MEMPHIS, Tenn. — August is Black Business Month, and we are celebrating some Memphis businesses making waves.
Sheree Malone is making sure ‘Everything Fits’ at her alterations boutique in Hernando, Mississippi. She said they mostly handle weddings and formal wear but offer much more.
“The freedom that you get just doing something that you love and doing something that you enjoy - it’s priceless,” said Malone. “As a minority and woman-owned business, we are setting an example.”
Malone was 19-years old-when she moved here from Jamaica.
“My love of sewing began when I was little. my mother was a seamstress. That’s what she did in Jamaica, and I learned from her. So, I remember sewing from when I was four or five-years-old.”
She and her husband have lived in Hernando for 16 years.
“I see sometimes younger African-American children or minorities come into my shop and they are just amazed. ‘Is this your business? Is this your shop?’ And it just makes me feel really good,” said Malone. “We are giving the younger generation something to aspire to.”
“I’m very proud that I found Everything Fits to be fit,” said customer Clara Williams. “This is Black Business Month and I am very proud to be able to patronize the Black business.”
“Sometimes you feel like you are judged because you are a minority or because you are a woman. And I am just glad that I can show that we are able to do this. We can do this,” said Malone.
Her business at its current location in Hernando has been up and running for a year and a half. But she ran her business from her home for many years before that.
“It got to the point of I couldn’t do this no longer from my home because I was running out of space. So, my husband and I decided to find a place for me to go. And that’s how we ended up here in this building.”
Malone said stepping out on your own and starting a business brings out challenges and fears. She said she had a lot of support from her family and friends and the community.
“I think it’s something good that would inspire other Black people to come in and to open their businesses up.”
She said women should just believe in themselves and go for it.
“I know that there are a lot of Black women out there who maybe are wanting to do something. And wanting to pursue a passion or a gift that they have. And I just want to let them know that they can do it.”
