Immigrant women a fast-growing group of business owners

Many women are motivated to become their own boss after discouraging experiences in the conventional labor force.

After graduating from college in her native Ghana, Esther Armstrong taught English literature and language. But when she came to Baltimore in 1980, her education and excellent English failed to open any doors. ?Nobody asked, nobody cared that I had a college degree,? Armstrong says. To support herself and her 3-year-old daughter, she cleaned houses, cleaned dog kennels and cared for children.

A typing course in an adult education program enabled her to land a clerical job. That led to a position with FedEx, where she spent 18 years. In her spare time, she began importing clothes by a designer in Ghana in 1994. She sold them at flea markets on weekends and from a modest upstairs shop. ?It was kind of hidden, but the rent was right,? she says.

Now, after retiring early from FedEx, she?s devoted to her business, Sankofa African and World Bazaar. In January she moved to a 1,200-square-foot space in a strip mall. Her lines include native American jewelry, clothing and pottery, as well as furniture from Indonesia and India.

?The dream is kind of coming together,? Armstrong says. ?It?s working exactly the way I wanted it to. People from all walks of life, all colors, come in. Many are just browsing, but it?s a beginning.?