on the website. It is all about community and information and Nikki has managed to build a network of helpful and involved members who lift each other as they climb. Go Nikki! She believes that in today’s world, if you cannot find something, like a business you would like to support, it is because you are just plain lazy, it is all at your fingertips! The directory has grown so much in the last few years. It has a small process and fee to determine that you are who you say you are and are not posing as somebody else! For Nikki, the knowledge and skills black women have cultivated have grown out of necessity and the lack of support from outside. She just loves cheering these black women business owners on so much!
The Directory Business Model
The idea for the organization started when she went to a market event in Atlanta and realized she was the only black person there! When she left the event and went home she could not help but think she could make a network of similar vendors that supported black women and helped them in their work. There was very little information on Google when she searched about similar projects, so she decided to start a blog where she challenged herself to buy and review one thing from a black woman a week. About ten weeks in, the blog started to get shared a lot on social media, black women started to reach out to get featured and people even started to send money in to fund her purchases! Nikki had the know-how and some tools to build this platform and felt it was her duty to do it, giving as much as she could. She started with a $250 dollar grant from her own money, which someone actually reached out and doubled. So the first grant was $500 and now she is able to give out multiple $1000 grants to business owners regularly. Nikki can hardly believe how well things have turned out for this program and the community won’t let her quit
Nikki’s Upcoming Schedule and an Exciting Future
Nikki truly believes in the power of the universe and loves to surrender herself to the power of the creator. Whatever comes along and sways her path she know happens for a reason. During February, for Black History Month, she is sharing facts and quotes across social media and also has an online auction going on at the moment. March is Women’s Month so she will be celebrating that too, obviously and her grants are given out in April! She is going on tour during the summer and in July she is launching her initiative geared towards teens and teaching them about entrepreneurship from an early age. This is not actually Nikki’s full time job, if you can believe it. She teaches visual arts at a public school and this has just been the thing she does in her off time. Crazy, we know! She does work on Buy From a Black Women for 3 hours every morning before work because she feels it really is her soul work. This is also going to be her last year teaching as she aims to take this work full time next year and we cannot wait to see what she does when she is fully dedicated to this amazing platform!
Quote This
We really live behind the “lift as you climb” model.
—Nikki Porcher
Highlights
An Introduction to Nikki’s Organization and What They Do. [0:04:58.2]
How to Go About Getting Listed in Nikki’s Directory. [0:09:45.6]
The Directory Business Model. [0:18:15.3]
Nikki’s Upcoming Schedule and an Exciting Future. [0:29:39.6]
And much more!
#TalkStrategyToMe [0:36:33.5]
Make sure you are a healthy ally.
Ask questions.
Buy and support.
You don’t always have to talk.
Just be nice!
ON TODAY’S SHOW
Nikki Porcher
Buy from a Black Woman
Website | Instagram | Facebook
If you see a Black Woman Business Owner, you can bet Nikki Porcher is somewhere cheering her on. Buy from a Black Woman, a non-profit organization that brings awareness to Black Women Business Owners, was founded when she asked the Universe for instructions on how she should use her gifts and talents. From serving in the Armed Forces, an extensive history of working with non-profits, and teaching in the public school system, her mission, in which she possesses a wealth of knowledge and experiences, is to support and provide tools and resources to help Black Women Business Owners. She continues to live out her vision with community-based classes, online workshops and webinars, and one on one-mentoring services. With an academic background in business marketing & advertising design, she does all of this community work that comes so easily to her with a quintessential Jersey Girl flare. Nikki launched Buy from a Black Woman in 2016 with her two flagship programs: The Buy from a Black Woman Online Directory & The Black Woman Business Grant.
KEY TOPICS
Black Business, Non-Profit, Support, Community, Directory
