Mielle Organics, the textured hair care model based in 2014 by husband and spouse workforce Monique and Melvin Rodriguez, has been acquired by P&G Magnificence, a division of the patron packaged items conglomerate, for an undisclosed sum.
The model will proceed to be led by the Rodriguezes, and can function as an unbiased subsidiary of P&G Magnificence, the businesses stated in a press launch.
As a part of the association, each Mielle and P&G every pledged $10 million to Mielle Cares, a non-profit geared toward offering assets and help to advance training and financial alternatives in Black and Brown communities.
In a video put up on her private Instagram account, Monique Rodriguez, who launched the label with formulation she created in her kitchen and touted on social media, addressed a number of the considerations which have plagued other Black-owned brands after being acquired by white-run conglomerates.
“I really feel that each Black entrepreneur ought to be capable of develop and scale their enterprise … with out being labelled a ‘sellout,’” Rodriguez stated within the five-minute video, including that there have been no plans to vary product formulations and that the model would “proceed to to offer alternatives for Black management in our firm.”
In 2014, Rodriguez, a Chicago native and registered nurse, scraped up $10,000 of her personal cash and employed a neighborhood chemist to assist her craft Mielle’s first product, a mix of scalp-stimulating peppermint and amino-acid wealthy almond oil. A model of the identical product made headlines final month when a number of white TikTok influencers, most notably Alix Earle, named it a must have — sparking on-line debate about white creators appropriating Black magnificence regimens in addition to spurring considerations that the corporate would change the method to enchantment to extra white shoppers.
Right this moment, Mielle — recognized for its distinctive formulations of nutritional vitamins and area of interest elements, like sea moss and tulsi — is carried in additional than 100,000 shops, together with Ulta Magnificence, Goal and Sally Magnificence. In 2021, Rodriguez grew to become one among fewer than 100 Black feminine founders to safe a minimum of $1 million in funding for his or her firms, when she landed a reported $100 million funding from Berkshire Companions. The agency beforehand invested in magnificence firms Naked Escentuals and Coty in addition to jewelry label Kendra Scott.
With this acquisition, Mielle joins different well-liked textured hair care manufacturers like Shea Moisture and Carol’s Daughter, which have been snapped up by CPG and wonder conglomerates Unilever and L’Oréal in 2017 and 2014, respectively. For its half, P&G has been on a magnificence shopping for spree, having acquired skincare line Farmacy and hair care model Ouai in 2021 and Tula Skincare in 2022. Mielle’s acquisition by P&G is pending regulatory approval.
Study extra:
How Mielle Organics Is Rewriting the Playbook for Black Hair Brands
After securing a nine-figure funding in her enterprise, Monique Rodriguez is onto her subsequent problem: scale whereas staying Black-owned.
