Hair What I'm Saying
"Hair What I'm Saying" is created to share real life experiences with real people in the beauty industry to promote healthy relationships with consumers and Beautyprenuers. We will get into the nitty gritty of the backend of hair/salon business to help consumers understand why certain policies are implemented in order to sustain a healthy balanced salon environment for both parties, while consumers share their unprofessional and challenging experiences behind the chair. The goal is to bridge the gap to understand one another's perspective in hopes of clarity and unity.
Hair What I'm Saying
The Mother & Daughter Story Behind Nylah’s Naturals with Kameese Davis
Available on YouTube to watch now!
***USE CODE HAIRWHATIMSAYING20 TO RECEIVE 20% OFF ON NYLAH'S NATURALS HAIR PRODUCTS***
Ever wondered how a mother's love can spark a revolution in the beauty industry? Kameese Davis, the founder of Nyla's Naturals, shares her incredible journey of creating a hair care brand inspired by her daughter Nylah's challenges with seborrheic dermatitis. Faced with the lack of suitable products for textured hair in the UK, Kameese turned necessity into innovation, crafting a line that not only addresses these needs but also promotes racial esteem and embraces natural beauty. Join us as Kameese discusses her mission to redefine beauty standards and the importance of nurturing a positive self-image for those with textured hair. In our conversation, we explore the cultural significance of understanding the unique hair care needs of Black children. Kameese and I address the longstanding issues of colorism and texturism, reflecting on personal stories that highlight the psychological impacts of these biases. Together, we emphasize the critical need to celebrate all hair textures, breaking away from societal norms that favor certain types over others. Through these discussions, Kameese's passion for empowering women and children shines, as does her commitment to fostering environments where natural beauty is not just accepted but celebrated. Kameese's entrepreneurial spirit is nothing short of inspiring, as she shares the challenges and triumphs of building a brand that bridges wellness and cosmetics for Black women. From walking away from undervalued business deals to securing shelf space in major retailers, Kameese's story is a testament to staying true to one's vision and values. As we discuss her future aspirations, including expansions into skincare and nutrition, Kameese's dedication to creating a holistic health hub for Black women becomes clear. Her story is a powerful reminder of the impact that personal values can have on work ethic and success, offering valuable insights for anyone looking to make a meaningful change in their community.
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Welcome back to another inspiring episode of Hair what I'm Saying, the podcast where beauty, entrepreneurship and life lessons meet. I'm your host, kenetra, and today's episode is truly special. I'm sitting down with an extraordinary woman, kamis Davis, the founder of Nylas Naturals, a brand that's not only redefining natural hair care. But was Davis, the founder of Nylas Naturals, a brand that's not only redefining natural hair care, but was born from the love of a mother for her daughter? Kamis' journey, rooted in family science and sheer determination, has led her to become a trailblazer in the beauty industry. We'll dive into her experiences as a mom, her bold moves in entrepreneurship and the personal moments with her daughter in entrepreneurship, and the personal moments with her daughter, nyla, that have shaped her purpose. So, whether you're a natural hair enthusiast, a budding entrepreneur or someone looking for a dose of inspiration, you're in the right place. Welcome to the Hair what I'm Saying podcast. I'm your host, kenetra Stewart, and today we have Kamis of Nyla's Naturals, all the way from the UK, joining us. How are you, kamis? I'm great.
Speaker 2:How are you?
Speaker 1:I'm doing well. Thank you so much for being a guest on the show. I really do appreciate it. We appreciate it.
Speaker 2:And I appreciate you for having me. Thank you.
Speaker 1:Is this your first podcast? No, oh no. You like me, I'm a pro. Oh, you like me, I'm a pro. Yeah, I'm a pro. Well, that's good to know. At least you know the feeling of how it goes and flows. So you know you become a natural, more than anything.
Speaker 2:Yeah, just good, honest, open conversation.
Speaker 1:Absolutely For sure, okay, so we'll just get started. If you ready, I'm ready, okay, okay. Your daughter, nyla, inspired this incredible brand. Can you share the story of her hair care journey and how it sparked your mission to redefine textured hair care?
Speaker 2:Yeah, of course. So when my daughter was born, she had seborrheic dermatitis, which is a type of eczema that sits on the scalp and it manifests in like really large scales, a lot of dandruff, a lot of significant itching, and I was searching for a natural, plant-based product that wouldn't aggravate the symptoms of her eczema. So while I found it relatively easy to find skincare products that were natural and plant-based, I really struggled to find a hair care product especially being in the UK for textured hair, afro hair that didn't have any of the raw materials that would typically aggravate her skin condition. So I started to do a lot of research and I realized a couple of things, right. So one of the first things that really shocked me was understanding the prevalence of harmful ingredients that were present in products marketed to Black women. This was something I hadn't looked in before into, but, knowing that I really wanted to alleviate my daughter's symptoms, I became ingredient conscious and I really started to deep dive into like, what does this name mean, what is this word and what does it mean at the back of a label, and I was horrified.
Speaker 2:So now it not only became about wanting to have a natural product, it was a necessity, like I needed a product that didn't contain any of these harmful ingredients that, with long-term use, could lead to some of the health complications that we're seeing in Black women today. And I think the second thing was about racial esteem and really wanting my daughter to not have to undergo a process of unlearning, and I'll expand on that. So you know, growing up as a child, I was always taught that straighter hair was more desirable, was beautiful, was more in line with what the definition of Eurocentric ideologies?
Speaker 1:for beauty was and.
Speaker 2:I didn't want my daughter to have to unlearn that process. I just wanted her to know like your hair the way it grows out of your head is absolutely beautiful.
Speaker 2:There's nothing wrong with it. So I wanted her to have that pride from an early age, because I didn't have it, and so it now became the need, became something that would celebrate my daughter's heritage and her hair, and then something that was non-toxic and that was really the foundations for starting this business, because I realized that in the UK there wasn't anything. There was several options in the US and in fact, I initially started to import things in. So, you know, like Carol's Daughter and other brands, I started to import things in. So, you know, like Carol's Daughter and other brands, I started to import them in. But it became unsustainable because there's like the cost of the product, the cost of shipping, the cost of customs, the lead time. I was like, yeah, this can't work.
Speaker 2:So I was like, I'll just create it and, in a nutshell, that's what inspired the brand.
Speaker 1:Oh, wow, that's amazing. I love how you elaborate the depth of your why and it's so inspiring. I don't know many children who are born with subordinatitis. I usually see it more in adults behind the chair. So I really love how you took that and you made something work with that for you and your daughter and then also expanded that to the world. You know, it's a very inspiring story.
Speaker 1:I didn't expect that. I thought it was going to be like something dealing with you and your daughter personally. You know which I'm sure it was, you know and but it was like a medical concern more than anything you know, opposed to the stories that I normally hear. I normally hear you know her hair, just the products that were, you know, on the market. They were harmful and also her curls or her texture, the porosity, the density.
