The curly hair community is a billion-dollar industry. However, there is a lack of resources that provide insight to places or products that best serve them — specifically the Black hair community. With the lack of diversity and resources, Black Dollar Beauty provides a voice for the curly hair community. They are a professional quiz matched, hair product box curated just for you. As one of the only companies on the market that provide resources to the curly hair community, Black Dollar Beauty are trailblazers destined for success. Check out our interview with the founder, Alicia Burgess.

Where are you based?
We are Based In Southern California.

Can you tell us what Black Dollar Beauty is?
Black Dollar Beauty is an online beauty supply and subscription box service that matches customers who have curly hair with the best products for their unique hair types. We highlight Black Owned and All Natural products in our BDBeauty box, which allows for the curl culture to find the best products for them for low prices.

What inspired you to create Black Dollar Beauty?
While watching Killer Mike’s Netflix Series Trigger Warnings, he had an episode where he was trying to buy all Black owned and he had such a hard time. I got the idea to create a system for Black people to easily find Black owned quality items and services; hence, our old name: The Black Dollar. It was not until going deep in that endeavor where I realized the market that Blacks spent the majority of their dollars in is in beauty. So, I pivoted to the community and to my own interests, birthing Black Dollar Beauty. Black women alone spend more than 2.5 billion on just hair products so I thought “why not capture that market?”, while also bring value like no one has done before and circulate the dollar back in the community.

As a young Black business owner, what have been the biggest adversities you’ve faced running your business?
The biggest adversities that I have come across might be different than a Black entrepreneur really taking wind before the pandemic. The only adversity I have found truly is with my product specifically l, because the name is Black Dollar Beauty and we promote Black owned products people often automatically think it is only for Black people. Black Dollar Beauty was made with Black influence for the masses. I wanted to create something that could revolutionize the way we identify Beauty by highlighting an individual’s uniqueness.

How has your business been impacted during this pandemic?
As briefly stated above, the pandemic has brought up a lot of underlying issues which has ultimately brought a lot of people together, including Blacks. That being said, I feel as if there has been this sudden push for support for businesses like mine that give back to the community in all aspects. My business, I feel, has been lucky enough to not boom but retain gradual growth.

As a young and up and coming business, where do you see Black Dollar Beauty in the next 5 years?
In five years I see Black Dollar Beauty being the Amazon of beauty products. We ultimately want to create a way that we are getting a scan of a customers hair to match them up with specific ingredients so they can make a hair profile and automatically know which products will work best for their hair; omitting the two-to- five-year search and hundreds of dollars it typically takes.

Jejune loves that you’ve provided a platform for the curly hair community. How do you decide which brands to affiliate with?
So as of right now, we have a system where we add four new brands every quarter. We often try to find one up and coming Black owned hair brand, we find an all-natural hair brand, a Black owned brand that may be pretty known, and a brand that has neutral products for men as well to add to their BDBEAUTY boxes.

Why is it important for you to include businesses of color in every box?
There are three reasons it is important for us to include Black owned products, Black Dollar Beauty’s mission is to change the narrative by reclaiming our curls. This means we are trying to reclaim our uniqueness by circulating the dollar back into the community in all ways possible. So first, we use Black owned products because it is giving back to an underprivileged community. Second, we carry them because if you are Black and have experience with a bunch of different Black people and you are making products, those products are going to be made with a Black person hair as the main influence; therefore, typically better suited. And the third reason is that I want these Black owners to also take a look at my business and how I am giving back. We give 10% of all proceeds to Social Change Charities here in America; with the main goal of providing money for low-income education.

Why do you think there is a lack of resources and platforms for the curly hair community?
I think there is a lack of resources because, like I have been stressing, there has been no platform created specifically with the Black person’s hair experience as an influence. There are more than 20 different hair types when you take into account porosity, density, and people with multiple textures. But that is not thought about with mainstream brands because their main focus in the past was a straight hair girl and in a way still is. The curly hair community is so diverse you cannot just pack all of our struggles in a Pantene Just For Curls Bottle and expect it to work for everyone.

Being a Black woman, how have you been impacted by the Black Lives Matter Movement?
The movement has made me realize how strong our people can be when we come together. It has shown me that there are even other races out there that do understand and are aware of the plain as day oppressed institutions that have created an unfair advantage for the privileged. It has also made me aware that my business is a stepping stone to a more equal future for my children.

Have you ever experienced discrimination or been treated unfairly because of your skin color?
Most definitely. I feel as if most people of color have. I have been called the n-word, not allowed into events, told I talk too proper for a Black girl. A few things, but when I grew up it is not like my parents told me I should accept that stuff but I should be aware it could happen and how to carry myself when in a heated situation. I have been blessed to have parents that went through the grunt of discrimination to raise a daughter who doesn’t accept ignorance.

Jejune loves that 10% of an order is donated to charity. What non-profit organizations do you donate to? How do you choose them?
Yes, we give 10% back to a new organization after every box shipment. Currently, we are giving to Computers for kids in San Diego to help with supplying kids and families with laptops during the pandemic. We choose every quarter by a suggestion from our customers. We will have a list of about five and send a quiz so they can also participate in the giving.

At Jejune, we emphasize the importance of voting. Why do you think it is so important to vote?
I think it is important to vote because if you are living in a country that pushes freedom and democracy and you are not partaking in the very act that protects that freedom(picking people who are going to regulate everything around you), then what are you even doing. Also, my great-grandmother who lived to be 106 and just passed away did not get to vote until she was in her 60s. She told me straight up that she fought for my right so I should not abuse it.

How are you staying positive during the pandemic?
During this pandemic, I have been really working hard on my business, and buckling down and preparing the best way to bring value. I tend to listen to a motivational video by Les Brown every morning because he says exactly what I feel and pushes me to be the best me I can be every day.

What is your motto in life?
The Worst Thing They Can Say Is No
Strive To Be On Top In Life, Because It Is The Bottom That Is Overcrowded

To learn more about Black Dollar Beauty, please follow them via the below platforms:
Blackdollarbeauty.net
Facebook: @Blackdollarbeauty
Instagram: @Blackdollarbeauty
Twitter: @Blackdollarbdb
LinkedIn: Black Dollar Beauty

Black Dollar Beauty Is A Voice For The Curly Hair Community