Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Joy Hankins. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Joy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s kick things off with talking about how you serve the underserved, because in our view this is one of the most important things the small business community does for society – by serving those who the giant corporations ignore, small business helps create a more inclusive and just world for all of us.

When my maternal Grandmother was 11, she and her siblings moved into the home of a woman who attended their church after her mother’s passing. Her father needed to work to support his seven children and fortunately someone they knew was able to step in and give them the love they needed. My paternal grandmother had a distant relationship with the woman who brought her into the world. Raised by family members, she too had the upbringing of a child in foster care. It is because of these two women who helped shape me into the woman I am today that my heart is for this underserved community. Children in foster care, especially those close to aging out of care are the most vulnerable among us. With more children in foster care, than certified caregivers there is an epidemic of children living in minimally adequate circumstances. For a Black child in foster care, they are in this system at disproportionately higher rates, and in addition to familial bonds being broken, they are more likely to suffer the loss of their culture and ties to their identity.

My business The Joy of Curls came from an awareness that Black children in foster care need their culture and identity preserved, so we teach foster and adoptive families how to celebrate culture and how to style textured hair. The Joy of Curls creates curriculum for agencies to support learning for caregivers. We also manufacture hair and skin care products that this underserved community receives on discounts and by donation by using a portion of proceeds to support this cause.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am Joy, a coffee and culture loving, foodie from the mid-west.
I’ve been happily married for almost 20 years now and I am one proud Mama! I taught Spanish for many years because I love children, and about 15 years ago I became a certified foster parent. Being a foster mom and learning about the needs of children in care is what led me launch my business, The Joy of Curls. What started as an educational resource for parents learning about textured hair has blossomed into me creating curriculum for agencies to train foster and adoptive parents on hair and culture. In 2021 I decided to hire a chemist to create the products I was missing in the market: clean, moisturizing, created for multi-use to simplify what’s known as “wash day.” I knew Mom’s like me not only didn’t have the time, but felt overwhelmed by the steps required to nourish textured hair so I created highly concentrated products that effectively improve hair strands in simple steps. One thing I learned by bringing my products to the market, is plant-based ingredients are beneficial to everyone. While I set out to formulate products for textured hair, my diverse customers let me know straight hair transformations are happening too!

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

I am a self-proclaimed soft spoken introvert so the last thing I ever imagined doing is a business pitch! I literally ran from the thought of it, but in the early days of starting my business I enrolled in a “Business Bootcamp” for those just getting their businesses up and running. I did not realize when I enrolled that in order to graduate from the program, you had to participate in a pitch competition at Drake University. I’m sure I would’ve declined! But there I was, fully invested in the program and putting my pitch deck together for our competition. With fear and trembling, I delivered my pitch, careful to follow every point in the rubric. Not expecting anything to happen, I left the competition before the winner was announced because I had an early fight to catch. Much to my shock, I received an email that night letting me know I was the grand prize winner! The confidence I gained through that experience allowed me to continue pitching. I soon raised close to $50,000 in capital from pitching, and it’s made me such a believer that I know coach small business owners on pitching to win.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

This may surprise you, but even though I own a brand I really shy away from the concept of “selling” to my audience. Selling just doesn’t feel authentic to me, but sharing does. Instead of telling you my conditioner is the best on the market and you need to try it, I’d rather share with you what the ingredients can do for you as a part of living a healthy lifestyle. On social media, I show up as me. I’m a wife and a mother first and my business is a family affair. I’ve had moments where I’ve been in the midst of a pop-up and my child gets injured so now we’re off to the hospital. This is life as a mompreneur and I want to show how it really is because it’s not for the weary! Fortunately, my audience enjoys being on this journey with me and they are fully invested in watching the brand grow as my children grow. I show up in social media in the way that is most authentic to me because otherwise, you wouldn’t see me very much! My advice to anyone just starting to build an online presence is to consider the things that naturally occur in your day and find moments to keep the camera rolling. I had a conversation with Emma Grede once, venture capitalist and co-founder or Skims and Good American. She told me viewers are fascinated with founders and their stories and to always find ways to take my customers on the journey of life with me. Following this advice has helped me tremendously as I steadily grow my brand.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thejoyofcurls.shop
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejoyofcurlsbeauty/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thejoyofcurls
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joy-hankins-35ba8b13b?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/ujL5zJbNtIM?feature=shared
• Other: https://stan.store/thejoyofcurls

Image Credits

Lee Chinyama
Whitney Warne