We were lucky to catch up with Michaeline Fraser recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Michaeline thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

The Black Book, is the go-to resource for finding black, trusted service-based businesses in the vibrant DC Metropolitan area. This marketplace helps thousands of clients discover beauty and creative professional services. Our app simplifies the search process, connecting people with local businesses that can meet their needs.

It’s like the Yellow Pages but Black!

The idea for my app started over a year ago when I was just frustrated from having to search through hashtags just to book someone for a style or service. I noticed the lack of ease in finding professionals when I had my first clothing brand and I was going to social media to find a photographer, nail tech, hair stylist, models, etc. When creating the concept for the app I realized—similar to planning an entire shoot there are a number of services that are unique to the black community, culture and experience and sometimes it just makes more sense to have someone black do it.

In addition to providing ease of use when finding black professionals I am super passionate about black entrepreneurship!

So often black entrepreneurs are unable to see their full potential simply because they don’t have enough clientele. Not because they aren’t skilled or because they lack customer service skills—sometimes it’s just about visibility and The Black book solves that problem by placing a lot of these companies into one central location.

When it’s easier for clients to find these services within the app it allows for entrepreneurs to live out their dreams.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Michaeline but I also go by Mikey :-).

I kind of fell into the app space. I’m a problem solver and creating the app solved a lot of my personal frustrations in finding and booking professionals and I figured it will do the same for many others as well.

I was visiting Sierra Leone in December of 2022, when I was reflecting on my entrepreneurial path. I was thinking about things I had done in the past and what I was willing to focus and commit to for the next 3-5 years.

I had a few business ideas written down and I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur but deciding how I was going to do that was up for debate. Starting the Black Book seemed to solve the largest problem, was something I was interested in and would be scalable with organic marketing—which is so important in when trying to determine where to focus efforts as a new entrepreneur.

The app currently features:
1. Lash Tech
2. Nail Tech
3. Tattoo Artist
4. Photographer
5. Mua
6. Esthetician
7. Waxer
8. Chef/Baker
9. Barber

and will be available in the Google Play & iOS store in June 2024.

I think the app just makes it easy for people to search for, save and compare different options for services they are interested in. Not to mention there are so many filters. You can filter based on price, location, venue type and same day appointments. Booking appointments now only takes a few minutes compared to scouring social media for hours searching for the same service!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

A pivot is actually what caused me to decide to build an app! I initially had a clothing brand, The Posh Supply. As much as I’m still a lover of fashion I spent so much time and money in learning and marketing that business it was exhausting but great experience. I do hope to one day re-build my fashion brand but I had to close that business because it was not sustainable. I was spending a lot of money and building a fashion brand can be more challenging in certain ways – social media marketing has to be way better, you have to invest into the appearance of things because people buy into aesthetics and images. On top of that competing with fast fashion retailers is hard. It’s not an easy business model but it can be rewarding.

Not long after starting my clothing brand I decided to do a beauty vending machine. Not long after our launch unfortunately it was robbed and vandalized.

While the slow success of my clothing brand and nonexistent vending machine were heartbreaking I knew that wasn’t it for me. I took a break from both businesses to work on myself, focus on my corporate career and reset. Not long after I had the idea for The Black Book App.

Pivoting as an entrepreneur can be so hard especially when you’ve placed so much time and energy into business concepts. The best advice I can give is to do a thorough analysis of your business, assess your long term commitment and ability to continue to do the work, review your profit margins and listen to your gut. At the time it was hard to stop my business operations but I’m glad I took the time to reassess what was important to me as a business owner because I am super excited about the Black Book App!

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Yes I’ve enjoyed: Thing & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
YouTube & Podcasts on Startups, Tech, Software or manifestation
Interestingly enough the We Work Series, WeCrashed was enlightening. Though I think they were imbalanced seeing manifestation principles through cinematic vision helps you to practice it more effectively.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mailchi.mp/fcc95d3a0abe/s051ap7b0c
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblackbook.app/
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@theblackbook.app?lang=en