We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ceata Lash a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ceata thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

I’d been looking into catchy product names and why people remember them. I came up with a few ideas, but none of them were very appealing to me. To be honest, I always come up with my finest ideas when showering or dreaming. I had a dream in which God showed me and gave me the name of the product. PuffCuff was the name. I was overjoyed. It was ideal. I woke up the next morning and told my spouse. He fell in love immediately and didn’t play the devil’s advocate as he normally did. I looked online to check whether someone else was using that name for something else. I only discovered one other instance of the name being used on Instagram. They were utilizing the name for an unrelated product, had a small following and no trademark. I wasted no time in making it my own. After all, it was predetermined.

Ceata, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

When I decided to change my lifestyle and make the transition from relaxed to natural hair, I discovered that it was impossible to find accessories to accommodate the thickness and texture of my hair. Searching in stores and online, I realized that most accessories on the market are designed for straight, thin hair – NOT for my naturally thick, coarse hair! Existing products cinched my hair to its smallest point of resistance, creating “bunny tail hair” (not a good look for a grown woman), hair breakage, damage to the accessory and pure frustration for me!

Ceata Lash holding a PuffCuff
I became determined to find a solution, but it just didn’t exist. As I became more aware of other African American women making the same transition — all with similar hair texture and hairstyles, it became clear we all had the same need for an easy-to-use styling tool that would help us achieve quick looks without stressing our hair. We also needed it to be sanitary, durable and affordable. A little more research revealed that there were others — men and women with curly hair, locs and braids — who were experiencing the same styling woes. It was then that the concept of the PuffCuff was born, but I wouldn’t let myself imagine that I could be the one to invent, manufacture and retail it myself. And, then, inspiration moved in.

In the fall of 2011, I was blessed to have my 99-year-old grandmother come to live with my family and I. She had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure and was close to death. My grandmother was my heart and I loved her dearly. In our quiet moments together; I often wondered, “Did she do everything she wanted to in her long life? Did she pursue all her dreams?” The answer was a resounding and confident, “YES.” She was at total peace in knowing her time was at hand. So I thought, ‘Would I be at peace with how my life turned out if the Lord blessed me to live to her age?” Knowing I might not get 99 years, if I put this idea on the shelf and left it there, I might not have the same kind of peace my grandmother had when death was imminent. I decided I had to at least try. If I failed, it wouldn’t be for a lack of trying. So here I am! PuffCuff LLC was launched in August of 2013. The first PuffCuff was available for purchase in February of 2014.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I had no concept how much it would cost to launch a business. I only knew I needed money to have someone manufacture my PuffCuff tooling. I’m happy I didn’t realize how much money I’d need because I would have talked myself out of it. Traditional banks refused to lend me anything. I didn’t have a savings account set up that I didn’t have to dip into every now and then for day-to-day living expenditures. The SBDC program at the community college where I worked recommended a non-profit lender called Accion, for which I could be eligible for funding. This organization provides start-up finance to underrepresented communities. They offered me my first loan of $16,000, which covered a little over half of the cost of the tooling required to make the PuffCuff. Because I was a freelancer, I was also required to have my husband to sign as a co-signer.. After that I had to use and ruin my good credit score to finance the business —a sad but true and unfair tale.

Have you ever had to pivot?

We are now in the midst of a pivot. The Apple iOS privacy update has dramatically changed how small businesses can utilize digital marketing to reach new customers. As a result, our company’s new customer acquisition is down 50%. Who will willingly consent to be tracked? No one. Even posing the question in that manner is ludicrous. Do you want your phone to ask you if you want me to send you tailored advertisements based on your preferences, or do you want to be tracked? During the pandemic, we fared well because everyone stayed home, letting their hair grow out and shopping online. Because the Apple iOS upgrade has made it impossible for new consumers to find our items, we must return to “the old ways” of reaching new customers and hope for opportunities to get our story in front of significant media outlets.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thepuffcuff.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepuffcuff/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThePuffCuff
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ceataelash/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThePuffCuff
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/puffcuffhairclamp
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/therealceatae/

Image Credits
Luis Contreras, https://www.kapturaelmomento.com/ Drea Nicole, https://www.dreanicole.com/#2