Small Business Spotlight Group 4

Interactive Transcript

spk_0 Hi, Leah Williams here with another episode of Shop Culture. Today's episode is

spk_0 another installment of our small business spotlight series focused on black-owned

spk_0 businesses. Nestled away in a quaint Washington DC neighborhood is a shop called

spk_0 The Spice Suite. They sell hard-to-find spices, unique blends, infused oils,

spk_0 kitchenware, a little bit of everything. Unlike many of our previous guests,

spk_0 this business didn't grow out of somebody's lifelong hobby and it wasn't

spk_0 created to solve a problem. It seems to have been born out of pure inspiration.

spk_0 Spice Suite owner Angel Gregorio is an educator or at least she used to be.

spk_0 It was probably the most serendipitous thing ever. I was an assistant

spk_0 principal at a high school and I loved it. I just knew I would die in

spk_0 educator but I was leaving a nail salon, Sassy's nail salon one day and there

spk_0 was a forleeson, a couple doors down and I had never ever inquired about a

spk_0 commercial property ever. But for some reason something told me to call and

spk_0 just see how much the rent would be for this space. It's a few blocks away from

spk_0 where I grew up and I just wondered what commercial real estate cost up here.

spk_0 I had no plan or idea for the space but I called and the landlord of course had

spk_0 questions like any other good landlord like what do with the space. So I just

spk_0 was like, you know, I don't know. I just wanted to know the rent. I thought it

spk_0 was kind of like an apartment. I call you to tell me the set rent and he

spk_0 depends on what you want to do with the space. And I said, oh I don't know, no worries.

spk_0 I'll check back and he said, well we're looking to make a decision in a couple

spk_0 days so you know, don't wait too long. And I said, okay, okay. I want to open a

spk_0 spice shop. Can you just tell me the price please? And he told me the price and I

spk_0 hung up and decided that I was going to actually do it. And three and a half

spk_0 weeks later I did a month and a half later I left my job as an assistant

spk_0 principal and that was five years ago. I have no idea what made me stay

spk_0 spice shop. I didn't grow up frequenting spice shops. I did not I don't know. I

spk_0 just decided to jump into it and I've been learning as I go along. I don't ever

spk_0 really have plans. I think my life is just this one long serendipitous random

spk_0 journey. Like even when I go to these countries I have no idea what I'm going to

spk_0 do when I get there. The search for inspiration and spices takes angel to all

spk_0 corners of the globe. Never went to plan. Most of her research takes place on

spk_0 the streets of wherever she's landed. Like I don't go to a country like I'm going

spk_0 here to get saffron. I go and then I ask the taxi driver to like take me where

spk_0 you would find the best spices. And when I get to the market I ask like what do

spk_0 you have? What's really good here? What do you know for? And that's what I go

spk_0 with. And I'm grateful to even be able to travel in that way that you know when

spk_0 I'm thinking about New Blends and I want to experience different curries I can

spk_0 go to Trinidad and Tobago and then hop over to Seychelles and then maybe see

spk_0 what the curries like in India. So I've been to about 26 countries so far since

spk_0 opening the shop to shop for spices. Sometimes I bring spices back and I sell

spk_0 them here and I allow my customers to experience them in the authentic way in

spk_0 which I experienced them in the countries. I literally sell myself and I think

spk_0 I recently posted on Instagram that my dream is to be like the Anthony

spk_0 Boydaine of Spices. Like to have a show where I would travel the world for

spk_0 spices because it's so integral to food and how we experience food but nobody's

spk_0 talking about it in the way that it deserves to be talked about. Like you know

spk_0 even on the chef shows they might gloss over the spices that they're using and

spk_0 you know you might catch an episode where they're talking about spices but

spk_0 nobody's really deep diving into it and there's so much to learn and know about

