 During the first Black History Month since last year's global protests against racial injustice, I wanted to see how corporate America, which doesn't have the greatest track record when it comes to confronting racism, was approaching it compared to years past. For the first half of February, I tracked BHM statements and pledges, particularly from retailers — since that's what I cover — to get a flavor of what they were doing this year. In my not-very-scientific assessment, I saw a move away from hashtag activism toward something a little more concrete. Target Corp. and Walmart Inc. dedicated sections of their e-commerce sites to Black-owned brands. (By way of comparison, in 2019, Walmart celebrated by tweeting about Black entrepreneurs.) Gap Inc. announced it signed the 15% pledge and Under Armour Inc. released a line of products designed by Black employees. That's not to say every organization took action. I got plenty of emails like the one from my utility company reminding me it was Black History Month. It remains to be seen how much this new wave of attention on Black brands is translating into sales. Big box and department stores don't break out performance for Black-owned brands, and didn't give hard numbers when asked by Bloomberg News. But anecdotally, some Black-owned businesses — often smaller and less capitalized — say they have benefited from the support. Last year, Ethan Holmes, the man behind Holmes Mouthwatering Applesauce, raised $175,000 from investors interested in working with a Black-owned business. He has also gotten sample requests from several major grocers and inked a deal with Walmart to sell his products. (Walmart did not respond to a request for comment.) Janell Stephens, founder of beauty brand Camille Rose, which is carried in retailers like Target, Walmart and Whole Foods, was also picked up by Macy's this month and has plans to launch in another retailer soon. She said marketing executives at larger companies are now reaching out to her, instead of the other way around. Still, a year into the pandemic, the reality for most Black business owners is bleak. In a Federal Reserve survey from this month, 77% said their financial condition was "fair" or "poor," compared to the 57% of firms overall that characterized their financial condition that way. "It might be unrealistic to think that in less than a year there's going to massive changes," said Josanta Gray, founder of Grayscaled Media, a company focused on developing retail strategy and securing distribution for beauty brands. Corporations, she said, take time and money to make moves. | 
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