The singer first teased ‘Cécred’ in an early February Instagram campaign, writing, “How many of ya’ll knew my first job was sweeping hair in my mama’s salon?”
Her caption continued, “I was exposed to so many different kinds of entrepreneurial women in her salon. I saw firsthand how the ways we nurture and celebrate hair can directly impact our souls. I watched her heal and be of service to so many women. Having learned so much on my hair journey, I’ve always dreamed of carrying on her legacy.”
While announcing the launch on the official website, the ‘Renaissance’ singer said that she wanted everyone to have the ‘freedom to express their hair in ways that (made) them feel good’.
“My entire life and career, I’ve worn my hair in so many different ways: natural, flat-ironed, braids, colored, weaves, wigs. I want everyone to have the freedom to express their hair in ways that make them feel good, so I began by creating the essentials for hair and scalp health,” she said.
The 32-time Grammy winner credits early lessons in entrepreneurship to her mother, Tina Knowles who, in the 1980s, ran a hair salon out of their home in Houston and later opened a standalone space called ‘Headliners’.
In fact, as a kid, Beyoncé’s first job was sweeping hair at the salon – one of her mom’s clients, an opera singer, inspired her to be a performer, and eventually, Beyoncé–with her band Destiny’s Child–got her start performing for customers at the salon.
While speaking to Essence Magazine in a rare interview, Beyoncé detailed the making of the product, adding that it was led by ‘heart and passion’.
“This business was led by heart and passion, not by a business plan,” she said. “Every hair texture deserves testing, research, and development. Black women in general are the last to be included in testing. We are often prescribed things based on studies we were not included in.”
“It’s bigger than me, or hair. Now we have created something that celebrates healthy hair for all women, including us.”
Her mother Tina Knowles, who also is the company’s vice chair, also helped develop the products, drawing on her experience running a salon. “Back then there was no one product that mixed high-tech hair care with the nourishing moisturizers and oils so vital to textured or color-treated hair, so I mixed the two,” Knowles told Essence.”
“I was told Black women’s hair could not have colour and perm at the same time. I proved that theory wrong. Now Cécred has the latest science with tried-and-true rituals passed down from generations before,” she added.
An initial eight-piece collection called Foundation is already available through cecred.com, with prices ranging from $20 (Ksh. 3,000) to $52 (Ksh. 7,600).
The initial lineup includes restorative products including a clarifying shampoo and scalp scrub in one, a hair mask, and a rose-scented fermented rice treatment meant to be mixed in a dedicated “Ritual Shaking Vessel.”
This is not Beyoncé’s first foray into entrepreneurship – she and her mother briefly had a fashion line called House of Deréon in the early 2000s, and she launched the athleisure brand Ivy Park in 2016.
She also has her own management and production company, Parkwood Entertainment, which produces her concerts and documentaries.
