Minneapolis Mall Welcomes First Black Woman-Owned Shoe Store

Brittney Kline, the founder and chief executive officer of Boss Lady Shoetique. The shoe store has opened a storefront in Northtown Mall in Minneapolis, Minn. making her the first Black woman to ever open a shoe store in the mall.

Brittney has always wanted to be a fashion model since she was a child. But she had to put her dream on hold when she got pregnant at an early age. Even though she wasn’t able to fulfill her childhood dream, she didn’t stop dreaming.

Still related to fashion, Brittney started a shoe business online in 2019. It stems from her desire to provide good-quality shoes at an affordable price to career-driven women. Now, she has expanded to a physical shoe store in Northtown Mall.

“It’s been a struggle, but it’s been fun. We ended up here today so I’m really excited,” Kline told KSTP.

“I lost my job this past fall. And that really just made me want to go harder to my entrepreneurship.”

Kline is only the first Black woman to open a shoe store in the mall and she initially got worried it would be accepted. But that was exactly what inspired her more to pursue this venture. The lack of representation in her community pushed her to work harder in hopes to change the narrative.

“Nothing comes easy. You have to work for it and that’s the example that I want to show them that it wasn’t easy, but you can do it,” she said.

For more information about Boss Lady Shoetique and/or to order online, visit BossLadyShoetique.org.

This article first appeared on Blackbusiness.com.