spk_0 it. Even though she's moved on to the culinary world, Angel still has the

spk_0 heart of an educator. She's donated a lot of her time to teaching cooking

spk_0 classes at Juvenile Detention Centers. I used to teach at the Eugell, the adult

spk_0 and the Eugell's here often I was actually just there last week. I do cooking

spk_0 classes with the the young people who are incarcerated, I bring burners and we

spk_0 cook together and I teach them how to make some fun easy things that they

spk_0 probably are buying from fast food places. I teach them how they can make it on

spk_0 their own and I'm not a mad teacher anymore. You know and I'm not in a system

spk_0 principle anymore. I'm now like teaching them more life skills which I think

spk_0 are super important too. So I'm grateful to be able to show up in the world of

spk_0 education no matter where my you know official career has taken me. Even with

spk_0 everything going on in her life, Angel has still managed to find time to develop

spk_0 new products. She recently launched a new line of kitchenware which features

spk_0 cast iron skillets, plates, flatware and more. The past couple months I've started

spk_0 to introduce my kitchenware collection and we have launched that and it's been

spk_0 amazing. So I now have cast iron skillets, I have canisters, I have glass tea

spk_0 kettles, plates, bowls, like everything you can need for your kitchen. I

spk_0 literally took inventory of my kitchen and decided that there's no reason why

spk_0 things have to only be functional, that they should also be sexy. And so I started

spk_0 working with manufacturers to redesign some things in the kitchen and so now I

spk_0 have a whole section in my store that is labeled kitchenware and I model here's

spk_0 food is fashion and I truly believe that because I don't believe in rules I

spk_0 just believe that you should do and be and feel however you want and dress however

spk_0 you want and flavor your food however you want. Head on over to the SpiceSuite.com

spk_0 through the link in this episode's description to shop her online collection and

spk_0 be sure to stop by her brick and mortar store if you're in the DC area.

spk_0 Travertine Spa collection makes natural and organic skin and body care products.

spk_0 The enormous success of Travertine is due in no small part to CEO Terry Carter

spk_0 who's passion for spa and sense eventually led him to create his own brand. But

spk_0 Travertine comes from humble beginnings. Terry got started by making gifts for his

spk_0 friends. My kitchen and dining room table became a makeshift laboratory but I was

spk_0 actually making Christmas presents for friends because I want to give

spk_0 something more than just the standard you know gift box thing so I made a body

spk_0 cream which is still our signature product pedal body cream and some hard

spk_0 soaps although made a lot better with a lot more safety technology and quality

spk_0 control than my kitchen counter. Frequences are complicated things understood

spk_0 by few people but Terry is one of those people. He's studied and worked with

spk_0 sense for years and has personally created each scent in the Travertine

spk_0 collection. And the fragrance world is really secretive we're pretty much

spk_0 unless you work for one of the two or three big companies and are a chemist and

spk_0 go to their school that's how you learn it. But there are a lot of other schools

spk_0 around the world some here in LA and then the the big one is called is Sipka in

spk_0 Paris and I did my lab work at Sipka and there's this big long French name of

spk_0 what that stands for but they're one of the great schools of perfumery and I

spk_0 think what I'm learning is we have to educate people about it fragrance I

spk_0 think sometimes they think it's something you can do in 10 minutes where you

spk_0 know it took me our first fragrance took me a year and a half the one I'm

spk_0 releasing next year was 11 months so you're working with these oils and

spk_0 different chemicals in weighted measures of 0.3 ml 30 ml and it's really a

spk_0 formula that you're writing it's all numeric but you're creating art out of it so

spk_0 you start with a brief of say you have someone who is you know a 25-year-old

spk_0 African-American man from Atlanta who enjoys sports roses cycling green grass

spk_0 and what you do is you translate that and create the fragrance from there

spk_0 and it can take you 20 30 50 100 trials until you can get it right there's a lot

spk_0 of science that goes into it and a lot of theory but my mind works in that way

spk_0 where I don't like math at all but when it comes to language or a fragrance

