Courtney Adeleye Reportedly Makes History As The First Black Individual To Have Two Products Shelved By A Major Retailer – AfroTech
Courtney Adeleye is making history during Women’s History Month.
The Mane Choice
The former registered nurse has become a serial entrepreneur, finding success in the haircare space. In 2013, she founded The Mane Choice, a natural haircare brand she believed addressed a market gap.
“There were not many brands that used natural ingredients and specialized in healthy hair growth at the same time,” Adeleye told Entrepreneur. “So, I started mixing my own products at home and infused them with vitamins, nutrients, and healthy ingredients.”
Adeleye also went online to discuss her haircare journey, which led to interest from viewers who wanted to purchase her products. She used $500 from her savings to create deep conditioning treatments, and within three years of operating from her home, she generated $10 million in sales, as AFROTECH™ previously reported.
Acquisition
By 2019, the venture, which carries shampoos, conditioners, and hair growth vitamins, had generated $100 million in sales, per Entrepreneur. That year, Adeleye sold The Mane Choice to MAV Beauty Brands for $61.5 million, per WWD.
Watch & Sea Beauty
Adeleye’s next brainchild is Watch & Sea Beauty. It is both a hair care and skin care brand, with products made from plant-based and ocean-derived ingredients such as seaweed, algae, and kelp, according to its LinkedIn page.
Watch & Sea Beauty launched in more than 2,500 CVS stores across the U.S., according to Success Is Us. In the latest update, its retail footprint has expanded to Walmart, per Shine My Crown. The Mane Choice is also available at the retailer.
Making History
Adeleye is reportedly the first Black individual to have two brands shelved with a major retailer, per Shine My Crown.
“This month is Women’s History Month, and history has once again been made. And we can scroll over here to my first product that I created, which was The Mane Choice. I don’t own it no more, but I made it, and it’s still on the shelf along with Watch & Sea,” Adeleye expressed in a video captured at Walmart and shared on Instagram. “Not only has it not been done by an African-American woman, it’s never been done by [an] African-American person.”
Watch & Sea Beauty is also available for purchase at Target and H-E-B, according to the brand’s Instagram page.
