Cobb entrepreneur launches directory of black-owned enterprises

“I started doing casual interviews with residents in places like grocery stores and the response was tremendous,” said Robertson, a freelance writer and author who relocated from Los Angeles. “There was a tremendous void in the community for information about black-owned businesses and the products and services they offered.”

Census figures show that 18.6 percent of the 77,967 firms in Cobb County in 2007 were black owned.

The idea behind Robertson’s BCP mirrors similar black pages that have been used in other communities dating back to the 1960s. The Cobb version differs in presentation — there is no accompanying printed product — and in scope.

In addition to the listings, BCP operates as an outreach venue connecting member businesses to opportunities with the chamber of commerce and city and county officials. Business training and seminars are also provided.

“Most African-Americans are only a few generations off the farm, so some of the black business owners don’t have the business longevity and acumen that other communities have,” Robertson said.

Since the launch, about 80 businesses have signed on to BCP, purchasing listings that range from a basic $100 listing with company address and hours of operation to a $700 video listing that allows business owners to post a message about their company.

Jennifer Lyles has checked out the BCP site, but said she isn’t likely to join.

“I think you are alienating more people than you are bring in,” said Lyles, 32. “I understand the thought behind the idea, but I do not support it.”

Lyles, 32, owns FireSign Inc. Promotional Products in Smyrna. Her 8-year-old businesses employs four people and generated more than $500,000 last year. Much of her clientele comes from networking events, direct mailings and personal calls.

“There is a generational shift taking place right before our eyes,” she said. “Younger people don’t carry around the [racial] hurt of the past with them and are willing to work with and help each other in all aspects, including business.”

Robertson stands by his BCP product and its name.

Despite similar marketing tools in other communities, he said, blacks are the only group that gets criticized for products targeting members of their community.

“Race is still a reality,” he said. “There is a familiarity between blacks and their issues and it is important to at least know where the businesses are.”

Targeted business directories, in whatever form, are still necessary in 2011, but broadening BCP’s name could be beneficial, said John Robinson, president of the National Minority Business Council, which represents minority businesses across the country.

In New York, where Robinson’s group is located, the area has a minority business directory aimed at all minority and women-owned businesses and groups. The broad “minority” moniker meets the goal of highlighting certain businesses but is not perceived as relating to just one group, Robinson said.

“For the minority community, these types of directories can become like the Yellow Pages,” he said. “But I think people see titles and they get thrown.”

Carroll Thompson, owner of Thompson Brothers Barbecue in Smyrna and one of BCP’s first members, is hoping the directory listing pays off.

“We hope it brings in someone that doesn’t know anything about us,” he said.

Thompson and his partner, Corey Stephens, have operated the eatery for seven years, building up the dine-in and catering business to generating between $500,000 and $750,000 in annual revenues. Before BCP, Thompson relied on word-of-mouth and weekly mailer coupons for advertisement.

“[The BCP] was new and something I wanted to try and also to support a black businesses,” he said. “It works both ways and I wanted to do my share.”