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ABOVE: Derek Robinson, managing partner; Falayn Ferrell, managing partner; and Warren Luckett, founder
The organizers of Black Restaurant Week Houston are hoping to receive the same support they have always received from Houstonians, as the organization is continuing its efforts to create financial solutions for Houston-based, Black-owned culinary businesses.
According to James Beard Foundation’s 2023 Industry Report, 53% of culinary business owners experienced lowered profits this year and challenges around rising food and labor costs have severely impacted profit margins, menu, and content pricing since 2022.
Black Restaurant Week – Southwest – Houston has joined the nationwide tour, as the palate-pleasing showcase will begin on Sunday, March 31, 2024, and continue through Sunday, April 14, 2024, for its ninth year in the market.
Most businesses do not have marketing/PR/advertising dollars to promote their business, which is why Black Restaurant Week, LLC was developed to shine a light on minority businesses – aiding them in building community awareness to increase their bottom line.
Black Restaurant Week revisits its “More Than Just a Week” campaign for their ninth year in service. The 2024 campaign is focused on restimulating local economies within the Black community by promoting Black-owned culinary businesses and professionals who cannot afford costly marketing campaigns. In nine years, the organization has supported more than 3,000 restauranteurs, bartenders, chefs, caterers, and food trucks.
Founded by Warren Luckett, who is based in Atlanta, along with managing partners Falayn Ferrell and Derek Robinson, who are based in Houston, Black Restaurant Week is responsible for celebrating the flavors of African American, African, and Caribbean cuisine with a series of regional cultural events.
It began in 2016, as a one-city food experience in Houston, where participants can dine in or order from a litany of Black-owned restaurants in their city. The mission has been to provide complimentary marketing and PR services for the business under the Black Restaurant Week campaign, educate consumers on the abundance of cultural cuisines within their neighborhood, and share the disparities faced by minority-owned businesses.
“COVID-19 changed the landscape since 2020. Now, the price of food is soaring. From being overlooked for revitalization funds to inflation, most Black-owned culinary businesses cannot afford advertisements/PR/marketing to build awareness and attract consumers,” said Warren Luckett, Black Restaurant Week, LLC’s founder. “That’s why we proudly do this for free – it’s peer-to-peer support for 10 or 14 days (depending on the market) within each market and for the past nine years.”
Another part of their mission is to feed and fuel the cultural famine – especially with an emphasis on reviving and saving the Black restaurant industry – and educate consumers on the abundance of cultural cuisines and dispel ethnic untruths.
The systemic barriers faced by Black-owned restaurants, such as disproportionate access to business loans, demonstrates the importance of Black Restaurant Week. These disparities grew with the COVID-19 pandemic; 41% of Black-owned businesses have shuttered since February compared to 17% of white-owned businesses (University of California, Santa Cruz, 2020).
To date, the culinary experience has expanded to 11 markets, including internationally in Toronto.
“Since 2016, we aspired to set ourselves apart from similar organizations. BRW is solely guided by business owners and operators. They are in the trenches every day and experience the ebbs and flows of running a business during one of the most difficult periods in US history,” states Falayn Ferrell, Black Restaurant Week, LLC’s Operations Managing Partner.
According to the Independent Restaurant Coalition, 500,000 restaurants and bars are faced with an uncertain future due to lost revenue and increased debt over the past four years. Additionally, 1.1 million minority-owned businesses often face heightened challenges and disparities when securing business funding. The shocking statistics championed Black Restaurant Week to revisit their “More Than Just a Week” campaign.
For more information about Black Restaurant Week, its events, and participating restaurants, please visit: www.blackrestaurantweeks.com.