BARBARA “B” SMITH

FOUNDER, B.SMITH ENTERPRISES

Smith began her career as a fashion model for Ebony Fashion Fair and then signed with the exclusive Wilhelmina Modeling Agency, which led to her gracing the covers of numerous general-market magazines, including being the first African American woman on the cover of Mademoiselle in 1976. She also could be found on TV commercials for Mercedes-Benz, Verizon, Colgate-Palmolive’s Oxy, and McCormick’s Lawry’s seasonings products. She took that experience and her influence as a tastemaker to create a lifestyle brand and an array of successful businesses, including restaurants in New York and Washington, D.C.; a nationally syndicated/cable television show, B. Smith with Style, that aired in the U.S. and another 40 countries; and B. Smith With Style Home Collection, the first line of bedding, tabletop, and bath products from an African American woman to be sold at a nationwide retailer. Almost 20 years later, her line is still carried by Bed Bath & Beyond.

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