Brown Boy Brown Girl Becomes First Black-Owned Business in Children’s Stationery To Hit Meijer Shelves
Family-owned business “Brown Boy, Brown Girl’s” (BBBG) Reach for the Stars Notebook, which is part of the brand's Brown Boy Brainy and Brown Girl Genius lines, hit Meijer stores on November 20. The notebooks are shelved in 69 stores around the country, for starters. The brand is currently featured in 260 Meijer stores for black history month. This is a massive win for BBBG as they become a major player in upholding the black culture and reaching for full inclusion in
Founded in 2015 by CEO Teresa Baker, BBBG is a multimedia publishing company whose core principles are Love, Social Benefit, Integrity, and Awareness. In the wake of social unrest, the black stationery brand decided to create notebooks to serve as harbingers of pride and creativity while normalizing characters of color found in books and school supplies. BBBG published their debut book titled "Josie's Bedazzled Shoes" in 2017 and extended its platform to include children's books written by independent authors of color. They launched their notebook line in August 2020.
According to Teresa, “The business was started for my three children who are now 7, 8, and 9 so that I could leave a legacy for them and impact children who look like them. They are the company's Junior CEOs, and they are excited to see their products going in Meijer stores. “When the Junior CEOs are not in school, they set up their business table at various events selling products to customers.
“Our products’ going into Meijer stores is full circle for me. I shopped in Meijer all the time with my mother. Now, years later, our product will be on their shelves. It's simply amazing to me,” Teresa said. “What’s awesome is that children of all ethnicities will have the option of selecting our notebooks as their choice of notebook. Something, I as a child, never had. I never had that option," she added.
“WOW! I wish I had this much representation in books while growing up. Thank you, BBBG, for empowering my little black princess with your products,” says Charlotte from North Carolina.
In line with their mission to celebrate the diversity of brown children by amplifying young voices of color, BBBG uses its products to assert positive representation in educational materials. Following BBBG’s shelving in Meijer, the brand plans to roll out matching two-pocket folders to match the Reach for the Stars Notebook.
According to William from New York, “I love the products, the mission, and the quality. I am glad I have found this website. My kids can see themselves in literature and other fun products."
BBBG believes in scholarliness, self-love, community, partnership, and ideas. They, therefore, go the extra mile to impact their message in children of color. BBBG plans to continue launching new notebooks and work on expanding the line.
Alongside Meijer, the notebooks and matching 2-pocket folders are also available on Walmart’s online marketplace.