Speaker 1:It just did not gravitate to those products. So I had to do something for us, and I know that there are other black women out here also struggling with the same concerns, so I made this product also for them as well. But to learn that it started with a medical condition, I'm like whoa that I was not expecting that you know. So that's really good to know and to hear and I really love how you just channeled into that and you made that work for you and your daughter. So that product it does, you know, did it help with her scalp condition or did you have to still seek outside sources in order to help her?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love that question. So one of the things that I learned really early on in the process of developing products was that I needed to incorporate the knowledge of specialists within the whole formulation process, because it's all good and well saying you know I want to develop a product, but I am not a cosmetic scientist right so I am just using my basic understanding of the perhaps nutrient raw materials that I want to include in a product, but not understanding how those products work in synergy with one another and how they work to maximize efficacy.
Speaker 2:And another thing that was really important to me was looking at skinification. So how do we ensure that the skin and health of the scalp is in an optimal condition? And that's taking into consideration things like an understanding of how melazesia infects the acid mantile, understanding the importance of pH balance, looking at what are the surfactants that are needed to cleanse the scalp without stripping the hair of its natural oils and nutrients. And in order to do that, there was, you know, I needed to involve a cosmetic scientist, I needed to involve a trichologist and I also worked with a dermatologist.
Speaker 2:So ultimately, we developed a formulation that was mild enough not to aggravate her condition and also, um you know, designed in a way that would showcase the beauty of her hair, to keep her hair in the optimum condition and keep her scalp in the optimum condition. So, whilst I didn't create a medicated product that would resolve the seborrheic dermatitis, what it did was give me a product that wouldn't aggravate it.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, because that's the challenge, right. The challenge is finding the products that don't it, because sometimes the flare ups are happening because of the products, the ingredients that are in the products. So the intention behind the hair product is very admirable, you know, even though, like you said, it's not a cure but it's a very mild product so that it doesn't continue to flare up the condition for anyone that wants to experience your hair products. That's amazing. As a mom, what challenges did you face when caring for Nyla's hair and how did that shape your approach to creating your products?
Speaker 2:I guess you kind of already covered that, but if you have more to elaborate, we would love to hear um, I think, just one of the challenges, um, and I I'm really careful, I think, with how I phrase caring for my daughter's hair.
Speaker 2:So what I instead of challenges, I would say one of the areas that I needed to learn was getting her to understand how to care for her hair, especially as she she's older now, like she's 14 now oh my goodness okay yeah, and there's a lot of things that she naturally wants to do with her hair in terms of the versatility of it and wearing it in different styles, and it's, without hindering her creative expression and her personal expression, still trying to reinforce the importance of using mechanical styling choices that are not going to harm her hair. So I think that's one of the challenges at the moment it's finding that balance yes, um, and I, I suppose, as she's been growing up, I I know Afro hair.
Speaker 2:I'm quite obsessive, like I have a really weird obsessive personality and when, when I'm interested by a topic, whatever it might be, I come really become quite fixated on it. And so during that process I really deep dive into understanding the needs of Afro textured hair, so caring for it wasn't really a challenge for me. It was just more about ensuring she understands it. That's now become a challenge, yeah.
Speaker 1:OK, and how is that journey so far? Is she learning? Uh, do you feel like she's receiving the information that you are educating her on about her hair?
Speaker 2:yeah, I mean, one of the things that, um, I love to see is that she loves it right first and foremost, she loves her hair and watching that as a mom is a very surreal and beautiful experience, because the way in which she wears her hair with pride at her young age in its afro, you know, in its full force and beauty, is a way that I never did until I got to like my mid-20s.
Speaker 2:You know I wouldn't ever did until I got to like my mid-20s. You know I wouldn't wear my hair in that way. Um, I thought the definition of beautiful was trying to manipulate my hair into something that it just was not, and so seeing her have that pride and knowing that that is because of what I've poured into her, is a beautiful feeling, and that is something else that I do with my brand. So we, we, teach like foster carers um.
Speaker 2:We teach adoptive parents, we teach social workers and really look at how we can um integrate into the the children's care sector to ensure that all children have the same standard of care, despite what ever transracial home they might be in.
Speaker 2:I don't know what it's like in the US, but in the UK we don't have enough black carers and, as a result of that, many children are placed in homes where the adults don't understand their personal care needs, and I'm like on a mission to ensure that every child appreciates their hair type and every child has the opportunity to understand its diverse beauty.
Speaker 1:Absolutely it does. It makes perfect sense. I do see a wave of that happening now. You know where. You do see the younger Black young girls. You know they are growing up appreciating their natural coils and they are trying to learn how to care for them.
Speaker 1:There is a salon out here in Austin, texas, where she I don't know how often she gathers a group of Black little girls and she teach them how to do their hair. Yeah, the salon is called the 2911. And that's, yeah, she does a lot of things for the community. But speaking on what you just said, you know, just piggybacking on that, that's what she does. That's what she do. You know I didn't have this, that experience growing up, but I did grow up with a lot of family members that they didn't intentionally, you know. Tell me you know how we're having to coach our daughters today. They didn't intentionally, you know. Tell me you know how we're having to coach our daughters today. They didn't intentionally coach me. I just so happened to be blessed to grow up with a bunch of Black women in my family that just knew how to take care of curly hair.
Speaker 1:Nice, and so there was no need to like go get a relaxer. It was actually talked against at my age, you know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's amazing. I grew up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I grew up like my aunts, my grandmother. They were on my.
Speaker 1:I was the one pressing for the relaxer and they were like no, no, you're not getting a relaxer. And I think I asked so much that my mom just folded and she just gave in and she gave me the relaxer and the whole family they were not happy about it, you know, yeah, yeah, so in the same thing with my sister. So we didn't grow up. So when I hear these stories I'm always intrigued, because where I grew up it wasn't the same experience for even my uh friends. We didn't grow up like that. You know, the relaxer was merely by choice, it wasn't to adjust to the European. You know beauty at all, you know. So I'm always intrigued whenever I hear.
Speaker 2:You know, I've never heard that, because you know we've all heard of colorism and the implications that colorism has had on how we see ourselves as black people and black women right. But I think another layer to that is texturism. Yeah texturism Right and you know the looser your curl type, for example Absolutely and more beautiful your hair is seen to be. So it's amazing to hear that you were in a family and an environment that didn't push that narrative.
Speaker 1:Yes, I was. But I will say I did grow up around friends that did hear that the texturism part Right but not deemed as straighter, as more beautiful. It's just that the looser the texture was, it was more beautiful, More beautiful.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So I did grow up around that. For sure, that narrative, I did the looser the texture, the softer, the curl pattern appeared to be yeah, the more kinky.
Speaker 2:It was deemed nappy unruly unmanageable and I grew up in that, in that space, yes, while difficult, all of that kind of negative terms, and I think what's what's even more challenging is. We're still seeing that today, right, we're still seeing brands favor women with looser hair types to push their products, as opposed to working diversely with all textures and all hair types and all hair lengths I think we went into when we're talking about the natural hair movement.
Speaker 2:We went into a phase where you um you know, in order to have textured hair, it had to be looser um coiler hair that was more okay now closer to people who were of dual heritage or closer to you know absolutely centric standards of what a suitable curl would be and anyone who had really tight, kinky, textured hair.
