CLEVELAND, Ohio — A Cleveland-area woman with a love for shopping at Trader Joe’s has found fame on Instagram.
Mercedes Davis created “Black Girls in Trader Joe’s” as a way to connect with other Black women who shop at the chain.
“I know there’s other Black girls that shop in Trader Joe’s. They have to. So, birth of Black Girl’s in Trader Joe’s,” said Mercedes Davis.
Davis who goes by “Dee” for short, fell in love with Trader Joe’s when she began visiting the store daily for lunch.
“The affordability. Taste. The food. I love the fresh flowers. I love the spices. I love that it’s seasonal.”
But as Davis shopped, she noticed she didn’t see many other shoppers who look like her.
“I don’t go in and I don’t feel like, ‘Oh, I don’t know if I should be here’, but other Black women have felt that.”
So on May 12, Davis created Black Girls in Trader Joe’s on Instagram.
In two months, she’s gone from zero followers to 90,000 followers.
“All organic believe it or not. It was the power of Black women.”
Black girls in Trader Joe’s has even been featured in Essence Magazine—the monthly lifestyle magazine that targets African American women.
It’s something Davis said she never expected.
“Huge. That was one of those like OK, this is a real thing. Like there’s a need for this. There’s a want for it. There’s a curiosity about Trader Joe’s from Black women or just the Black community in general.”
Not only can you get new product ideas or grocery list ideas from Black Girls in Trader Joe’s but you can also learn how to use the products in recipes by watching “Dinner with Dee” on IGTV.
“I’m going to upload more videos and try to get that because that’s what people really do want. They want to see how to utilize the things they get at Trader Joe’s in a new way.”
But her plans don’t stop there.
“What’s next? Merchandise. Women want to see each other. They want to see each other represented in Trader Joe’s. So whether it’s a t-shirt or a mask, a bag—something that (when) we’re in the aisles and we see each other, we can say, ‘Hey girl, hey!’”
Davis said it’s important to note that the platform isn’t just for people of color, but for anyone with a love for Trader Joe’s.
If you want to learn more about the Black girls in Trader Joe’s movement, you can click here.
