Black Equity University: Empowering Black Entrepreneurs in the Lowcountry
Pushing the envelope
Story by Alea Wilkins
Nothing about owning a small business is simple. BlacQuity aims to change that.
An initiative to empower Black-owned businesses in the Lowcountry, BlacQuity offers the resources for entrepreneurs to grow as leaders in their companies and communities. Its core program, Black Equity University (BEU), is a 12-week course with lessons in management, finance and more with the support of professional guidance and a peer network. Gwen Chambers, executive director, said the program addresses a local need.
“Bluffton and surrounding communities had a huge Black presence with these thriving businesses, and when we look at it now, we don’t see that,” she says. “We are looking at ways to make it equitable for those businesses to be a part of the community as well.”
Since the inaugural class in 2021, BlacQuity’s BEU has graduated 42 students over six cohorts. Two graduates, Aqeela Aiken of Bright Beginnings Academy and Jamillah Miller of Four Seasons Apothecary shared their business journeys and the lessons they learned along the way.
Aqeela Aiken, Bright Beginnings Academy
Aqeela Aiken always belonged in the classroom.
After graduating from the University of South Carolina Upstate in 2017, the Hilton Head Island native worked full-time as a leasing consultant. Yet she often reminisced about her days as a tutor and childcare teacher.
“I just knew that my heart wanted to be working with kids,” she says.
In 2021 Aiken founded her own daycare, Bright Beginnings Academy. Despite her ambitions to make childcare accessible and affordable to Lowcountry families, leasing challenges early on rattled her confidence. “What has been built in this area is for restaurants and industrial types of businesses,” she says. “There were some buildings that could work, but owners didn’t want to take the risk.” To break ground for her daycare, she headed back to school, enrolling in BlacQuity’s BEU program for the spring 2022 session.
“Once I got in touch with BlacQuity, that kind of fueled me to not get discouraged and to continue on with my dream,” she says.
Aiken worked with BlacQuity’s educators to develop a business plan specific to childcare services. She recognizes Chambers as the key to her success.
“She gave me a lot of connections geared toward childcare. She’s awesome,” Aiken says. “She helped me get to where I am.”
This fall Bright Beginnings will welcome its first class of students. Bright Beginnings will offer a play-based curriculum and train teachers to accommodate children with special needs and autism. Since opening enrollment in December, Aiken has been thrilled by the number of applicants. She says she is looking forward to “welcoming new families and fostering positive relationships with the kids, parents and staff.”
Out of all the lessons learned, Aiken highlights one above the rest: “You never know when the opportunity will arise,” she says. “You just wanna make sure that you’re prepared to take that next step.”
Jamillah Miller, Four Seasons Apothecary
Jamillah Miller was searching for a remedy.
In 2018 the Hilton Head Islander left her job because she was dissatisfied with corporate life. She often felt drained, bored and, worse, upset that her then 2-year-old son was constantly sick when returning home from preschool.
“I was looking for a fresh start. I had no idea what that was, but I just had faith that I would somehow be guided into the right direction,” she says.
To alleviate her son’s viruses, she searched for natural healing solutions, stumbling upon an article about elderberry syrup. Intrigued by its simple recipe, she gave the syrup to her son and the rest of her family. The results amazed her.
“It was just so fascinating to me that I’d actually used something from the Earth as medicine,” she says, immediately sharing her findings to Facebook. Soon after, requests for the elixir came flooding in.
“I tried to get out of it as much as I could,” she laughs. “I even offered to give them the recipe so they could make it themselves, and they were like, ‘No, we want you do it.’”
With the support of her friends and family, Miller founded Four Seasons Apothecary that same year, hoping to introduce others to the healing powers of natural ingredients. Then, when BlacQuity began the BEU program in 2020, she saw it as an opportunity to grow.
“I learned everything that a small-business owner would need to know, and then some,” she says, mentioning lessons in accounting, marketing and finding her target audience.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic’s lockdown, the first BEU cohort was virtual. Students participated over video calls, meeting course instructors and fellow classmates from their own homes. Despite the physical distance, Miller was impressed by the community she found.
“It was great camaraderie to get together with other local Black business owners who are in the same boat as me. That’s what I loved most about it,” she says.
Since then, Miller has expanded her product line. (Her favorite? The dandelion root coffee.) She’s written digital booklets and started teaching her own classes on everything from the healing powers of common weeds to tutorials on how to make your own medicine. To Miller, inspiring others through education is the root of her business.
“A lot of people already use a lot of these herbs, and they may not use them medicinally, but they do it when they’re cooking,” she says. “I just want to empower those to take their health into their own hands. This is something they can do for themselves.” LL
Black Equity University
Applications are now open for BlacQuity’s Spring 2025 Black Equity University program. The 12-week business course, designed specifically for local Black-owned business owners and entrepreneurs, is offered at minimal cost. Meeting weekly, the program provides participants with essential business knowledge, practical skills, community connections and resources to successfully launch or grow their businesses. To learn more and apply, visit blacquitysc.org.