Speaker 2:It better be long for us to see appreciate it if it wasn't long appreciate it as something that we can still actively promote and the fact is I mean I might use that might come for me, but the fact is that you know we don't have the same an as likely as someone from a different racial group, and that kind of reinforces the importance of celebrating not only your textures but all densities and all lengths and stuff, trying to push this narrative that afro hair is only beautiful if it comes in this certain package, in this way you know, absolutely.
Speaker 1:I could not agree more and I'm so happy you brought up the texturism part, because if you wouldn't have, I wouldn't even thought about it. So I'm so happy you brought that up because I'm like, yeah, we did experience that that one. We experienced, for sure yeah, yeah, and I appreciate you for bringing it up, because the other one I didn't experience, but that one for sure, um direct immediate family too. You know, yeah, definitely experienced that and that kind of sorry, carry on and I was just gonna say, and it comes with it.
Speaker 1:you know, it comes with its own psychological challenges as you grow up. You, you know, maybe I don't want to alter it and make it straight, but I am longing for a looser curl pattern. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Do you have any special hair care moments that stand out as defining memories between you and your daughter as defining?
Speaker 2:memories between you and your daughter. I don't think I have a specific moment, but what I do, and have always done with my daughter's hair, is create a ritual of us really being able to spend quality time together and really making sure that the hair um caring process was a time for us to bond yeah, um you know just as mother and daughter, but really rooting that in culture and rooting that in an understanding of who we are as you know, a black woman and then a young girl that's developing into a black woman.
Speaker 2:Yeah, because, as I said, everything that I try try and do with my daughter is trying to reinforce that racial esteem, because I really do think that's the foundation of self-esteem I really do and that is being proud of the racial group in which you belong, understanding our heritage, our history, our contributions to society and our unique and very beautiful racial characteristics. So I, you know I created space for that in caring for her hair. I remember the process of me getting my hair done wasn't always one that was, you know, desirable.
Speaker 2:I remember getting chopped with the comb and hair togged and told how difficult my hair is and how hard it is to manage and how nappy it is, and that created, or perhaps reinforced the belief that my hair wasn't good enough. Um, so for my daughter, I just wanted to really flip that on its head and completely change the narrative, and I think that's contributed to her sense of pride in her appearance that she has now.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, that's what I am, that's what I do with my daughter and we've also created some resources as a brand to help to kind of promote that type of practice for moms with daughters. So we have a children's storybook, we have an activity book and we have a hair guide for moms to really say you know the process of caring for your daughter's hair is rooted in history and rooted in bonding and it's really important to take half the time out, really carve that time out to enjoy the process.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because it was not like that when we were growing up.
Speaker 2:It was not like that.
Speaker 1:You know it was traumatizing more than anything, which is why we had such an unhealthy attachment to it. You know it was. You know, even though, even though you know we were embraced to wear our natural curls, the process was not a bonding moment and girl.
Speaker 2:I don't know about you, but my family are jamaican right, omg, yeah, yeah, the hot comb came out. Yeah, this came out, it was. It was a painful and traumatizing process, it sure was, and then I think also like our generally, our hair care practices were just flawed like looking back at some of the things that my mom and grandmother would promote as like standard ways to care for your hair, it's no wonder we never had no hair do you know what I mean, because we just didn't know how to promote that length retention?
Speaker 2:yeah, you know, moisturizing, cleaning the scalp we just things that we didn't do, and now that we have the information and the knowledge is prevalent, there's a lot of crap. Don't get me wrong.
Speaker 1:There's a lot of crap on the internet some of it infuriates me, to be honest, but I think when you be through that, you can find some really good information for just loving your hair and caring for it in the right way absolutely. I completely agree with you for sure, and thank you for sharing and elaborating on that. That was good information for even myself to hear, so I love that all righty. So we're going to move on to talking about motherhood and entrepreneurship.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I still don't know what I'm doing. I know.
Speaker 1:It's like it's a journey. I think it's going to be one of those everlasting journeys. You know Balance and motherhood with entrepreneurship can be demanding. How has N nyla's presence influenced your work ethic and your drive to succeed? Um?
Speaker 2:so firstly, I would say I have two children. Oh okay and bless him, don't get no attention because he has no business named after him. But I also have a son who's eight okay um, and I would say that my children are one of my biggest not the only biggest drivers, but definitely one of the key pillars for my commitment and discipline Right.
Speaker 2:It's great to say motivation but to be honest with you, my motivation wanes from day to day, like some days right, and then other days I'm good to go, so yeah discipline is way more important than motivation. Of committing to doing the best I can every day is definitely rooted in me wanting to be an example to my children of what being a business leader and a business person looks like, and being an example to my children of following things through um and doing the best that you can every day.
Speaker 2:So there are there's been times when I've wanted to walk away with it from it all like I can't lie to you. There's been times where it you know it's been really tough. I've had challenges, I'm dealing with other people in business that are making my life way harder than it needs to be, and it can be exhausting and I feel to myself you know what I can have soft life right now. My partner's an entrepreneur he can care for me.
Speaker 2:I don't have to do this um, but I think one her. Her name is the brand um and that's really important to me, that she sees um how far we can take it and um you know number two it's um being that living example for them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love that. I keep saying, I love everything you say, but it's just so good. Oh, my goodness, what does it mean for you to create products that not only help Nyla embrace her natural beauty, but also inspire confidence in other young girls and women?
Speaker 2:Oh God, I'm a crier, so I'm holding good, I've cried on the podcast.
Speaker 1:So if you have to cry, it's okay, I've cried on.
Speaker 2:It really hit me um. People often ask me like what are your proudest moments? And I guess the expectation is, you know, having this much turnover, or you know like your products have done this for my family and my daughter Like I had a mum. I'll give you an example.
Speaker 2:I had a mum who was a European from Ireland and she had married a Ghanaian and they had a mixed race daughter. And she had married a Ghanaian and they had a mixed race daughter and she just didn't know she just didn't know how to care for her daughter's hair at all. And she sent us a message on Instagram out of desperation and I happened to see it, because we've obviously got a team that support with social media and I happened to see this message and I immediately reached out and I was like, can we have a call? And we had a call and we had a conversation about challenges her daughter was experiencing with her hair, her daughter saying that she wishes she had hair like her mum.
Speaker 2:She hates the fact that she's biracial. She hates the black side of her, all rooted all rooted in the fact that her hair was, you know, knotted, and mom just didn't understand how to showcase its beauty, and so I sent her some products completely free of charge. I taught her through the process and then she emailed me back and she was just like here's the before and after Look at my daughter's smile.
Speaker 2:She's now saying how proud she is of having, like two parents from different ethnicities and to know, that I contributed to that little girl's sense of pride and self-esteem, like it's a really meaningful thing for me.
Speaker 1:I'm sorry, I'm crying but I'm trying to hold back.
Speaker 2:And she's not the only one. Like I have messages from other mothers. I have messages from women, women in their 60s. You know, one woman said to me she sent a message on social media and she said I'm 68 years old and this is the first time in my life that I've used a product that showed how beautiful my hair is that for me.
