Black-Owned Businesses in Des Moines to Support in 2026

A French bakery, a coffee company you can find on shelves well outside Iowa, a comic book publisher, a 6,000 square foot video production studio, two landscaping crews, a moving company and a supported living provider. Des Moines is the first Iowa metro on this directory, and its record is small but unusually practical.

Every business named here links to its profile, where the ownership tag shows the source it came from. For the whole set, filter the Des Moines hub.

Quick answer

1. Get pastry at Nadia's French Bakery.
2. Eat at Banana Leaf or Vietopia Asian Fusion.
3. Brew Blk & Bold coffee at home.
4. Have Chef Artis cater it instead.
5. Book A-1 Movers for the move and Jermaine's Hauling & Services for the clear-out.
6. Get the yard handled by Whitfield Lawn & Garden or High N Tight Lawn & Landscaping.
7. Read something local from Sensiil Studios.
8. The Des Moines hub carries all 19 listings across 12 categories.

Where should I eat?

Banana Leaf does a modern take on Asian cooking, and Vietopia Asian Fusion works the same territory from EP True Parkway. El Toreado runs a broad menu. Chef Artis caters everything made from scratch, and Nadia's French Bakery bakes.

Blk & Bold is the one to know: a Des Moines coffee company now seven years in, and the easiest thing on this list to buy without leaving the house.

Who do I call for the house?

Whitfield Lawn & Garden and High N Tight Lawn & Landscaping both do lawn care, landscaping and maintenance. A-1 Movers handles local and long-distance moves with packing and unpacking, and Jermaine's Hauling & Services rents dumpsters and hauls junk. The Great Frame Up frames what survives the move.

Business, care and creative work

Sensiil Studios publishes science fiction comics out of Des Moines. AON Studios runs a 6,000 square foot video production and live streaming facility, and Website by Softvoya builds custom software. 3E Partners puts together employee benefits and insurance for small employers. Innovative Athletics Sports Performance trains athletes.

Tynique's Rose Garden provides supported living for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities across Iowa, which is the kind of listing this directory rarely reaches and the kind families search hardest for.

To buy: Belange Handmade makes Afrocentric apparel, and Divine Treasures sells gifts.

What the record does not cover yet

There are 19 published listings, and all 19 are filed in Des Moines itself. West Des Moines, Ankeny, Urbandale, Clive, Johnston, Waukee, Altoona, Pleasant Hill, Windsor Heights, Grimes, Norwalk, Indianola, Bondurant, Polk City, Adel and Carlisle have none yet, and at least one business on this list actually trades in West Des Moines.

Twelve categories hold 19 listings, so almost everything here is thin: one bakery, one salon, one retailer, no barber, no dentist, no lawyer, no accountant and no real estate agent. That is a gap in the record rather than a description of Polk County. Iowa is new to this directory, so a free listing here puts you near the front of it.

Common mistakes

• Assuming the address matches the label. The record files everything under Des Moines, and a couple of these businesses are out in the suburbs. Check before you drive.
• Treating a caterer as a restaurant. One of the strongest food businesses here cooks for events only.
• Missing the products. Coffee, apparel and comics from this list ship, so you do not have to be in Iowa to buy them.
• Looking only at food. Moving, hauling, landscaping and supported living are the practical half of this record.

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