PHOENIX — As Black Business Month comes to an end, state leaders are celebrating their growth in the Valley.
Sisters Theresa ‘Terri’ Cottrell and Lisa Odom-Zaire say they can attest to that.
"Every day that I come to work, it's a Black business moment," said Cottrell.
Cottrell and Odom-Zaire are the co-owners of Deeply Rooted AZ Hair Salon located at, 4848 E Cactus Rd #100, Scottsdale, AZ 85254.
They have been in this profession for more than 20 years, enough to where clients have become like family.
"Linda has been with us for like 16 years. She's going to get an up style because of the heat," said Cottrell.
"We do it all. Right now I'm working on sister locks. It takes about two hours to do her head," added her sister Odom-Zaire.
It’s a labor of love they say has brought triumphs and challenges.
"The challenges are, just pretty much being able to be seen," Odom-Zaire told ABC15.
"We want to grow, but we hit roadblocks. And quite often I would ask a loan officer or a person we want to do business with, why does A-B-C get in so easy, but we are struggling," said Cottrell.
Additionally, big companies are buying out successful Black mom-and-pop shops in their industry to acquire formulas; only to then sell those products in bulk.
"The smaller black-owned business can't compete with that which makes it harder for them to stay in business and harder for them to grow because they get swallowed up by big box stores," said Cottrell.
Similar sentiments were echoed across the board at the roundtable held in Phoenix, with Congressman Ruben Gallego and Black business owners.
Robin Reed, the President and CEO of the Black Chamber of Arizona says it's time to talk solutions.
"Black-owned businesses in Arizona actually outpace the country in terms of startups, following the pandemic, but there's a lot of ground to cover," Reed told ABC15.
Congressman Gallego was there to listen, adding he has many things he’d like to do.
"Making sure that we're trying to figure out how we can help them expand their businesses, finding the capital they need to keep growing, and if the government is in the way, find a way to get out of the way," said Rep. Gallego.
In the meantime, Cottrell and Odom-Zaire continue uplifting those in the Black community and working hard to get equal visibility.
"It's very important that we get showcased so we can support one another and carry on generational-type things. Keep supporting us," said Odom-Zaire.