Speaker 2:If anyone tells me my success to you, that is success to me like it's probably not the typical version of success, but it does mean to me that I've created something that is successful and that is appreciated, and that I'm making changes.
Speaker 1:Congratulations. I'm so sorry. No, you're good, I'm just fighting them back. That was beautiful and that's the most meaningful success. That's the success you cannot buy. You know that's the success that is extremely hard to achieve. You know there are so many other ways to you know achieve. You know, even when you first started the journey, I'm sure you didn't even know what you were going to do. You know, in that moment it was just about, you know, finding a solution for your daughter and then taking that and knowing I can help other people, but not knowing, oh, I'm going to help them internally too, not just from the external aspect of it all, but also emotionally, so that they can have healthier relationships with themselves and accept themselves for exactly who they are. And that's empowering to be able to place a stamp like that, so deep, on someone.
Speaker 2:So you know, 68 years old, that's a long time to find a solution for your hair care, right, it's a long time to be existing in a mindset that tells yourself that all of you is not good enough set that tells yourself that all of you is not good enough and knowing that my brand, my, my creation, my contribution to the world, whatever it evolves into, it's already done that yeah, and I think for when I think about the vision of the brand, like we really want to look at how we can bridge the gap between the wellness space and the cosmetic space for.
Speaker 1:Black women.
Speaker 2:Like how can we champion wellness, well-being and personal care and personal pride?
Speaker 1:for Black women in the products that we are creating.
Speaker 2:And that is our goal.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, and you're doing it. You're doing it. I'm just happy. Now my listeners will have exposure to your product as well. It deserves a platform for sure, everywhere, and I really hope you know this, you know what you're doing I want it to be this worldwide, internationally, nationally, known, because of where it's deeply rooted in.
Speaker 1:You know you didn't jump in a beauty business to make money. You know that is a part of the goal. You know you have to in order to take care of your family. You know that is part of it. But the goal where you have that you've reached is much bigger. You know, and it deserves to be known. You know people need to be tapped in to. You know what's going on with you so that they can also have an, you know, just a privilege of knowing. You know there is help out there for you because we're still trying to figure it out. You know we're still trying to figure it out. We're still there's still. You know so many people, so many beauty brands, so many celebrities are entering into the beauty world, but not with this purpose not with this purpose.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean it's, it's an an attractive, it's an attractive market right, it's worth billions absolutely. It's got a compound annual growth weight that is insane when compared against other markets, but for me it was never about how rich can this? Make me if I, if I wanted to look at you, know something that would get us there quicker. There's other vehicles for that. For me it was. I think my sense of purpose is how can I contribute to the Black woman's self-esteem?
Speaker 1:And that's what I hear. That's exactly what I hear. Yeah for sure, that's exactly what I hear. Yeah for sure. Okay, so we're going to talk more about your passion and your business, like how you grew that from a passion to your business. Yeah, what motivated you to turn your personal experiences into a thriving business while managing so many roles in?
Speaker 2:your life. I guess you've answered it, but if you have, more.
Speaker 1:we always want to know more. Yeah, I mean, I can talk to you about our brand, elasticity and I suppose why wellness is now a integral focus for us.
Speaker 2:So I was diagnosed SADS. Law is a thing, right. I was diagnosed with a type of alopecia which is really progressive and aggressive. It's called CCCA and it starts at the center of your head and it causes scarring and it expands out and it's progressive and a lot of times when women receive the diagnosis of ccca, it's so late in their journey that the scarring has damaged the follicles and the likelihood and the prognosis of re-growing hair is like literally 0.5 percent.
Speaker 2:It's like it's ridiculously small. In fact, the likelihood is you'll never grow hair again in that space where they're scarring and I was diagnosed with that, whilst having a hair care brand and it was devastating because I'm losing my hair and then I'm having to mask it, camouflage it, hide it because having a hair care brand and having hair loss, doesn't go hand in hand, and then I remember having like just, you know a vulnerable moment.
Speaker 2:as you guys can see, I'm a crier but having a vulnerable moment with my partner and he said to me turn that pain into purpose. Um, he was like, you know hair, you know, um, you understand trichology, you know the people to tap into, like what can you do and what?
Speaker 1:can you create for?
Speaker 2:black women who are going through something similar to you and then, in that process of, you know, going to see dermatologists getting an official diagnosis. I then started to look okay, what are the raw materials that I can start to incorporate in a system and a formula? To help to combat the CCA that I'm experiencing in two meaningful ways.
Speaker 2:The first way is controlling the inflammation so it doesn't progress into scarring. The second way is encouraging follicular regeneration and the second way is encouraging follicular regeneration and reactivating those dormant cells. And where is the science and what does it say around these two things? And what can I create to kind of deliver a system of support for Black women? So, whilst you're going through the medical process because I do encourage you, do go and see a doctor if you're experiencing hair loss there is something to support you, to slow down the progression of that type of alopecia, and that's what we've created, you know so we've used clinically proven actives.
Speaker 2:We've gone through a consumer trial with a panel of 15 women who had different types of hair loss. I recently had another diagnosis for my CCA and scalp biopsy and they've come back and they've said whilst we see evidence of inflammation. We don't see any evidence of scarring. So now we're not sure whether you have this at all. So it's like that's now been my central focus, because I'm seeing so much crap online where people are promoting like shea butter and rosemary oil and castor oil and rice, water and avocado mass by Cardi B and so much foolishness.
Speaker 2:I'm going to just say it yeah, where there is not a lot of scientific data behind that, and what that creates is it taps into and feeds into the desperation of women who are losing their hair something that I understand you'll try anything when you're losing your hair and then it, it um. It monetizes their desperation and profits of it where where we go in as a brand.
Speaker 2:We want to say look first of let's get you a thorough diagnosis right. We need to be looking at bloods. We need to get you to your GP or your medical provider. We need to do clear tests to understand what the root cause is of your hair loss. And whilst we're going through that process.
Speaker 2:Here are products that can help to slow down and keep the health of the hairs, the follicles that are viable, to keep them viable whilst we're understanding what's going on and then looking at what the body needs from a nutritional perspective, like what are the key supplements that are responsible? For that stem cell regeneration? How can we deliver those supplements to you in a way that's designed for hair, skin and nails? That's meaningful for hair, skin and nails? That's meaningful. That isn't just a label that is based on science and evidence. So, that's what we're now looking at introducing to our community, and we'll be launching that in quarter one of next year.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that. That's like the intent you know that you are creating behind your product. It has so much meaning. It's not just a product that you're just pushing out, because there are so many brands that are already created out here and the only thing you have to do is just put your name on the label. Like you know, they're doing it and they don't know any.
Speaker 1:There's no research, no intention that is placed. You know from these uh I I don't know what you want these hair suppliers. You know they're not putting any intent, any focus, any um, real hardcore foundation to know exactly what that product is going to do for their consumer. And those are the brands that I absolutely hate because you don't even know what your product is. You can't educate me on your product if you don't know what it is, if you're just buying it from I don't know what it's called, but those companies that Retail ready.
