The Dilemmas Buying from African/Black Businesses...how to resolve?

Shemsi en Tehuti · (#1 (**permalink**))

Some of you here know I am working on a book publication. Any scholarly work is going to have a good set of references to support the main thesis of the work. Many of my referencesI find very interesting and so want them for my personal library instead of simplyphotocopyingthe relevant material froma library. Therefore, I choose to buy thebooksof some of my references. Of course, I want to support my people so I will look for African booksellers so they can profit from the sells instead of the larger (White) chain booksellers.

This is where my problem comes in.I have tried to get a couple of references from some African/Black booksellers but they will give all kinds of excuses about why the book order had not come in yet. I know that I can go straight to Barnes & Noble or another large (White) chain bookseller and have the book in 3-8 days. I even spent over $200 in this one brothers store on books, and then asked if he would order some books in for me with the ISBN numbers. He said sure, but it has been over a month and I get nothing but excuses. I have been back there twice but I only get a new excuse everytime I go there.

It sometimes makes me not want to shop there. I do enjoy shopping there because we have great conversations and there is reading material I can't get anywhere else. However, what do you suggest to get past something like this where you want to buy something from your own people but they are not supplying the services (although they very well could & should)? I guess this can bleed over into all kinds of African-owned businesses, so I am wondering how some of you resolve this. Do you just go without, spend a retarded amount of money & timegetting aproduct from somewhere that is African-owned, or just buy where it is convenient (which is usually a White-owned establishment)?

umbrarchist · (#2 (**permalink**))

I would go there with my receipts from previous sales an show them to him and tell him if my book isn't in in two weeks I'm spending my money with the honkys in the future.

Probaby look for another Black book store.

I knew a Black woman that owned a book store and I tried to get her to promote science books. I had a model of an SR-71 Blackbird hanging in my living room so I decided I would give it to her to hang over the science section. When I showed it to her she looked at it like I had a horse turd in my hands. She even admitted that it would attract the attention of the boys but seemed to disaprove of that. I don't get it.

umbrarchist

Shemsi en Tehuti · (#3 (**permalink**))

umbrarchist wrote:

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I would go there with my receipts from previous sales an show them to him and tell him if my book isn't in in two weeks I'm spending my money with the honkys in the future.

Probaby look for another Black book store.

I knew a Black woman that owned a book store and I tried to get her to promote science books. I had a model of an SR-71 Blackbird hanging in my living room so I decided I would give it to her to hang over the science section. When I showed it to her she looked at it like I had a horse turd in my hands. She even admitted that it would attract the attention of the boys but seemed to disaprove of that. I don't get it.

umbrarchist

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It almost seems like some of the Black/African business owners think that they don't have to provide the same services other businesses do...like we are supposed to give them our money just because they are African...confused3

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In my case, I was not even asking these brothers to create a new section in their stores, I only wanted them to order in some books for me from their currentvendors. Perhaps I should give them an ultimatum that I will give my money to the other stores if not served, but for some reason I would probably feel a bit guilty afterwards.

Saida.M · (#4 (**permalink**))

blktypeI'd suggest you do as Umbrarchist said. That way you'd givehim thechance of redemption. In one of your conversations remindhim that you do not have to give him the chanceand the only reason why you are doing it is to support him. Of course he does not have to do what you say but if he could live without your custom then you have to ask yourself why you are still patronising his store.

Perhaps the books you want are hard to get. Do you know for a fact that you could get them easily from a white shop? If so, tell him that.

blktypeDon't feel guilty if you do havetogo elsewhere;it won't be because you did not try.

Shemsi en Tehuti · (#5 (**permalink**))

athaba wrote:

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blktypeI'd suggest you do as Umbrarchist said. That way you'd givehim thechance of redemption. In one of your conversations remindhim that you do not have to give him the chanceand the only reason why you are doing it is to support him. Of course he does not have to do what you say but if he could live without your custom then you have to ask yourself why you are still patronising his store.

Perhaps the books you want are hard to get. Do you know for a fact that you could get them easily from a white shop? If so, tell him that.

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blktypeDon't feel guilty if you do havetogo elsewhere;it won't be because you did not try.