spk_0 equation then I'm very happy our tagline is treat yourself well and I really

spk_0 believe that's part of the mission of this brand is to give people tools to

spk_0 help them treat themselves well a great example of one of the tools Terry has

spk_0 created is the steam shower spray it's travertine's most popular product and is

spk_0 available online and in stores across the country a couple of sprays and your

spk_0 showers transformed into a relaxing aroma therapy treatment well the steam shower

spk_0 spray is our he or product and it's what really puts on the map the thing

spk_0 about the steam shower spray is it allows people to whether you've been to a

spk_0 five star resort or not you can go into your shower you spray this into your

spk_0 shower and it makes this whole of room of therapy experience that is like

spk_0 nothing animals has ever had and it's really a new category in beauty I'm always

spk_0 looking for new ways to create an experience and so we initially started with

spk_0 eucalyptus which is very traditional if you're in a steam room and then we

spk_0 added citrus cedar lavender and then just a week ago we added mint and it's just

spk_0 this beautiful way of making your shower something special plus your bathroom

spk_0 smells really nice afterwards too if you find yourself stressed or just wanting

spk_0 some you time you're probably not alone especially these days lucky for you the

spk_0 travertine collection has products that can help you relax improve your skin and

spk_0 turn your house into a place you actually want to be for COVID of course we've

spk_0 stressed is actually normalized but there's a thin layer under that where

spk_0 people are really stressed and dealing with the pressure that we're under we

spk_0 also notice that people are spending more time at home and if you're living with

spk_0 other people the restroom is really the only escape you have so we've refamped

spk_0 some of our skin care and people are really taking care of the skin in this

spk_0 period of time but then we've also added mass sanitizer and then most recently

spk_0 we did home aeromatics because you want your home to smell great if you're in it all day

spk_0 and I was really inspired by spearment this year I don't know where that came from laughing

spk_0 me judge me but we created a diffuser oil that is lavender geranium and spearment and it just it

spk_0 makes our office happy check out the description of this episode for a link that will take you

spk_0 right to their website where you can shop their entire collection if you'd like to learn more

spk_0 about the art and science of perfume Travertine is also offering perfume classes go to their website

spk_0 for more info and to sign up that's TravertineSpot.com

spk_0 Unsung Cosmetics is a skin care line based out of California and brought to us by owner and founder

spk_0 Katanya Broe. Unsung makes sunscreen to be specific sunscreen for people of color. Katanya likes to take

spk_0 care for skin and living in sunny California meant using lots of sunscreen but like many she began

spk_0 to wonder what was in these products and what she found out was a bit surprising.

spk_0 Close to 80% of sunscreens on the market are chemical base. Chemical sunscreens, chemical

spk_0 actives is what you call them are just really not good for you they're not good for the environment

spk_0 Australia, Hawaii, now the Florida Keys are all instituting bands on these chemical actives because

spk_0 they're killing the coral reefs they're found in women's breast milk in our blood they're just

spk_0 really not good for us and so as of mid 2019 the FDA determined that the only two

spk_0 active sunscreen actives that they were going to recognize as safe were zinc and titanium dioxide

spk_0 and the others are all under review so your clean sunscreens are going to be mineral base which

spk_0 zinc and titanium dioxide are mineral based actives. Figuring out which products are safe to use is great

spk_0 but it ended up revealing a different kind of problem to Katanya. The problem with both of these

spk_0 minerals is that they're just purely white just in their natural state and so it's difficult

spk_0 when you apply them even someone with fair skin it leaves a white residue sometimes kind of

spk_0 purplish and so if you imagine someone with a little melanin and I'm not just talking

spk_0 a white person I'm talking in maybe an Asian person or an Indian person or a Latino person

spk_0 anyone with a little color an olive tone person they're left with just this white residue so for

spk_0 myself I would find it so annoying because it would just kind of lock into my hairline once I

spk_0 applied it and it was thick and it was it was just very difficult to manipulate. What I discovered

spk_0 yes early in my search for an easy to use clean sunscreen is that there were two that I found on

spk_0 the market at that time and I tried them both and they were tinted but the tint was not for me.

