August 2nd 2023.
Monique Rodriguez, founder and CEO of Mielle Organics, recently opened up about her major decision to sell the popular haircare company to P&G Beauty. She referred to the move as “business success” and one she hopes the Black community sees more of.
When asked about what led her to accept the acquisition, Rodriguez spoke in full detail about how faith in herself and her idea for a haircare product business came into focus after losing her son due to a high-risk pregnancy. She turned to all methods to obtain knowledge, such as listening to podcasts, attending seminars, and reading books on the subject, and this hard work turned into an overnight sensation through social media chatter.
“And in turn, that painful situation allowed me to ultimately be led to my purpose to impact and inspire lives all across the world,” Rodriguez expressed. “And the vessel to do so has been my haircare company.”
Since its establishment in 2014, the couple have learned a valuable lesson in the financial tradeoffs of marketing. Mielle Organics was becoming known nationwide, but was failing to turn a profit due to the allocated funding. “That’s why I say people see the glory, but they don’t know that on the back end. As we were trying to get the brand out there and spending big bucks to make sure that Mielle is a household name, our financial books were suffering.”
The company weighed multiple risks over rewards, including turning down an initial offer to be sold in Walmart stores. However, their smart financial assessment and desires for their company’s leadership led to its acquisition by Procter & Gamble in January 2023.
Although the decision made headlines as some wanted the company to stay Black-owned, Rodriguez came to her own conclusion on the matter. “What I want our community to understand is that this is the normal trajectory of business. This is what business success looks like. And this stuff happens all the time in other cultures, other races. The problem with our community is that we don’t see it enough because there are not enough Black entrepreneurs that are getting to the point where they can scale and have acquisitions such as these.”
Rodriguez wants members of the Black community to encourage one another to make weighty business goals before rushing to critique, as she is now creating generational wealth for her family through her deal with Procter and Gamble. She believes this can be seen as a major success and something that is possible for others.
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