Speaker 2:Yeah, retail ready.
Speaker 1:That's what it is when you're purchasing from a retail ready, you have no idea what the core of that foundation and that product is going to do for those potential consumers. So what are you exactly promoting? You know so, listening to your story, and all the intent and all the focus and all the education that you are learning in order to make sure you deliver that product for these consumers who have these similar experiences with you or just need something to retain their hair care. Yeah, I am just through the roof proof. I'm just so proud to hear and listen and know that there are people in the business that still have a passion for hair care and, you know, not just from the monetary gain that they can, you know, get from it, you know.
Speaker 2:I mean I have a passion for Black women.
Speaker 1:I have a passion for black women I have.
Speaker 2:I have a deep desire to ensure that we get the best and however I can contribute to that, I'm going to contribute to that right and you know there's been um, so we did with um just at the latter stages of our consumer trials, and all but one of those women have experienced significant growth during that process, which has lasted for four months, and the one person who didn't. What I told her at the beginning was your hair loss is unfortunately at the stage where you've caused permanent damage and I don't think that this is the right solution for you and what we're willing to do is, we're willing to get you your referral back to your dermatologist, which we did.
Speaker 2:We wrote to the doctors, got the referral to the dermatologist. We're looking at getting her some emotional support and counseling so she can focus on acceptance. We're looking at making sure that she can have access to you know units and wigs and ways that she can still wear her hair and feel beautiful um, but you know, unfortunately, it's getting her to accept that you've.
Speaker 2:You've just left it too late, and I don't mind doing that? I don't mind saying to women I don't want you to spend your money here because, we're not the right solution for you.
Speaker 2:What we need to do is get you back to your health care provider so you can get the type of support you need. And it might be that you need a more aggressive, medicated approach to your hair growth and that's fine. Because I, you know, we're not, we're not able to sell. You know drug type products and you might need that. And it's having that intention and that integrity for me, which is really important. So I make it very clear on who we can help and who we have to help in a different way.
Speaker 1:Absolutely so. You are focused on the integrity of your business as well, which?
Speaker 2:is great.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the integrity is important and that's appreciated and that also builds loyalty and trust. You know, even if they can't, you know, become a consumer, they will be more than willing to spread the word. You know, because they know that they can trust. You know what you're saying and what you're pushing, because, instead of you quote, unquote, misleading them and telling them yeah, my product can do this, my product, you know, it's like no, I can't help you here, but here's an additional resource, and that is more important than anything.
Speaker 2:Exactly, and I've seen far too many brands showcase images of people who have clearly got scarring alopecia and then you know an after image that doesn't even look like the same person. And it's right, it's. It's really dishonest and we're not about that as a company. We're we're integrity first yes, for sure that's that, we're integrity first.
Speaker 1:Absolutely love that, love that. Uh, walking away from a Dragon's Den deal was bold. We are really shifting the conversation now. Walking away from a Dragon's Deal was bold. What lessons did you take from that experience? And how did Nyla react to seeing you on TV? How did she react to that and how did you? How?
Speaker 2:did you make such a bold decision? So the reaction she reacted well, she reacted better than me. I still have PTSD from watching that show. I'm still like, oh Lord, and it's not international as well. I'm like, lord, you really need to get this crying thing over control. But yeah, um, walking away from the offer at the time, um, I just had to. I didn't know, I had no idea whether or not I was making the right decision um at the time.
Speaker 2:Oh, it was as some people say, it was bold at the time, it was very scary it was a scary move but what I knew was. I knew that she didn't understand the value of what I was bringing to the table. Like that was clear. I felt undervalued and I felt disrespected um in not necessarily just her offer, but her understanding of how important what I was doing was for the Black community. And I felt that if I took her offer I wouldn't. I didn't see that.
Speaker 1:I would grow the business in the way that I wanted to right.
Speaker 2:I felt that I would have been more stifled than really being able to accelerate our growth, and what I decided was that I would have been more stifled than really being able to accelerate our growth, and what I decided was that I would rather go it alone and not know what the outcome is and work damn hard to try and get there and it might not work out, but I'm prepared to do that as opposed to going into a deal where I felt that I wasn't appreciated valued and. I would be stifled.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. And who would want? I wouldn't want to do business with people who did not understand where I was coming from emotionally, because how can I trust you to help me grow and elevate this product if you don't understand my reason why?
Speaker 2:you know exactly and not not just only the emotion, because I really feel like she believed in me as an entrepreneur. What I felt that she didn't understand was the landscape of the business, and nor was she, in my opinion, willing to take the time to understand that in a meaningful way um, and I just, yeah, I just I didn't want that, so I walked away with my pocket yeah, and you know it, it worked out.
Speaker 1:It did and I'm happy that you did not give in for something so short term, you know, because you could have easily given in based on your fear, even though you know you said it was. In that moment it didn't feel bold, you were scared, but fear in a way of giving in and also understanding that this is not the right fit. You know being, you know, tapped in to the awareness at the time to know I could make this happen this way. But this is not the direction I see for my brand.
Speaker 1:You know, some people get desperate and they just give in you know, but you weren't desperate enough to make such a decision that could not benefit you, or you know that your vision couldn't come into fruition the way that you envisioned it. You know, I don't know if I could have been so bold, you know, I think I would have been like, okay, who knows, you know, but maybe not, because maybe understanding and knowing what I have for my brand, I probably wouldn't have either and would have. Just, you know, because I know there's additional resources out here as well. You know, this is not the all in. You know, because I know there's additional resources out here as well.
Speaker 2:You know, this is not the all-in. You know, girl, there's additional resources and you know, at the time when I went into the den, I had gone into the den at the wrong time and that's what one of the other dragons had said to me. He was like you are here at the wrong time. Um and I see it now in hindsight had I had gone in just a year later where I really started to implement our marketing strategy.
Speaker 2:It would have been a completely different offer and a completely different experience. I really believe that. So it's you know, sometimes the revenue is what people look at to determine the viability of a company? Yeah, and at the time, our revenue didn't reflect the size of the opportunity in the market. But you know, a year later we were, you know deeply six-figure company and that's just continued to grow and accelerate.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's good. Yeah, so getting into Boots and Superdrug was a massive milestone. What did that moment mean for you and your family?
Speaker 2:I think for me the moment became really real for want of better words when I walked into our local store and I seen the product on shelf and that was a that was an amazing moment. You know, walking in I took my daughter with me and you know I was like look, and she looked in the shelf and she seen the product and that was that was incredible look.
Speaker 1:and she looked in the shelf and she seen the product and that was that was incredible. That was incredible. Yeah, especially growing up seeing other people's products on the shelves. You're not thinking like, oh yeah, I'm going to have my own brand one day and it's going to be on the shelf of a you know of some store. You know, I bet that was such a surreal moment. You know it was.
