March is Women’s History Month and we have a lot of black women to look up to right now. To honour the month, this is our list of 5 Black British women making a killing in their careers. We’ve highlighted inspirational female figures you should know about from fields as varied as politics, fashion and tech.
Vanessa Kingori MBE
Vanessa Kingori MBE is one of the most influential women in Britain’s fashion industry. After two years at the head of GQ, she took on the role of British Vogue’s publishing director in 2017, making history as the first woman ever to do so. She currently presides over Vogue editor Edward Enninful and a new and more inclusive era for the magazine, with soaring sales speaking for themselves. Kingori describes herself as a ‘child of the Windrush’: her Kittian mother and Kenyan father moved her to London aged seven, which is where she swiftly rose through the fashion ranks until she reached the very top.
Magdalene Abraha
Magdalene Abraha is an award-winning publisher who is about to release a groundbreaking book series exploring and celebrating Black British culture. With A Quick Ting On…, she’s paying homage to the black experience through short essay odes to Afrobeats, bamboo earrings and everything in between. Other credits of hers include Bloomsbury, the Guardian, and more recently the black-owned book publisher Jacaranda, who created the role of Group Editorial & Marketing Manager just for her.
Valerie Amos
Baroness Valerie Amos is about to become the first black female master of an Oxford University College, as she takes on the elite post in August this year. In doing this she walks from one landmark appointment to another: currently the director of SOAS, she was the first black woman to fill that position too when she joined in 2016. Pioneer Amos has had a varied career in the Labour party and the UN, serving in high-level roles such as Secretary Of State for International Development and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator.
Credit: Flickr – Press Conference: Valerie Amos
Dawn Butler MP
Dawn Butler is a politician serving as MP for Brent Central and currently campaigning for deputy leadership of the Labour Party. She is the third black woman to become a British MP, and has spoken out several times about her experiences of racism in the House of Commons, often being mistaken for a cleaner or other black colleagues. As Shadow Women & Equalities Secretary, Butler has called to reform the gender pay gap, protect domestic abuse victims and increase representation for people of colour.
Sharmadean Reid MBE
Sharmadean Reid is the founder of tech platform Beautystack, revolutionising the way beauty specialists build their clientele and showcase their skills. Her first project was WAH Nails, which itself was hugely successful in infusing tech into the nail salon experience, and now with Beautystack and several other innovative ventures, Reid is using technology as a vehicle for female empowerment. She’s also incredibly transparent about her entrepreneurial journey, sharing her advice and lessons learned online to drive forward the conversation about being a female founder.
Our female founders on Jamii
We couldn’t put a spotlight on trailblazing women without shouting out our own partners!
Jamii partners with close to 100 black women entrepreneurs who are each a testament to limitless female talent. While some are bossing their side hustles and others run things full-time, they are all pioneers in their space and we’re proud to work with them to promote and and celebrate black entrepreneurship. Thank you all for inspiring us to be better!
Jamii is a discount card making it easier to discover Black British businesses