Annual gift and art show returns to steer holiday shoppers to Black entrepreneurs and artists

by Megan Sayles, AFRO

After a two-year absence, the BZB Holiday Gift and Art Show will return to Washington, D.C. at Shiloh Baptist Church’s Family Life Center this month. Tagged the “largest African-American department store on the East Coast,” the 100,000 square-foot market covers two floors and features more than 80 Black entrepreneurs and artisans. 

This year, the BZB Holiday Gift and Art Show is celebrating its 30th anniversary, and it will open its doors on Black Friday and remain open to the public every Saturday until Christmas Eve. It will also be open Friday, Dec. 23. 

“Together, the artists, entrepreneurs and myself are ready and we’re back,” said Juanita Britton, CEO of BZB International, Inc. and founder of the event. “We don’t plan on stopping, and we have all that you need.” 

Britton, nicknamed “Busy Bee” at the age of three by her grandmother, formed BZB in 1983 as a special event, marketing and African diaspora travel firm. 

The BZB Holiday Gift and Art Show was spawned a few years later after her visit to Brixton Market, a bustling multi-cultural showcase for Caribbean and Africa artisans in South Central London.

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