Speaker 2:It was. What emotions were you experiencing during that time? I think it was a sense of pride. I was very proud of our products and my efforts, I also felt motivated to keep going. You know it felt like a key point in the journey of my entrepreneurial life cycle. Yeah, one that I will definitely remember it was a cool moment. Definitely remember it was a cool moment. But you know, from a business perspective that created other challenges to the business that I didn't foresee at the time.
Speaker 1:Yeah for sure. So rewarding Like my hard work is paying off. You know you take a science-led approach to your products. How did you ensure Nyla's Naturals would deliver real, effective results for textured hair?
Speaker 2:So we, I think the first thing that we needed to do was find a cosmetic scientist that was passionate about their own sorry innovation. Um, that was really important to us. We when we embarked on the journey of um looking for a cosmetic scientist, because at first I think I started like a lot of people that was creating products at home and I was like, nah, this ain't it right. Like it really didn't have the performance that I wanted and I wasn't willing to put that on the market.
Speaker 2:Um, so we started going through cosmetic scientists and I went through a lot, honestly, because what I was asking them to do at the time was so novice, right, I was literally rolled into these meetings with this long list of no's like you can absolutely not use any of these raw materials that you are accustomed to using for products for black women, and that was really challenging them to work in a different way, because it was like oh, we use this, this and the other and I'm like yeah, you're not using that, you know so um, that was hard and then it was um also I.
Speaker 2:I knew what raw materials I wanted, so I started to go to like all of the cosmetic shows and you know all of the raw material shows, like in cosmetics, etc. Scs in the UK and I started to come across some fantastic you know, biomimetic, science-based, clinically evidence-backed raw materials. Um, but one of the problems that I encountered was they were like. You know, this cost 40 pounds per kg and our minimum order quantity is 500 kg. I'm like what, oh my?
Speaker 1:goodness, I'm a new brand.
Speaker 2:I'm completely self-funded. I do not have the means, the capacity to kind of make that investment and it became a negotiation.
Speaker 2:So I would have to negotiate with the raw material suppliers, I had to negotiate with cosmetic scientists and it was like yeah, you know, I'm small, I have this little idea, but it has the potential for this and these are the reasons why it's important so really getting them to bite into that, that story and that narrative right. And I think in having those very open and honest conversations I was able to get access to raw materials that I think products marketed to the community didn't have typically have access to, and also really encourage cosmetic scientists to think outside of the the boat, and eventually we found a cosmetic scientist that was a trichologist that understood afro textured hair himself, and therefore the process of creating products became um, a lot more, I wouldn't say straightforward but the the process of innovation was more enjoyable because they had a team that was ready to embark on that journey with me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, okay, I love that. I'm so happy someone was willing to work. I've tried it before. I've tried it before trying to create my own natural hair products and it was so much pushback, so much pushback and, like you said, the investment is very expensive and the only problem I kept running into was they just didn't want to listen to what I wanted, what I envisioned, and I think I just gave up. It got to a point where I was like, okay, I found the company and then they wanted to be one of those retail ready companies. I'm like that's not what we discussed and that's what we were, that's not what we initially agreed, and I just stopped altogether. I was like I'm tired. I'm glad you didn't give up.
Speaker 2:It's not easy and there were many times where I gave up.
Speaker 1:There were many times I was like no, I can't. I gave up.
Speaker 2:Like there were many times I was like no, I can't. One of the things that I say to myself is you only get one day, you only get one day to cry. You only get one day to see in your emotions. I give you that one day because your emotions also need time to be present and they also need acknowledgement.
Speaker 1:They need time to um to be present, and they also need um acknowledgement right, they need time to be acknowledged.
Speaker 2:Pushing them away, I think isn't healthy, um, and then the next day I'm like okay, that's done, let's crack on. And I got pushback, I got no's, I got, you know pretty much, um much, um, underestimated, undervalued, um, everything that you can think of in terms of a negative experience in trying to create something. I experienced it, but for me it was like okay, you're not my partner, it's one step closer to finding my partner that's always one step closer to finding my yes, and that was the attitude that I had in searching for not only a manufacturer.
Speaker 2:Sorry, not only a cosmetic scientist, but a manufacturer willing to work with me throughout all stages of our journey.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I congratulate you and applaud you and I love how you set these emotions on a time frame emotions on a time frame, but also tapping in here and saying, not looking at this as a negative setback, but more of a as a positive reinforcement. You know this is I'm getting closer, because now I have you out the way. I know that you can't create the vision. I am getting closer, you know, to whoever these people are. That's for me. I love that. You know to whoever these people are. That's for me. I love that you use that in everyday life. You know, not just for this, but anything in life. You know, and it's such a good mind space to operate in and that's why you are as successful as you are today because of the mindset. It always started in the mindset.
Speaker 2:Mindset. I think, yeah, you, you know, mindset is so important it is an entrepreneur, like literally in anything that you decide to put your attention to any goal that you have um, having a growth mindset is really, really important.
Speaker 2:And you know, for me, one of the things that I tell myself is there are no mistakes, there are just lessons. Yeah, so, even with you know, for me one of the things that I tell myself is there are no mistakes, there are just lessons. Yeah, so, even with you know, the whole walking away from the dragon's den thing I was like, okay, there's, this is going to be a lesson, there's going to be something in here that is going to contribute to the woman that you are becoming.
Speaker 2:If you use that in the right way right so every, every hurdle, every failure it can be something that completely knocks you off the kilter and you don't get up from, or you can sit and say okay, where is the lesson here and how is that contributing to my growth?
Speaker 1:Because I think, if you use the right way, everything can contribute to your growth. Absolutely For sure. Love that. As a Black woman entrepreneur in the beauty industry, what challenges have you faced and how did you overcome them?
Speaker 2:I think, just being a Black woman who's an entrepreneur, nevermind the beauty female entrepreneur. And then let's put the black on top of that it's challenging, Like we all know the stats around black women getting the financial resources that they need to execute on their vision and their strategy right. I think in the US it's 0.35% in terms of how much investment Black women receive, and in the UK it's 0.02% of investment goals to. Black women 0.02%, and the majority of that goes to Black women who are London? Based and I'm in Birmingham.
Speaker 1:So that's going to start breaking it down even more.
Speaker 2:It's it's near impossible um, and I think one of the biggest challenges that I had was navigating that financial space and really presenting the business and the opportunity to predominantly white, male investors, because we're in the UK and when we look at um again, stats predominantly, though, that's the demographic of people who are investing right um. So it was you know. I think that was one of the most difficult periods, and it's still a difficult um period because we're constantly looking at fundraising activities. You know I've got big ambitions.
Speaker 2:That requires a big budget yes, um, but I managed to find an investor who was passionate about um, not only what I, what I was doing, but passionate about evening the playing field for women and for people of color. And my VC investors and my angel investors. They are passionate about ensuring that people who are capable of building businesses have the financial resources, whatever their demographic you know wherever they come from and they have been amazing.
Speaker 1:My lead angel investor.
Speaker 2:He was the former CEO of Revolution Beauty.
Speaker 1:It's a global company that turned up like 300 billion.
Speaker 2:So you know he's already got an understanding of the space and he's bringing that knowledge to us. So I think to answer your question without elaborating too much.
