Black Nation is a digital app that was founded by Rameish Budhoo in 2018. The impetus behind its creation was to connect consumers who wanted to support Black-owned businesses and for Black-owned businesses to share their goods, products and services.
As stated in its description on Google Play Store:
“It’s time we support our own. Not just Black History Month, holidays or special occasions. Let’s stop talking about it and spend time doing it. We all shop in stores or online, so why not support a Black-owned business that offer the products or services we need.
Black Nation is also created for Black business owners across the world. It’s time to get the exposure you need to make your brand or company a top competitor in its space. You download and list your company in our app for millions of people to find, 24/7. Whether you offer local services or cater to clients around the world, we can help. Get started today!
• Users can find Black-owned business, instantly.
• Write or read reviews of your favorites businesses.
• List your business, contact information and much more.
• Search from a wide range of categories such as: Beauty, Stores, Online Stores, Restaurants, Photography, Media, Professional, Fitness, Attorneys, Doctors, Realtors, Handyman, Auto, Cleaning Services, and more…
Born in Jamaica and reared in the United States, Budhoo learned the power of creativity, determination and initiative at an early age. This was especially modeled for him by his church’s lead pastor, Zachery Tims.
When Rameish Budhoo, as a young Black businessman, personally experienced the scarcity of opportunities, he decided to create what he could not secure. Influencing this decision were resolving issues in his personal life as well as examining the lack of diversity and inclusion in mainstream international brands, including Gucci and H&M. Budhoo saw an immense need and sought to fill this unexpected opportunity; hence, the birth of Black Nation.
For many, being able to support and connect Black business is critical for a myriad of reasons. As detailed in “Want to Support Black-Owned Businesses? There’s an App for That!” written by Brock Cardiner for the Hero website, a 2020 study conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York discovered that from February until May, the closing of Black-owned businesses (at 41%) in the United States more than doubled than those of Whites (at 17%). These findings were primarily the same in a study conducted by the University of California, Santa Cruz, that had been released in June 2020.
While there have been historical factors, including “disparity to a lack of financial savings, less access to capital and funding gaps that existed prior to the pandemic”, as Cardiner wrote, these closings of Black-owned businesses are especially significant when one reflects on how the recent pandemic of COVID-19 has impacted the world. He included the findings of the Reserve, which affirmed that “Covid-19 has exacerbated these issues and businesses in the hardest hit communities have witnessed huge disparities in access to federal relief funds and a higher rate of business closures.”
Rameish Budhoo and his team of two and one-half members are constantly working to improve the Black Nation app. Envisioning and manifesting its evolution, the Black Nation app was updated to provide Black entrepreneurs with the option to make their items and services available for purchase directly from the Black Nation app. This feature, according to Budhoo in the Cardiner article, was an improvement “designed to cut down on the amount of clicks between seeing a product for the first time and buying it, all while positioning the app as a purveyor of quality product.”
This can prove to be an ever greater asset for businesses supported by Black Nation. Writer Alli Fam speaks on the support of the app in her “If We Can’t Get It, Let’s Create It: Tech Entrepreneur Rameish Budhoo on Creating the Black Nation App” article for Marketplace website. She shared that, “As platform use has increased, Budhoo has received positive feedback from businesses who use the app to advertise. Some of them have sold out of products and reached new sales peaks.”
The Black Nation app, which is free to download for Android and iOS, has become even more essential in these contemporary times when issues of race and social justice are at the forefront. Budhoo champions how his app has mass appeal, declaring in the article on Hero’s website, “What we do, what we offer, it’s for everyone. It’s not just for a certain race. That’s one of the primary reasons we converted it into a social platform: so people can connect, find things they need, and build a community together where it’s all love.”
Thus far, Budhoo and his team have been highly successful in their mission, as Black Nation has been ranked among Google Play Store’s “Top 20 Apps” and received thousands of 5-star reviews!
