Evanston's The Aux Grows From Facebook Group Into Black-Owned Business Marketplace

EVANSTON, IL — What started in 2020 as Evanston Sergeant Tosha Wilson’s Boosting Black Business Facebook group has grown into The Aux, a collaborative marketplace in Evanston built to support Black-owned businesses, entrepreneurs and creatives.

Wilson described it as the “Boosting Black Business Facebook group brought to life.”

The Aux now includes several Black- and women-owned businesses, including Wilson’s own business, The Laundry Cafe. The Laundry Cafe was the first idea supported by the Facebook group and received $20,000 in community backing.

Wilson said the broader project was built with community fundraising and outreach.

"This was a $10 million project, and we raised 8 million on our own,” Wilson said. “I don't care if we were going to people's basements and doing presentations all the way to having meetings downtown Chicago, we were everywhere saying this is good for the community, and so far it has been great for the community.”

Wilson said The Aux took inspiration from Sherman Phoenix in Milwaukee, another business hub that brought multiple Black- and women-owned businesses together in one space. She said The Aux tried to be deliberate about selecting businesses and avoiding situations that could put owners into leases they could not sustain.

Among the businesses at The Aux is The Aux Wellness Collective, led by Tiffini Holmes, a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, owner of Total Transformation Solutions and author of “Balancing The Scale: What I Gained While Losing.” Holmes said The Wellness Collective aims to increase access to culturally competent wellness services, create a platform for wellness practitioners of color and provide retail space for entrepreneurs and artisans offering handcrafted wellness products.

"A wellness center was a dream I had when I started my own wellness journey that I thought would never be actualized, and I was okay with that," Holmes said. "Then, when Tosha had the dream about The Laundry Cafe, I was cheerleading and trying to help where I could with bringing that to fruition, and then I got the opportunity to open The Wellness Collective as well."

Wilson described The Aux as a place where people can find several kinds of help or services in one building. Wilson said that convenience can matter in stressful moments, and shared an example involving a woman who came to Evanston from Indiana while her daughter was at the hospital.

"She came in from Indiana. She just Googled laundry because her daughter had soiled some clothes, and she brought her here to wash," Wilson said.

Wilson said the woman also learned there was a yoga class next door and decided to take part while her clothes were being washed.

"She went to the class, I finished her clothes, and she came out feeling refreshed. She just felt cared for, and we always try to do that," Wilson told Patch.

The Aux is planning its first gala on June 20, with food, raffles, dancing and drumming as part of a fundraiser that will open the building to the community. Wilson said the event will take place the day after Juneteenth and is intended as both a celebration and a chance for people to experience what The Aux offers.

Wilson tied the upcoming gala to a broader sense of community and history.

"This is not necessarily something our ancestors could have envisioned this way and made happen. So it's a proud moment, just historically in the community," Wilson said