business

Business partners and spouses, Miriam and Hector Morales import fresh coffee beans from Nicaragua for their coffee shops in West Roxbury and City Hall.

For some people, getting a haircut is a normal, regular task, checked off the to-do list without a second thought. However, for Muslim women who choose to wear the hijab, having their hair styled at a public salon poses a challenge to their faith.

With bids in on several of Dudley Square’s largest parcels on public land, city officials and community representatives are tasked with using new criteria to judge proposals, with ownership by people of color one of the key factors in the process.

Using art as a therapeutic form of self-expression, longtime friends Victoria Downes and Taneekah Johnson created Sanaa with Friends, a multicultural painting experience for people of color to paint, sip and socialize in a community environment.

A lot of trial and error is involved when first starting a business. The venture might begin as one idea, but then morph into something different once the viability and logistics are tested. For Marcelous Atmore and his startup, Express Cuts 10.18, a few adjustments to the original idea were necessary to make his on-demand barbershop business work.

What happened in New York? Shortly after Amazon named New York as the site of its new headquarters the company management rescinded the decision. What new circumstances caused the change?

In the second installment of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development’s Pathways to City Contracting workshop series last week, local business owners learned about creating joint ventures to better leverage their skills.

Following the news of Haley House cafe temporarily closing and a flood of other businesses in the area following suit, Roxbury community members mobilized last Saturday morning at an emergency roundtable to discuss solutions for what they’re calling an economic crisis.

Real estate agent and radio host Tayla Andre grew up in Dorchester’s Four Corners neighborhood and earned her bachelor’s degree in political science at Pine Manor College. She currently works as a real estate agent under the firm Thumbprint Realty located in Dorchester and is the host of her own radio and podcast show called “Wake Up With Tayla Andre.”

Ten months into her new role as vice president of diversity, inclusion and community at Suffolk construction company, former state Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry led a forum recently at the company’s Roxbury headquarters with Paul Francisco, chief diversity officer at State Street, on hiring practices, retaining diverse talent and fostering an inclusive workplace.

Dwindling affordable housing isn’t the only issue affected by Roxbury’s spate of new developments: area restaurants, many of them minority-owned, are realizing mixed blessings as the neighborhood vastly changes around them.

Local Initiatives Support Corporation Boston hosted their third annual pitch contest for early-stage startups owned by women and minority entrepreneurs last week in Dorchester, awarding up to $12,500 in cash prizes sponsored by Citizens Bank.