We were lucky to catch up with Sarah-Sophia Swaray recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah-Sophia, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

When I was fourteen, my younger sister and I used chemicals to relax our hair. The negative effects of the process were instantly noticeable; the chemicals damaged our hair and burned our scalps. After this experience, we became paranoid about taking care of our hair and discovering styling methods that were not harmful. During our research we discovered the healing nature of oils and butters and studied them fervently. Once I was confident in my knowledge of the various ingredients, I started developing my own mixtures. I went on to share my hair butter with friends and family who were also part of the natural hair community.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I founded Alika because I wanted to provide my community with natural products that would improve the overall health of their hair and skin. I believe that the natural hair community deserves products that nurture their hair rather than leaving them with extensive damage. As my sisters and I have natural hair, this cause is personal to me. Creating a product that serves the needs of my community is beyond fulfilling, even more so when I consider the history of natural hair and how those who bear it have faced mockery and discrimination for centuries despite its beauty and versatility.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

I started making hair butter when a friend of mine gave me 1kg of shea butter. She was also interested in taking care of her hair by using natural products such as black soap and aloe vera. With what she gave me, I was able to make my first mixture. At first, I tried using raw shea butter in my hair, but the scent was unbearable. So, I did my research and looked for ways to tone down the scent while boosting the benefits. After going through various resources, I understood how to mix my shea butter with oils that would improve the health of my hair. As I went through this process, I began to understand the need for a product to feel and smell good while enhancing the health of my hair.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

When I first started making my hair butter, I couldn’t always access the supplies I needed. I had to recycle honey jars to have something to put my mixture in. Sometimes the electricity would shut down as I was whipping the butter and ingredients were not consistently available. Despite all of this, I would not let power outages, ingredient shortages or lack of containers stop me. I would go ahead with making my mixture even when I didn’t have all the oils I needed. I asked customers to return their jars so that I could reuse them, and I would wake up early to get ahead of the power outages. I didn’t have to do any of this, but I had made up my mind that making hair butter was something that my community could benefit from, and, for that reason, I was willing to take on any obstacle that was likely to prevent me from consistently making hair butter for my customers.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @alika.sc

Image Credits
alika.sc, Ruth-Anne Swaray, Anzenna Warren, Sarah-Sophia Swaray