Clara Villarosa

Clara Villarosa is an American entrepreneur, author, publisher and motivational speaker. She is the co-founder of Villarosa Media and was the founder of Hue-Man Bookstores in Denver, Colorado and Harlem, New York, one of the highest earning African-American bookstores in the country from the 1980s to the 2010s. Her book, Down to Business: The First 10 Steps to Entrepreneurship for Women was nominated for an NAACP Image Award. Villarosa founded the African American Booksellers Association. In 2016, she was featured in the film, Dream, Girl.

Early life and education Born in 1930, Villarosa was raised in Chicago. Following her studies, she worked until 1959 as a psychiatric social worker at Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago before becoming a full-time mother. After 16 years, Villarosa sold the Denver bookstore in 2000. The store was located near the Apollo Theatre and became the largest African-American bookstore in the country. It hosted events featuring former President Bill Clinton, Terry McMillan, James Baldwin, Colin Powell, Wynton Marsalis, and Toni Morrison.

In January 2016, at the age of 85, she co-founded Villarosa Media with her daughters, Linda and Alicia Villarosa. The company focuses on publishing new books from established black authors and classic books reissued in digital formats with print on demand (POD) capability. Its first published book was The Wind Is Spirit: The Life, Love and Legacy of Audre Lorde. Villarosa founded the African American Booksellers Association. She previously served on the boards of Colorado Small Business Development Center, Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center, and the New Federal Theatre.

Books Down to Business: The First 10 Steps to Entrepreneurship for Women (2009), Penguin, The Words of African-American Heroes (2011), HarperCollins,