JACKSON, Miss. ( WJTV ) – Black Mississippians have had a huge role in the state’s economy for years, and many are using their skills to carve their own path.
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) reports that Black owners’ share of small businesses in Mississippi was about 28% in 2022. Those businesses employee more than 13,000 workers in the state.
Anu Amen-Ra is the founder of Sartorial Tobacconist, who has been rolling and selling cigars and tobacco for years. He started his own business after getting out of the Army, and he wanted to work for himself.
“My family has grown tobacco for personal reasons, you know, spiritual practices and also as medicine for a very, very long time now. And I fell in love with the whole plant getting a chance to be out in the garden with my grandmother and my relatives as a child was always a cool thing for me. And I fell in love with agriculture,” he said.
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Amen-Ra said there are great opportunities to owning your own business, but there can also be challenges as a Black business owner.