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These are not common books, but they still are not hard to get. He showed me right in his computer from his vendor that they had the books in stock. He just had to pay for the book to get it into his store like any other book in his inventory. Maybe he doesn't trust that I am going to actually buy the book from him even though I have already spent a couple hundred dollars in his store. I guess I will just tell him to either serve my interests or I am going elsewhere.

Mezmerized · (#6 (**permalink**))

Thoth, i completely understand your dilema. A while back i ordered a John Henrik Clarke book thats admitely hard to find in the UK. Now, the old man who owns this store reasured me that it was possible for him to get it ordered from his suppliers in the US.

However,although i gave him my details, he never did contact me to let me know how the searchwas going. I had to go back there for weeks on end to check it myself. Everytime he would promise to contact me and each time he never did. Oh and each time i had to REMIND him what book it is i ordered.....

Luckly, i have found the book now and i am going to avoid going back to him. But then again i should have known, hes always rambling about Africa this and that....yet he LOVES giving excuses and blaming whites for everything...even blaming them for the fact that the book was out of print....lol

Having said that, some of the best customer services i receive are from African business owners. So i treated his case as individual and did not let it drive me away from supporting our businesses. I know you will keep that in mind and just change shops......its obvious that these pricks are just lousy business people.

Backatya · (#7 (**permalink**))

Mezmerized wrote:

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Having said that, some of the best customer services i receive are from African business owners. So i treated his case as individual and did not let it drive me away from supporting our businesses.

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I highlighted this very good point made by Mezmerized because I feel some of us are quick to extrapolatea single, or few,negative incidences on to the whole African business community. Hence we come up with statements like "The dilemma of buyingfrom black businesses". i

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Of course there is the point that African businesses are not as prevalent as 'other' types of business, so we probably have to look further afield to find one when we are looking for a particular product or service. Furthermore, when we find one and the experience proves to be 'less than rewarding' we tend to see this asbeing a feature of 'Black Business' rather than what it actuallyis ....'a lousy example of good business practice' in the case of this particular vendor.

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It saddens me that we use the same argument for not going to an African business, that some African men/women use for choosing a non-African partner. Sure it can be damn frustrating coming across the kind of character that Thoth B and Mezmerised describe (though my experiences have never been that bad) but at the end of the day you just walk away and try somewhere else (preferably another African business). Why has it got to be the case that this bad business man/woman is typical of all African business men/women?

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The way I see it, the more we support African business (despite the occassional frustration) the more such businesses will grow and the more ('African business')choices we will have when one fails to deliver.

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It may be hard work and take perseverance to help 'build up our own', but it need not be a dilemma...................not as long as we are committed to achieving the final goal - Support For Our Own.

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Respect

Shemsi en Tehuti · (#8 (**permalink**))

Just for clarification...my dilemma is not whether I should ever shop at African-owned businesses, because that never crossed my mind. I am talking about individual occurrences where you want a particular product but your most convenient African source does not provide it for less than adequate reasons. I will always support African businesses,but I just have trouble mitigating some of theissues I encounter.

Oh yeah, I don't know how it is in the U.K., but there are not many African-owned shops here in the States. There are typically only a few in each city, if that many. Therefore,if I don't spend my money at thevery few stores, then my only alternative is a White-owned shop. This reality is what makesme feel bad when Ihave to get my products elsewhere.

Backatya · (#9 (**permalink**))

Thoth B3 wrote:

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There are typically only a few in each city, if that many. Therefore,if I don't spend my money at thevery few stores, then my only alternative is a White-owned shop. This reality is what makesme feel bad when Ihave to get my products elsewhere.

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That is the reality here for us in the UK to a large extent. Still it is gradually getting better. But until it does, unfortunately one has little choice but to shop where they product can be found. A dilemma of conscience I know.

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umbrarchist · (#10 (**permalink**))

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, I was not even asking these brothers to create a new section in their stores,

I wasn't trying to get her to create a science section, she already had one. I was trying to get her to attract attention to it.

umbra

ac9311 · (#11 (**permalink**))

It sounds like you have a rapport with the brother. I would be honest with him and voice my frustration tactfully of course. You have already lost at least a month trying to get him to simply placea 10 minute call to order product. There is no excuse for poor customer service and you have many other options. I know exactly how you feel trying to partonize one of businesses and getting nothing but excuses. Been there all too many times.