17 Black-Owned Brands Like Urban Outfitters to Discover
You keep filling your cart at Urban Outfitters with graphic tees, boho dresses, and quirky apartment finds. But those pieces come from a revolving door of mass-produced trends that fade after a single season. When you shop Black-owned brands instead, you get that same eclectic energy backed by real cultural storytelling, founder-driven creativity, and quality that actually lasts.
These 14 Black-owned brands deliver the vintage-meets-modern aesthetic Urban Outfitters is known for, plus something the big box can never offer: direct support for independent creators building fashion on their own terms.
1. Brother Vellies
Founded by Aurora James, Brother Vellies creates handcrafted footwear, bags, and accessories using traditional African artisan techniques passed down through generations. Every piece feels like wearable art, from feathered heels to shearling-lined clogs that you will not find on any fast-fashion shelf. The price point sits firmly in luxury territory, but the craftsmanship justifies every dollar.
Where Urban Outfitters channels an eclectic, crafty mood through mass production, Brother Vellies delivers that same spirit through small-batch, ethically made pieces with real provenance. If you want a single investment accessory that tells a story every time you wear it, this is the brand.
Best for: Artisan luxury footwear and statement accessories
2. Mented Cosmetics
Mented Cosmetics was born from a frustration most beauty counters ignore: finding a nude lipstick that actually looks nude on deeper skin tones. The brand has grown well beyond that founding mission into a full range of pigmented palettes, buildable foundations, and everyday essentials, all vegan and cruelty-free. The color payoff on darker complexions is genuinely outstanding.
Urban Outfitters stocks a rotating wall of trendy beauty brands, but shade ranges often fall short past medium skin tones. Mented fills that gap with formulas designed from the ground up for melanin-rich skin, without sacrificing the playful packaging and approachable pricing that makes beauty shopping fun.
Best for: Inclusive, vegan makeup with rich pigmentation for deeper skin tones
3. Pyer Moss
Designer Kerby Jean-Raymond built Pyer Moss at the intersection of fashion, art, and activism. Each collection weaves Black history and cultural commentary into high-concept runway pieces that blur the line between streetwear silhouettes and couture construction. The brand made history as the first Black American designer invited to show at Paris Couture Week.
Urban Outfitters borrows from counterculture aesthetics to sell graphic hoodies and vintage-wash denim. Pyer Moss creates the culture those trends reference. For anyone who sees clothing as more than fabric, this label treats fashion as a platform for storytelling that goes far beyond surface-level cool.
Best for: High-concept fashion rooted in Black cultural storytelling
4. Hanifa
Anifa Mvuemba launched Hanifa with a clear mission: designing modern womenswear that flatters real body shapes without compromising on bold color or confident silhouettes. Her groundbreaking 3D virtual runway show put the brand on the global map and proved that innovative design does not require a traditional fashion establishment backing. The collections consistently deliver show-stopping dresses and tailored separates in saturated hues.
Think of Hanifa as the grown-up version of the colorful, trend-forward pieces filling Urban Outfitters racks. The energy is similar, but Hanifa trades casual boho for polished occasion-ready designs that command attention at weddings, dinners, and anywhere you want to walk in and own the room.
Best for: Bold, body-flattering womenswear in vibrant colors
5. Telfar
Telfar Clemens built his namesake brand around one radical idea: luxury should be accessible to everyone. The brand's vegan leather Shopping Bag, affectionately nicknamed the "Bushwick Birkin," has become one of the most recognizable accessories in modern fashion. Drops sell out in seconds, resale prices climb steadily, and the cultural cachet keeps growing with every new colorway release.
Urban Outfitters thrives on cult-favorite items that generate social media buzz. Telfar operates on that same hype-driven energy, but the difference is authenticity. This is a genuinely community-born brand with unisex designs that back up the "Not for you, for everyone" motto with real price accessibility.
Best for: Iconic, accessible unisex bags and apparel with major cultural cachet
6. Kahindo
Named after its founder Kahindo Mateene, this ethical fashion brand creates colorful, modern clothing rooted in African heritage. The collections feature striking prints on sophisticated dresses, jumpsuits, and separates that feel both globally inspired and completely wearable for everyday life. Every piece is ethically produced in Africa, connecting your wardrobe directly to the artisans who make it.
Urban Outfitters dabbles in globally inspired prints, but Kahindo delivers the real thing with genuine cultural connections and conscious production practices. If you love bold textile patterns but want pieces cut with sharper tailoring and a more refined point of view, this brand bridges that gap beautifully.
Best for: Ethically made, African-inspired womenswear with bold prints
7. Harlem's Fashion Row
Harlem's Fashion Row operates as both a discovery platform and retail destination dedicated to championing designers of color. Through partnerships with major retailers and their own curated online shop, HFR surfaces the most exciting emerging Black designers before the mainstream fashion world catches on. The roster changes and grows constantly, making every visit feel like uncovering something new.
Browsing HFR captures the same thrill of discovery that draws people into Urban Outfitters, but with far more depth. Instead of mass-market trend cycling, you get access to high-concept, culturally rich fashion from designers who are building something lasting and meaningful in the industry.
