5 Black Couples Building Businesses, Wealth, and Legacy Together

Business Lists Living

Published by Clare Adamson at February 13, 2026

1. Lamar and Ronnie Tyler

Recently celebrating 20 years of marriage and winning Inc. 5000 for the 4th consecutive year, the Tylers are an inspirational power couple with lessons for any founders building together.

In their first five years of marriage, Ronnie and Lamar admit they struggled to align their working styles and often clashed creatively. Lamar led with vision, whereas Ronnie thrived on practicality. It wasn’t until they learnt how their individual styles were complimentary did they started to find harmony and grow together.

“I dream the impossible, and she builds the infrastructure to make it possible. I see 10 times the opportunity, and she sees the 10 first steps to get us there. I’m the accelerator, and she’s the breaks” said Lamar.

Together, they founded Tyler New Media, the parent company of Black and Married with Kids and Traffic Sales and Profit (TSP). Their mission is to uplift Black families and businesses by providing the framework, resources, and visibility they need to thrive.

Black and Married with Kids is the largest independent African American marriage and parenting website on the Internet. The site has attracted more than 6 million readers and produced 4 documentaries on the realities of black marriages. Meanwhile, TSP’s live events and signature programs have helped more than 20,000 Black entrepreneurs build six, seven and eight-figure businesses.

One tip they give to couples who want to build businesses together is to have a Couples C.O.C.

“Set a ‘Couple’s Code of Conduct’ to protect both your marriage and your business. Respect and communication are the foundation—inside and outside the workplace,” the couple shared on Instagram.

2. Kim and Tim Lewis

Hailing from the Southside of Chicago, Kim and Tim Lewis have been partners in both business and life for over 15 years. Before building CurlMix, they launched several ventures together, learning through trial and error. From a Startup to a storefront, this is the story of their love.

As high school sweethearts, the Lewises fell in love long before financial stability entered the picture. From Tim’s job at Starbucks and Kim’s job at a small photography studio, there were times when they struggled to make rent. Kim transitioned to a district manager role at a grocery store but felt it stifled her entrepreneurial spirit. Kim hated her job, but had a brilliant idea for an app that she wanted to build.

To raise money for the app, in 2013, Kim surprised Tim with flight tickets, a hotel room booked, and a single mission: to audition for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. On this show, he won $100,000, which the couple invested in their first business together. The company failed, but this experience paved the way for them to start their main venture: Curl Mix, A natural hair care company. The duo appeared on Shark Tank season 10 in 2019. The founders turned down a $400,000 offer for 20% equity from Robert Herjavec

Tim credits Kim with being the entrepreneur in the family, with her motto being: “Done is better than perfect. Let’s jump in and figure out the details later.”

CurlMix has weathered challenges. Towards the end of 2025, Curlmix was on the verge of closing. But Kim made a public appeal to all her mentors, supporters,s and sponsors to crowdfund and save the company from closure. Through the Protect CurlMix campaign, she achieved 20,000 orders in 60 days.

This year, she aims to reach 100,000 orders for Curl Mix to secure the brand’s future and fuel the next stage of growth.

3. Monique and Melvin Rodriguez

When Monique first met Melvin, at 12 years old in high school, she says he came off a little too sure of himself. He, on the other hand, was instantly captivated. Today, they celebrate 20 years together, 15 years of marriage, and 12 years of Mielle Organics. Meet the couple that built a multi-million dollar brand.

Monique started as a registered nurse before transitioning into the beauty space. In 2013, the Rodríguezes lost their son when she was 8 months pregnant. This loss forced Monique to view life completely differently. She wanted to do something fulfilling with her career, and she turned back to her childhood passion: hair care.

When starting their business together, the couple prioritised finding their complementary skills, checking their egos, and always pouring love back into their marriage. Melvin didn’t know anything about hair products, but he did know a thing or two about operations, logistics, and finance, and by combining their talents they were able to build a solid foundation.

“It takes a very confident man to be behind his wife and let his wife shine,” Monique said.

They bootstrapped the business from their basement to shelves in more than 100,000 retail locations worldwide. In 2020, the couple began angel investing in other Black-owned businesses. Mielle Organics was acquired by Procter & Gamble in 2023, allowing them to scale while expanding their philanthropic work through Hope Chicago and Mielle Cares.

4. Jamyla and Pierre Bennu

Jamyla and Pierre built their relationship on a deep friendship, describing it as one long sleepover where, more than anything, they like each other as people and love the work that they do. This year, the two will celebrate 27 years of marriage and 23 years of their business, Oyin Handmade.

They met by chance on a New York street corner in the late 1990s. Jamyla was 23, and Pierre was 25; their connection was immediate. Within six months, they moved in together, and five months later, they married. In 1999, they chose the surname Bennu, inspired by an ancient Egyptian fire heron symbolizing rebirth and the power of the sun.

Jamyla and Pierra are multihyphenated creatives. In the early 2000’s, they had a handful of odd jobs, writing grants, making films, teaching, and building websites. Oyin Handmade was started on the kitchen counter as a bootstrapped hobby, initially selling only their natural body and hair care to friends and family. The business scaled slowly, and in 2005, the couple realized that it was growing bigger than the two of them could handle alone.

Since 2012, Oyin Handmade has expanded through partnerships withWhole Foods Market, followed by Target, CVS, and Sally Beauty. Today, the brand continues to innovate, including a partnership with Hotel Revival in Baltimore, where guests receive Oyin Handmade products designed to support natural hair care.

“I love spending my days with him,” she says. “There are shared goals, trust, and ease of work between us, and those things are carried over into the business and the culture of the business. We always say our products are made with love, and they really are.”

5. Pinky Cole Hayes and Derrick Hayes

Before becoming a power couple, Pinky Cole and Derrick Hayes built separate empires: Slutty Vegan and Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks. When they met up for a business lunch in 2020, Pinky says it was love at first sight, and they have been inseparable since.

Pinky and Derrick’s individual stories are a testament to resilience. They had worked in several different careers and had tried and failed with various businesses before finally building their famous brands. While their audiences couldn’t be more different (Vegans and Cheesesteak lovers), the two credit their transparency and competitive nature to their increased business growth as a couple.

They regularly exchange insights, test ideas across ventures, and apply lessons learned to Bar Vegan, their joint concept. Each setback for one business becomes data for the other.

“Our story is proof that collaboration, love, and shared vision can create something much bigger than either of us could have built alone,” they said in a joint statement.