Speaker 1:That was one of my challenges and perhaps again one of the proudest moments to have overcome that challenge and I'm glad you share that because, as you said, it's still a challenge for most, and so your information that you just shared will let another Black woman know. You just haven't found your people, just keep going. You just haven't found your person, just keep going and knowing that these are just little minor setbacks to help you get there where you're supposed to be, in that space that you're supposed to be in. So I'm so happy you shared that because it's extremely relatable for any black entrepreneur, any female black entrepreneur out here, no matter what career you are trying to pursue. It's just extremely relatable across the board. It's a universal, relatable situation. You know, yeah, yeah. What myths or misconceptions about Afro and textured hair do you hope to dismantle through your hair product? Oh no, through you.
Speaker 2:Down to a few. Yeah, one of the things that I want to dismantle is the notion that Afro textured hair is difficult. You know it's. It's, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful textures. I think every hair texture has its own beautiful characteristic. But the versatility of Afro textured hair and the way in which we, as a community and culture, have learned how to do these very intricate um, you know styling choices, but not only that, how we influence culture, right, you know how we influence people around us through our styling choices it's amazing. It is.
Speaker 2:So I want to dismantle the notion that black afro textured hair is difficult and that it's undesirable, but I also want to dismantle some of the myths that exist in the textured hair space as it relates to hair care and hair growth. Um, and I want to start replacing that understanding with hard facts and science. Um, one of the things that I think really frustrate me is the notion that black hair or can grow as long as any other hair type and again, I'm really careful in how I say that, because I think that it's rooted in a lot of misunderstanding, and there are examples, of course, of black women who have achieved really, really, really beautifully long hair but the fact is, the International Institute of Dermatology tested over a thousand women and our anagen phase is shorter than women of other racial and ethnic groups.
Speaker 2:Like our, anagen phase is four to five years maximum. An Asian woman can be up to 10 years.
Speaker 2:A white woman can be up to seven therefore, we cannot expect to get the same type of length as a woman who is of Asian origin, and I think that understanding will lead to acceptance of where your terminal hair growth is and how to kind of maximize the length retention, but be content with where your hair growth is Like. Your anagen phase might only be two years and it's rooted in genetics and there's not much you can do to change that. So I think I get just I get frustrated with seeing women who are constantly searching for this miracle growth product that's gonna give them Rapunzel-like hair, when genetically we just don't have that capability. I think that's one of the them Rapunzel-like hair, when genetically we just don't have that capability.
Speaker 2:I think that's one of the myths that I'd like to bust.
Speaker 1:The second one, I suppose, is routine, not to interrupt you, but let our listeners know what the antigen phase is. Let them know that. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So the hair grows in cycles um everyone's hair grows in cycles and there are three main cycles some people say four, but three main cycles through the hair growth process. There's the anagen phase, and that is where the hair is actively growing. So your hair follicle, your dermal papilla, is producing hair strands, that's protruding through your scalp and that's the anagen phase and that has a set point, a set amount of time which is genetically predetermined, and then it moves into the next phase, which is the resting phase. Now, during that resting phase I think it's called the telogen phase that the hair just stops growing, it just stops and it rests, and that lasts for about three months and then the catagen, catagen, sorry catapate yeah, that lasts for about three months and then it moves into the tillage yeah where hair sheds and is replaced by another strand, that starts the growth process again.
Speaker 1:Yes, and I just wanted them to know this, so they'd be like what is she talking about? Antigen?
Speaker 2:based. But that is very much influenced by several factors. It's influenced by hormones.
Speaker 1:It's influenced by diet nutrition.
Speaker 2:It's influenced by stress, but the foundation of that influence is you know your genetics, and just like the texture of your hair is very much influenced by genetics, so is the length of your anagen phase.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. I'm glad you put that out there.
Speaker 2:It's really hard to convince Because it's hard to convince women otherwise, and this is just biology you know One of the things that I say to women is if our hair just grew and grew and grew and didn't have a cycle, like you know, our intimate region would be, you know and we'd have eyelashes that were constantly growing that we'd have to snip. You know it happens in cycles growing that we'd have to snip. And you know it happens in cycles. So just learn yours, appreciate yours and focus on maximizing your length retention activities so you can get the best out of your anagen phase absolutely.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for sharing that information, so much education. That needs to be spread and not just, like you said, how did you refer to it? It's crap, it's a lot of crap out here. You know, and it's very important that people are learning from people actually studied the biology of how hair works. You know it's YouTube. I'm telling you know it's it's youtube. I'm telling you it's you I love cardi b. I love her to death oh, but she is so misleading no, ladies, I'm sorry and I'm like you don't even need the hair mask cardi because of your genetics.
Speaker 1:like, let's be honest, let's be real.
Speaker 2:And, like you know, she shared the picture when she was young and she had the little fro and stuff. But all that signaled to me was that when you was young, your caregivers was a maximizing length retention right, so you never got to see how long your hair could grow. You were introducing practices that was causing breakage and you just never got to see the full viability of the strand. Now you're focusing on length retention activities. You're able to see that genetically you are capable of growing hair down here. That doesn't happen for all of us and I think until somebody creates a product that is able to lock the hair in the anagen phase for all of eternity, we are going to be influenced by our genitalia.
Speaker 1:And that's what I meant by celebrities when I mentioned, you know, whenever celebrities, you know they love to dabble over here into our world because it's a multi-billionaire, you know, industry and they mislead consumers because they, you know, being that there are celebrities, people are going to listen to them, just from there.
Speaker 1:They listen to them more than the people that study it you know, and so I'm like, and then, and then, what I'm experiencing behind the chair is I tried this and I tried that and it didn't work. And then I have to go in and like, re-educate and let them know this, that's a whole girl.
Speaker 2:But you know what was interesting for me? Watching the pushback that Rihanna got when she launched Fenty Hair. Now I cannot speak on her products and I won't, but what I saw on social media was a lot of people saying we can't trust your products because your hair isn't long and your natural hair isn't this and your natural hair? Isn't something that we would consider as aspirational.
Speaker 1:I didn't even know that was going on, so I'm learning. Oh girl.
Speaker 2:And I think for me that kind of underpinned the lack of understanding that we have as a community. You know you can create a product that's viable, that's effective. I can't speak on her products, but what I will say, that is, the length of somebody's hair doesn't determine the quality of their product.
Speaker 1:That was a time I was wearing my hair short intentionally. I was going to the hair salon and getting it cut into a bob, into a pixie, intentionally. My hair was growing with no issues, you know. So you cannot take that and make it the all-in and say this is not going to work for anyone across the board because your hair isn't, you know, long and it's not. It doesn't look the in the ideal way that people imagine it to be you know that's not real.
Speaker 2:Similarly, you can't take someone who has got beautifully long hair and say that their products is going to do that for you Like Cardi B back to Cardi B, for you Like Cardi B Back to Cardi B.
Speaker 1:I'm really hoping we can get on board one day, you know, cohesively, and be more intent with you know, knowing you know this is all stemmed from biology. It's all stemmed from biology and once you understand and connect there, then you can. The foundation is set and now you can grow from there. You can build on that.