Best for: Discovering emerging Black designers across multiple fashion categories
8. Studio 189
Co-founded by Abrima Erwiah and Rosario Dawson, Studio 189 is a fashion social enterprise producing artisanal African-inspired clothing through community partnerships in Ghana. The brand uses traditional methods like hand-batiking and kente weaving, turning centuries-old craft techniques into modern, wearable pieces. Their vibrant prints and relaxed silhouettes carry genuine cultural weight behind every thread.
The bohemian, globally-inspired collections at Urban Outfitters hint at this kind of aesthetic, but Studio 189 delivers true authenticity backed by fair-trade practices and a real social mission. Wearing these pieces means supporting artisan communities directly while adding genuinely one-of-a-kind textiles to your closet.
Best for: Artisanal, fair-trade clothing with authentic African textile traditions
9. Grace Eleyae
Grace Eleyae solved a problem that millions of women with natural and textured hair deal with daily: hats that destroy your hairstyle. The brand's signature satin-lined caps, beanies, and turbans protect hair from friction, prevent breakage, and maintain moisture while looking genuinely stylish. The bestselling "Slap" cap built a devoted following that continues to grow through word-of-mouth recommendations.
Urban Outfitters stocks plenty of cute accessories, but rarely ones that solve a real functional need this well. Grace Eleyae combines the kind of practical innovation you wish more fashion brands cared about with designs that look great whether you are running errands or heading out for the evening.
Best for: Satin-lined hats and headwear that protect natural and textured hair
10. The Honey Pot Company
Founded by Beatrice Dixon, The Honey Pot Company creates plant-based feminine wellness products ranging from herbal washes and wipes to organic pads and tampons. The brand built a massive following by bringing transparency to a product category that had been dominated by legacy corporations for decades. Every formula prioritizes natural ingredients and clean formulations without the clinical branding.
Urban Outfitters has leaned heavily into wellness merchandising, but The Honey Pot takes that category far more seriously with products backed by real formulation standards. For anyone looking to make more intentional swaps in their personal care routine, this brand has earned its reputation as the trusted go-to for plant-powered feminine essentials.
Best for: Plant-based, clean feminine care and wellness products
11. Daily Paper
Amsterdam-based Daily Paper has grown into a global streetwear force by fusing contemporary fashion with the founders' African heritage. The collections deliver standout graphic tees, bold outerwear, and tailored tracksuits with prints and brand messaging that reflect real cultural identity rather than borrowed aesthetics. The brand has expanded into flagship stores across Europe and the US.
Daily Paper shares Urban Outfitters' strength in culturally relevant graphic apparel, but brings a more polished, internationally minded perspective to every collection. If you want streetwear that goes deeper than logo placement and connects to a genuine point of view, this brand consistently delivers at an accessible price point.
Best for: Heritage-driven streetwear with bold graphics and global appeal
12. Topicals
Founded by Olamide Olowe, Topicals made skincare for chronic conditions like eczema and hyperpigmentation feel approachable instead of clinical. The brand pairs science-backed formulas with punchy, shelf-worthy packaging that has turned products like "Faded" serum and "Like Butter" mask into social media staples. The formulations actually deliver results, which is why the brand keeps growing through genuine customer loyalty rather than paid hype.
Urban Outfitters curates its beauty section around Gen Z appeal and visual branding. Topicals nails that same aesthetic while solving real skin concerns that most trendy brands ignore entirely. If you deal with uneven skin tone, texture issues, or flare-ups, this is the brand that treats those concerns without making your bathroom shelf look like a pharmacy.
Best for: Science-backed skincare for hyperpigmentation, eczema, and chronic skin conditions
13. Brandon Blackwood
Brandon Blackwood launched his namesake handbag label in 2015, but the brand exploded into mainstream consciousness in 2020 with the "End Systemic Racism" mini-tote that became an instant cultural moment. Since then, the NYC-based designer has built a full accessories line of ethically sourced bags in bold colors, vegan leather options, and inventive shapes that stand out without trying too hard. Celebrity co-signs from Beyonce and Lizzo have not hurt either.
Where Urban Outfitters cycles through affordable accessory trends every few weeks, Brandon Blackwood offers bags with staying power and genuine design identity. The price point sits in the sweet spot between fast-fashion and traditional luxury, making it perfect for anyone who wants a statement bag that holds up to daily use and carries real cultural significance.
Best for: Bold, affordable-luxury handbags with cultural resonance
14. Fe Noel
Brooklyn-born, Grenadian-American designer Felisha Noel launched Fe Noel in 2011, drawing on her Caribbean roots to create womenswear that radiates confidence through vibrant colors, flowing silhouettes, and intricate detailing. The brand has dressed Michelle Obama, Beyonce, and Gabrielle Union, yet maintains an independent, founder-driven identity that keeps each collection feeling personal rather than corporate. A self-taught entrepreneur, Felisha opened her first boutique at just 19 years old.
Fe Noel captures the free-spirited femininity that Urban Outfitters channels through its dress collections, but elevates it with genuine Caribbean cultural influence and luxury-level construction. If you want vacation-ready pieces, wedding-guest dresses, or everyday separates that feel joyful and intentional, this brand deserves a permanent spot in your rotation.
Best for: Caribbean-inspired luxury womenswear with vibrant, confident designs
Written by
Spencer Lanoue
