By: Jordan Gooch (’26), Staff Writer
On Saturday, September 17th, The Black Entrepreneur Initiative (BEI) hosted an afternoon block party at the Bell Tower to promote black businesses on campus and within the area. Music blared from the speakers from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. as the DJ kept the mood set. There were people of color at every turn celebrating creativity and enjoying each other’s shared interests and an appreciation for their hard work. From vintage clothing at an affordable price to waist beads and kombucha, this event displayed so much talent here on campus.
Leai Means, a current senior, owns On Chill co., a brand featuring custom tote bags that she crafts and designs herself. This is her second year representing her brand at the annual BEI Block fest. She explained how she can balance school and a new startup as well as what her brand means to her.
“Make set days or set hours,” Means said, “ I kinda know how long they will take me to make just depending on how complex it is.”
Her totes bags are decorated with different phrases, colors, and fonts but one specific design stood out from the rest: “Black Mental Health Matters.”
“I’m a psych major so mental health is really something I’m passionate about and Black mental health even more,” Means added.
“I feel like Black mental health is kind of stigmatized in our community and I want people to know it’s okay to feel whatever you are feeling and to get help if you need to.”
Carolina Fades, a new mobile barber shop on campus, created by freshman Zaid Abdullah, provides haircuts at cost-effective prices for college students. If you saw him cutting hair in the pit this past Friday, you may have stopped to question what was going on. Abdullah elaborated on how he got started.
“I feel like there was a need for a barber on campus, something that’s affordable but you know comes with quality,” Abdullah said.
He explained that he was motivated by, “Getting to interact and network with people, meet people, and sort of help out other businesses and give back to the community.”
“I sort of want to grow this beyond what it is right now,” Abdullah explained.
“Somewhere where we’re doing barber clinics and we’re giving haircuts to kids in need.”
The barbershop gave him a sense of community during his childhood because many men spoke important values to him during his haircuts growing up. He started cutting hair during the Covid-19 pandemic when he was short of a haircut and has improved his skills since then. He briefly stopped giving haircuts, but Carolina Fades has become an outlet for him to hone this talent and get back into something he intends to keep doing.
There were many talented brand owners on campus including those from various universities like North Carolina Central University (NCCU), UNC Greensboro (UNCG), and North Carolina A&T (NCAT).
Tyler Fisher, a senior at NCCU was one of these students who decided to make the trip to Chapel Hill to reach a larger audience. Fisher’s brand, Stay Fast, sells apparel and other items including two books Fisher authored, and air fresheners which were also on sale. His slogan is “Create your own lane.”
“I’m creating my lane through any type of medium, whether it’s through product or visual content,“ Fisher said.
“I’m the Vice President of the Entrepreneurship club at North Carolina Central University. I’ve got like five other students from my school here,” he announced excitedly.
He started with books first. His first publication, Cardiac Cardinals, journeys through his life as he manifests success. It chronicles how he endured homelessness and poverty, while simultaneously playing high school football. He also has a children’s book called Fried Chicken and Yams which is about being grateful for the things we have. After that, he published another book called Stay Fast, about keeping and setting your goals.
The BEI block fest is clearly an important event that highlights young college students as they pave their way into various industries and opens the door to success.
Image – https://brookeluc12.editorx.io/bei-block-party/set/487560c9-839a-4337-b560-09064c26a7cc