Speaker 2:yeah it's the foundation, the core foundation is biology yeah, next, we're looking at well-being, we're looking at nutrition, we're looking at what are the factors that contribute to the hair growth practice and and am I at an optimum peak for wellness?
Speaker 2:because the body is very intelligent, and this is what I say to people all the time your body is one of the most intelligent machines so you know, if you're deficient in, let's say, iron, or, you know, vitamin d or any of the essential um nutrients that are required for the hair growth process, then it ain't gonna grow your hair like you want to live. But your body sees hair as a non-essential tissue. So it will allocate all of those vitamins to the essential tissues, such as your heart, liver, lungs, eyes, skin, before it starts to prioritize and look at okay, what are the needs of your hair? And then, when you're deficient in those essential nutrients, it takes time to get to an optimum storage level in your body where your system will be like now I'm comfortable enough to start allocating some of these vitamins to the follicles and the hair growth process.
Speaker 2:So it's not just about putting on a cream or this shampoo or this conditioner. It's also about what is going on inside of my body that's going to contribute to my overall well-being, because, essentially, beauty is wellness right. And I think that's the narrative and the conversation that we need to start having. Like we focus so much on external beauty factors that we haven't taken into consideration that actually, once you're well from the inside, that starts to play out in how you look and you feel.
Speaker 1:Yes, for sure, absolutely. If you could look 10 years into the future, what do you hope Nyla says about your journey and this brand?
Speaker 2:That gets me excited. 10 years from now. I want a brand, like I said before, which is all about bridging the gap between wellness and cosmetics. You know, I really see our conversation and our importance being about you know, how can we really maximize wellness opportunities and products and services for black women? Um, we are introducing blood testing soon to our community because we understand that's something that isn't readily available from the gp service um we're looking at supplements.
Speaker 2:We will expand in terms of having that elasticity. We're going to start looking at skincare. We want to start looking at intimate wellness. We want to start looking at um nutrition and, and you know, introducing a more comprehensive range of supplements. But all of that is rooted in what are the needs of my community and my community my tribe is black women. What are the needs of my community and how can, how can we, as a brand, help?
Speaker 2:to meet those needs. So what I want us to be, that wellness hub, that credible resource of information that.
Speaker 1:Let me know when I go to nilas.
Speaker 2:I'm getting truth, honesty, well-researched product, well-researched information, and I can trust in this brand and that that is our goal Absolutely. I love that. Internationalization is also, you know something? That we'll all be doing so. Texas, we've got our eyes on Texas.
Speaker 1:Yes, for sure. I'm definitely going to be promoting to my subscribers in my email and pushing out the word and my people, they trust me, they love me Because they know I operate from integrity and I will not ever mislead them with information that could not truly and genuinely help them. I love that and I have a demographic in Virginia, in Hawaii, in Louisiana, because we're military, so we travel a lot. Oh, wow, yeah, so that's a good thing too for you. Okay, let's see, this is going to be the last question because we have to wrap up. I hate it because I'm enjoying the conversation so much I'm going to have to do a part two.
Speaker 1:Have to do a part two um, what's, uh, oh, what's nyla's favorite product from your um, from the brand yeah, and then um what three words would product?
Speaker 2:she likes the serum okay, uses the serum um she's the flourish hair serum. Um. So she uses that regularly and she's got, you know, very dense hair.
Speaker 1:Her hair's very thick um and she um the spray, the spray, I would say the maximum moisture. The spray, I would say the Maximum Moisture Hair Spray.
Speaker 2:Those are the two she uses daily. And she uses those daily because she wears a lot of protective styles, braids and stuff. So those are the two products that are really good for keeping her hair in optimum condition while she's in braids.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:What would Nyla say about?
Speaker 1:me.
Speaker 2:Three words, three words, three words, um. What would nyla say about me? Three words, three words, I.
Speaker 1:I think she would say that I am committed and driven, and she's called me inspirational and that's so beautiful coming from your daughter, because I feel it's so important for you to be the direct inspiration. There's inspiration everywhere, but for you to be the direct inspiration, it just reassures you that you're doing a great job.
Speaker 2:Yeah, she called me inspirational. I'm so proud of you, mommy. And oh girl don't get me started. And oh girl don't get me started.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that's beautiful, that's it, that is you know yeah, I can't even articulate that feeling.
Speaker 1:I think that's enough. It's really hard for the parents to be the direct inspiration sometimes, depending on how you grew up, so I think that is more than enough to be a direct inspiration from your daughter when there's so many other influences out here that could be influencing her, and you are her direct person that she can really look up to genuinely, and it's her mom of all people. Thank you, I just know we need to wrap up really look up to genuinely, and it's her mom of all people you know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, thank you, I just I know we need to wrap up, but one of the things that I told myself when I embarked on my parenting journey was that I wanted to raise children, to have a childhood they didn't have to heal from. I had to heal from my childhood you know, and repairing childhood you know, and repairing yourself.
Speaker 1:You know, reparent myself in that process.
Speaker 2:You know and have compassion for my caregivers and my mom, understanding that she did her version of what was best, yeah, but for me and how I raised my daughter and my son, it's proactively making sure you don't have to heal from this experience of your childhood.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. I love that so much, that's how I think our bond is formed.
Speaker 1:Mm-hmm. Same here, same here. Yeah, it's so beautiful. I appreciate you also sharing that information as well, because it needs to be heard. Some people are not aware that they are healing from their childhood and some people don't know that they need to focus also on making sure their children don't have to heal from their childhood and that, knowing I can go home and it's a safe space, I can trust it.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yes, for sure I can be me here.
Speaker 2:I'm safe here yeah.
Speaker 1:It's important. The world is already unsafe enough. They need to go there and feel safe, absolutely, yeah. So thank you so much for sharing with us today. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to your journey, your story. I'm inspired. I love leaving inspired. I'm extremely inspired. I can't wait to go purchase my own hair products now. My daughter has locks, so when you mentioned about the spray and the serum, I'm like definitely going to make sure she get that and please let our listeners know how they can find you and stay connected with you and so that they can follow you along your journey.
Speaker 2:Awesome. So our website is NylasNaturalscom. You can read up about my story there, purchase our products and see what we're up to as a brand. Also our social media. We're very active on Instagram, tiktok and Facebook and it's at Nyla underscore.
Speaker 1:UK.
Speaker 2:And you can find us there.
Speaker 1:Okay, thank you so much. I appreciate you. Thank you.
Speaker 2:It's been a pleasure.
Speaker 1:What an incredible conversation. Kamis Davis has shown us the power of turning love, science and passion into a purpose-driven brand. From creating Nylas Naturals for her daughter to empowering textured hair communities worldwide, her story is a true testament to perseverance and vision. If today's episode touched your heart or inspired you, make sure to check out Nylas Naturals and follow Kamisa's journey on social media. And if you're listening right now, don't forget to hit that subscribe button so you never miss another episode of Hair. What I'm Saying Thank you, as always, for tuning in. Keep shining, keep thriving, and I'll catch you next time.