MYAVANA, the hair care technology company founded by Candace Victoria Mitchell, is bringing its personalized approach to hair care to Africa, with the launch of its first brick-and-mortar shop, the MYAVANA Hair Lab, in Uganda.
Mitchell launched MYAVANA with a $1,000 investment, driven by a desire to improve hair health for Black women. “Originally, my ‘why’ was really to provide a more personalized approach for people to really be seen and heard in the beauty industry,” Mitchell said in an interview. She noted the lack of products tailored to women of color and textured hair. “I feel that hair is deeply connected to our purpose and identity, especially in Black culture. So my ‘why’ was just deeply rooted in people understanding who they are and also having the technology that could cater to our personalized journeys.”
MYAVANA’s technology includes HairAI, which provides detailed hair analysis and offers personalized recommendations based on hair type and texture. The HairAI system assesses hair conditions and creates customized care plans with tailored products, ingredients, and regimens. The company also developed a hardware device, the MYAVANA HairScope™, for stylists, which identifies scalp issues like product build-up or breakage.
At the MYAVANA Hair Lab in Uganda, customers will receive one-on-one consultations with hair experts. They will also have access to HairAI analysis, hair care education, and personalized product recommendations. The store will carry premium brands and products, with a focus on Black-owned businesses. These will include brands like Moisture Love, Texture Crush, Afro Unicorn, U Go Girl Hair, and LushUs Hair.
Mitchell emphasized her goal of empowering Black-owned businesses in the beauty industry. “When you look at the history of product development, marketing, and distribution in the beauty industry, African-American brands and businesses have lost equity and ownership over the past decades. We want to change that,” Mitchell stated in a news release. “We’re putting black-owned hair care brands front and center and providing them with strategic opportunities to foster community engagement and drastically increase global distribution.”
