![]() Union very much feels she has a responsibility to bring other people along because of her platform, privilege, and fame, and the opportunity that comes with them all. I work in an industry that can be lucrative, but if you weren’t right with your money by saving and paying your taxes, then you may be having a hard time.” ![]() For hairstylists right now, it’s super hard. “I’m happy that at this point in my career, I’m able to not only have ownership but to also have a voice in the process. “None of them were Black-owned, by the way, though that’s not a negative thing,” he adds. Even though he’s worked with stars like Union, Danielle Brooks, and Alicia Keys over the last 15 years in his career, he has never been offered equity and ownership in any of his past collaborations with other beauty companies. We’re leading with ingredients that are not as well-known as others, but with education and time, we can inform the consumers about another way of getting to their hair goals.” And when something’s not working, we’re not going to push it just because we can sell it. ![]() “We’re now in the position to trust our instincts,” she says. It's one of the hardest decision-making skills for entrepreneurs, especially during a pandemic when scarcity not only feels, but is very real.īut when Union decided to make herself and Sims the majority owners-thus making the company Black-owned-she centered Black voices. The prescience that could guide the pair to make resolute product decisions-i.e., safe ingredients at a low cost-for the betterment of community came from years of training their gut in business and in life. We had all those ingredients in the kitchen sink, so to speak, but we had to make sure they could all come together to work in one product.” “Biotin, creatin, avocado and coconut oils, aloe, and rice oil complex. “There were certain ingredients we were using as we were trying to grow my hair back in 20,” Union says. When Union and Sims announced the line was making a comeback last June, they had already been in the lab for almost eight months trying different combinations. This wasn’t an overnight mission, and no beauty launch really is. “We had to make sure the products were consistently great, so we had to tweak along the way.” “We asked family and friends-my little sister was a huge part of it, thanks, Tray!-and we took meticulous notes on how it worked for their different textures over time,” Union says. The new formulation-testing process was also a family (and framily) affair, as Union and Sims wanted to test on a cross-section of textures. We didn’t think about ourselves first-we first thought of our consumers and making sure they have access to what has worked for Gabrielle’s personal hair journey that I’ve been a part of for over 10 years now.” “When you’re in the position to help a community that’s in need and a community that should have access to salon-worthy products and experiences at an affordable price, you should do so. “We both agreed that we didn’t want to overprice this to line our pockets-neither of us really need to do that,” Sims says. Price is paramount for Union and Sims, with Flawless products ranging from $4 to $10 (the first iteration of the line ranged from $19 to $29). “I wanted to wait until my hair grew back, but they felt we had a certain window.” So she wore wigs and hair pieces throughout the line’s promotional period, all styled and installed by Sims. “Launching a line called Flawless when I felt anything but felt fraudulent and inauthentic,” she says. ![]() Union was also in the middle of her IVF journey when she launched the brand in 2017, which she says ravaged her hair and caused bald spots. “The problem with only being a Black- fronted company is that the voices and the needs of Black women are not always centered.” That’s why it was so vital for her and Sims to have not just a seat-but the seats-at the table. “It was not a Black-owned company,” Union tells Glamour of its initial launch. Most notably that the line is now co-owned by Union and her longtime hairstylist Larry Sims. While the brand’s big relaunch this month proved the fanfare is still there for Flawless, a couple things are different now. Then suddenly, seemingly overnight, the products vanished from shelves and its social media went dark. Bloggers and editors went wild for it, and it was poised to rake in millions. If you remember back to early 2017-when the word C orona only referred to a beer and celebrity beauty brands will still mostly a rarity-Union had first announced she was launching her own hair brand.
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