spk_0 I was certainly not in mind when they were using this tint. It those two left me either lavender

spk_0 or gray looking and it was just it was just very very frustrating. I personally wanted to do

spk_0 something about that for myself and that's really how the brand was born and just decided after the

spk_0 product came out so great that I would build a business around it and build a business she did.

spk_0 Thanks to Katanya's ingenuity unsung has grown into a national brand and can be purchased and stores

spk_0 all over the country. Her products continue to receive rave reviews and the best part is that she's

spk_0 still creating new products for an often overlooked and underserved demographic. And so we're

spk_0 launching two additional SPF products and they are two shades of highlighters which is beautiful

spk_0 if you're on the beach or you're just out and you're not wearing makeup this will just give you

spk_0 a lovely glow and it's a part of our layering on effect so you'll have a different level of a

spk_0 layer of SPF protection and it's beautiful the two shades are beautiful and then we'll be launching

spk_0 a body lotion. Look out for unsung on the shelves of a store near you and as always you can check

spk_0 out their website and all they have to offer by clicking on the link in the description of this

spk_0 episode. Anyone who's a fan of big earrings can tell you they become a literal pain after a few

spk_0 hours. Brianna Verine knows this pain but she also knows the joy that comes from wearing big jewelry.

spk_0 Brianna is the owner of a Monty Calary. They make big beautiful 3D printed jewelry that won't

spk_0 weigh you down. So I actually got started making jewelry really out of necessity and just being

spk_0 a kid who love big earrings but having I have really small ears and so I would love to wear big

spk_0 earrings but my mom would always say you know those are going to stretch your ears and I started

spk_0 thinking well how can how can I still keep up with the trends keep up with the style and where the

spk_0 big earrings that I like look out actually hurting myself so I just started playing around with

spk_0 making my own. Brianna isn't exactly new to the jewelry game she's been at this forever. The

spk_0 product she's seen today are the result of refining her craft over a lifetime of work. Making

spk_0 things wasn't anything new to me but I started making jewelry in in high school for myself and I

spk_0 started getting other people asking me about it and it really took off in college. At the time it

spk_0 was beaded jewelry so I did a lot of I used a lot of beads or anything that I could find to make

spk_0 make earrings and I would make them big but they would always be light. I was very important to me

spk_0 essentially what I have now my 3D printed collection is really crazy how I came about but it was

spk_0 it was a daydream. I had a daydream for these designs and I sketched them and was actually able to

spk_0 get them injection molded as a prototype and in the process of figuring out okay now how am I going

spk_0 to get more of these I discovered 3D printing. After playing around with a few different

spk_0 mediums for her designs she eventually landed on 3D printing which is lighter than traditional

spk_0 injection molding. The materials used are also more biodegradable than other plastics so as

spk_0 an added bonus her earrings are also better for the environment. 3D printing there are a number of

spk_0 materials that you could use but right now I use PLA it's one of the most biodegradable

spk_0 filaments. I'll rewind back a little bit for 3D printing because it starts on the computer right

spk_0 is you create a digital file the 3D printer reads it and it just creates that object layer by layer

spk_0 so it's really cool to take something digital and makes it something tangible. But that material that

spk_0 I use is called PLA and it's a corn based plastic so it's biodegradable and yeah that's what I

spk_0 use I use that right now and then I use all nipple free metal for the the backings and the

spk_0 actual pictures but yeah. The entire imanic calorie line has a simple but bold appearance each

spk_0 piece has its own look but there's no mistaking it for any other brand. The inspiration for many

spk_0 of Brianna's designs can be traced all the way back to a trip she took to Africa. My freshman year

