JAMII: meet the founder championing the rise of Black British Business

Jamii is on a mission to support the economic empowerment of Black British business, brands and community
Jamii founder, Khalia Ismai
Adrienne Galloway
Mairead Cahill5 August 2020

In her column for the Evening Standard, each month Wonderoom’s Mairead Cahill shines a spotlight on the UK’s most sustainable and innovative brands. This month, Cahill features Jamii, for its pioneering approach to building a platform to increase visibility and support for Black British businesses and brands.

Here she sits down with founder Khalia Ismain, to hear about the inspiration behind Jamii, the impact that the Black Lives Matter movement has had on the visibility and economic support for Black British brands, and their first physical pop up launching this week, featuring over 20 partners.

Cahill: What is Jamii?

Ismain: "Jamii is a marketplace and platform championing Black-owned British businesses, thereby supporting the economic empowerment of the Black British community. We are on a mission to make shopping at Black British brands as easy and convenient as any other mainstream alternative, and available to all. We launched in 2016 in response to the first wave of the Black Lives Matter movement, and our primary initiative is our discount card for use in 180 Black-owned businesses across haircare, skincare, homeware, stationary, clothing and much more."

What was the inspiration behind Jamii?

"I had the concept for Jamii back in 2015. Following a three-month work trip to Kenya, I felt inspired to take the leap myself as an entrepreneur. I started by reaching out to Black British brands to see if they would be interested in being featured on the platform. Once I had confirmed interest I started moving forwards step by step. I chose the name Jamii (meaning ‘family’ in Swahili) to reflect the fact that my time in Kenya had been so transformative, and because I wanted something that was inclusive and open to all."

What are some of the challenges Black British brands face and that Jamii is helping to address?

"While it has definitely improved recently, one of the major issues has been consumer awareness and discovery of Black British brands. That was one of the insights that led to the creation of our discount cards which we set up to help drive engagement and adoption of the brands and products we feature. The cards cost £15 per year and give you a 15 per cent discount with partner brands. We also seek to bring people closer to the brands through digital experiences and our first pop up store this week is in BOXPARK, Shoreditch. There has also been a misperception that Black brands are for Black people, whereas the majority of the brands on our platform offer products that are universal and available to all."

NARLOA is a Black-owned British skincare brand that has partnered with Jamii (NARLOA)
NAROLA

What is the social and economic impact you’re hoping to achieve through Jamii?

"Economic empowerment of Black-owned businesses helps lead to the social and political empowerment of the Black British community. When people buy from Black British brands it has a powerful trickle-down effect within the community, including new employment opportunities and revenue for other Black-owned businesses. It is also estimated that the Black British Community has a spending power of £300bn, and yet only 2 per cent of this is currently spent within Black Businesses. A wider recognition of the power of Black consumer spending will inevitably lead to more accessible funding for Black businesses. This is important as at the moment less than 1 per cent of venture capital money goes to supporting Black founders."

What was the impact of the Black Lives Matter resurgence here in the UK on your platform and the businesses and brands you feature?

"Following the resurgence of Black Lives Matter in May, we noticed a significant boom in orders and activity over on our platform for Black British brands. In the beginning of June, our partner brands were reporting sales 30 times higher than usual, and we’re still seeing increased levels today. We’ve just released our first consumer report which shows that 8/10 brands sampled made more revenue in the month of June 2020 alone, than in the whole of 2019. Much of this was driven by new interest and audience engagement from the non-Black community."

Tell us more about your first pop up happening in BOXPARK this week?

"We’re collaborating with Appear Here and BOXPARK Shoreditch to curate a fove-day pop up from August 5 to 9 and are bringing over 20 Black British brands into one location to be easily discovered and shopped with. We’re really excited about it!"

Which are some of the sustainable brands you’ll be featuring in the pop-up?

"Sustainable brands that can be found inside the pop-up are Afrocenchix, Big Hair, Bourn Beautiful Naturals, Earth to Earth Organics, Home Jewels Co, Lanji Candles, LoveRems, Mr. Blackman’s, The Glowcery, and Y.Wait Beauty. Sustainability has become increasingly important and we’re seeing that reflected in our partner brands and founders, many of whom have already integrated sustainability principles within their products, and others who are looking to do more going forwards."

A design from London-based Artist and Designer, Pearl Ivy
Pearl Ivy

What would you like to see more of in terms of active support for Black British Businesses and brands here in the UK?

"When it comes to active support from the customer perspective, it’s a case of actively seeking them out and giving them a try. The echo chambers that separated Black British businesses from larger audiences have started to be broken down but the onus is also on us as individuals to ensure that we’re diversifying our feeds and making it super likely that we’ll discover these businesses as part of our daily life. In addition to financial support, we can all use our platforms (however big or small) to amplify the reach of minority owned businesses, sharing reviews, giving them a follow, engaging in their content online. Also being willing to share resources and provide knowledge and mentorship is all crucially important."

Who or what inspires you?

"I love going for walks in London and discovering new places. A great view can really help me see life from a different perspective. In terms of people, my mum really inspires me by her kindness and generosity of spirit; which helps me to be a good person and strive to be better!"

For more details on Jamii and partner brands visit lovejamii.com. Their first pop-up featuring over 20 partner brands is open in Boxpark, Shoreditch from Wednesday August 5- Sunday August 9 2020.

Mairead Cahill is the Founder of Wonderoom. Follow Wonderoom on Instagram @wonderoom.co.