Princess Anne, MD – The Princess Anne Chamber of Commerce is celebrating a historic number of Black-owned businesses in the small town of fewer than 4,000 residents. With at least 25 such enterprises now open, the business community is embracing this milestone while reflecting on its past during Black History Month.
"The past don't always have good memories ... good feelings," Chamber of Commerce President Lynnell Fletcher-Pugh said. "Right now, we can use that as our building blocks of where we are today."
Fletcher-Pugh said that the Princess Anne of today is welcoming to anyone with an idea for a business they want to put into action.
“The town wants businesses," Fletcher-Pugh said. "It doesn’t matter if you’re Black or white; we just want all businesses to be successful.”
Black History Month, however, is a reminder to name and celebrate the change that has allowed the Black-owned business community in Princess Anne to grow to what it is today.
"History has shown that there wasn't really any Black-owned businesses in Princess Anne..." Fletcher-Pugh said. "But we overcame a lot. Times change. People change."
To support ongoing economic development, the Chamber is developing a business directory and planning networking events to connect all Princess Anne's business owners.
Danae Ballard opened her salon in Princess Anne, Alluring Looks by Danae, when she was only 21.
“When you start at a younger age, it gives you a different aspect of it, and you can always learn from others in the community,” Ballard said.
Ballard said she is proud that the milestone reached by Black-owned businesses in a town as small as Princess Anne is being celebrated by the Chamber.
“People don’t expect much from it, but we are proving that it can be done," Ballard said.
Leslie Coker directs the Dynamic Divas majorette dance company. Her studio is one of the Black-owned businesses contributing to Princess Anne's record-breaking milestone. Coker said celebrating the success in her community during Black History Month has made her think more about the past.
"When I first moved to this area, I was told that the last known lynching was in Princess Anne, Maryland," Coker said. "That there is now 25 Black-owned businesses in a county [town] that has less than 4,000 people, that's phenomenal."
Business owner Dale Parker said that setting an example for future generations of entrepreneurs motivated him and his partner to open their restaurant, Cropa Station.
"That's one of the things we wanted," Parker said. "To make sure that we gave people an example of how Black-owned businesses can prosper in our community."
Parker said the Chamber of Commerce and Black business owners must work together with the entire community to support Princess Anne's overall development.
"It just makes our town a much more vital town," Parker said.