spk_0 in college I had the opportunity to travel abroad to Kenya for a month and it was it was amazing

spk_0 like I said I made beat it jory so when I got over to Kenya I was able to purchase a lot of beads

spk_0 I was able to see a lot of the people make the beads and make these really unique earrings and

spk_0 pieces I mean the women the men all of them were adorned in jory, bright jory, big jory and it was

spk_0 just it was just amazing to see and experience. I met a guy over there who made sandals out of

spk_0 tires and another guy who made purses out of rice bags and I was just like wow you know the things

spk_0 the things that we can create you know are endless I really think that that trip really triggered

spk_0 my imagination. Check out imanicowry.com through the link in the description to shop the entire line

spk_0 of stunning lightweight earrings designed by Brianna. Kenan Holly is owner and CEO of Greek certified

spk_0 apparel they create all kinds of promotional merchandise for organizations and brands but

spk_0 specialize in apparel for African-American Greek letter organizations like most people

spk_0 Kenan was first introduced to fraternity life when he attended college at Temple University.

spk_0 I am a part of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity Incorporated which is an historically African-American

spk_0 Greek letter organization founded in 1906 at Cornell University. With the historically African-American

spk_0 organizations it's like the great thing is not something that we just do while we're in college

spk_0 so when we graduate we don't say I was a part of we still say I am a part of our

spk_0 lemma bass is strong. Kenan combined his unique experience from other business ventures with

spk_0 his love of Greek letter organizations to form the business we know today. His firm knowledge of

spk_0 all the different clubs and their individual needs ensured that Greek certified would be a success.

spk_0 It's just you know still working a full-time job and at the time my business partner we really

spk_0 started with many accessories, neck ties, bull ties, cufflinks. So the very first business venture

spk_0 that I was a part of we had a QASC at the Philadelphia International Airport. We did that for about

spk_0 a year or two and then we shut that down and then that's when we opened up the Women's

spk_0 Boutique in Maniaq. We had that store for about five years and then we closed it and after we

spk_0 closed it I still wanted to be an entrepreneur so I just decided to do the Greek stuff.

spk_0 It's very interesting because the African American fraternalist in Saudi

spk_0 Serbia is very unique in that like our colors are traditionally our colors like for example

spk_0 alpha-fi alpha-hour colors are black and gold. Old black and old gold to be exact. So you will only

spk_0 see us wearing our paraphernalia on that combination and a lot of our stuff is trademark. So there's very

spk_0 specific things that we create for each organization that is a part of that organization so speak.

spk_0 To Kenyan Greek life is about more than hanging out with friends and partying. It's a way to

spk_0 make the world a better place by giving back to the community. One of the reasons why I joined

spk_0 alpha-hour is because of our rich history you know we have a lot of honorable members including

spk_0 Martin Thiccan. Community services huge for us you know we were created you know to give back to the

spk_0 community so for example one of our programs is about as people as a hopeless people which we

spk_0 encourage voting registration. There's another program that we have a national program which we

spk_0 you know stress the importance of higher education so our organizations have programs that are

spk_0 specific to that organization that we stress our members to be a part of. Although Kenyan started

spk_0 by catering to the college crowd his business is quickly expanded beyond that. Greek certified

spk_0 has the ability to handle all kinds of promotional needs for your group or organization.

spk_0 We do screen printing you know we do promotional products so if there's you know a school or

spk_0 business or you know an organization out there that needs t-shirts or you know uh sweatshirts or hats

spk_0 lapel pins and lanyards, duffel bags, whatever it is um promotional products we do specializing

spk_0 head over to greekcertified.com through the link in the description to see all they have to offer.

spk_0 That's it folks thanks to all our listeners for tuning in for this episode of Shop Culture.

spk_0 If you like this episode be sure to check out our previous episodes for more Black Own businesses.

spk_0 Until next time

Small Business Spotlight Group 4

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