The Icon
“We wanted to give blacks a new sense of somebody-ness, a new sense of self-respect. We wanted to tell them who they were and what...
Author : Derek T. Dingle
Then & Now
In covering African American’s participation in commerce and finance for 35 years, BLACK ENTERPRISE has exposed the good, bad, and ugly. In the 1970s, black...
Bold Players New Strategies
Today’s business environment moves at lightning speed. For the chief executives of the nation’s largest black-owned businesses, keeping pace is priority No. 1. They must...
Madame C. J. Walker: Breaking New Ground
Every day, millions of African Americans engage in the ritual of grooming. It may seem commonplace, but applying hair grease to one’s scalp or getting...
Inspiring Black Investors
At 46, John W. Rogers Jr. is a master wealth builder. At such a young age, you might think this shrewd fund manager is unworthy...
Only The Strong Survive
In today’s environment, B.E. 100s companies must be fit, fast, and inventive to not only survive but thrive. Whether running a mom-and-pop or a leviathan,...
The Ultimate Champion For Black Business
The year was 1974. Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr., who had just been inaugurated as Atlanta’s first black mayor, was holding court with the city’s business...
Reinvention Through Innovation
If there were a slogan to describe the attitude and activity permeating America’s largest black-owned businesses, the tag would be “Rebuilt to Last.” For the...
Operating In Rough Waters
For the captains who helmed America’s largest black-owned businesses, managing those businesses in 2002 was like navigating a vessel in an unmerciful storm. Their companies...