Hey curlies! So I am soon going to post a vlog and haul from the Natural Star Expo that I attended in Charlotte, but I also wanted to type out some of my thoughts on the event here. I didn't want to add all this to the vlog because 1) I lost the cord to my mike for voice overs and 2) the vlog was already long anyways! :)
So this was the first year that this event occurred. I was fortunate enough to meet the founder of the event when my friend and myself were just walking around, and she was super nice! Overall I had fun networking- I met lots of people at the event and I need to bring business cards if I go to another one of these.
The event ran from the morning into the afternoon, but my friend and I arrived about noon. The event was very organized; we were handed a schedule when we arrived. The venue was gorgeous and so was the set up for the event, which you can see more of in the vlog. There were lots of stands from what seemed like local vendors and small businesses with a handful "bigger names" mixed in. For that reason I didn't go crazy and buy a bunch of products, since I hadn't heard of any before.
During the event there was always a supplementary activity going on besides the general shopping. While I was there there was a singer, keynote speaker, a makeup demo, and a natural hair lesson. I went to "Natural Hair 101." I wont say much, but let's just say the stylist arrived kind of late. She had some good stuff to say, but I wish she had focused less on heat styles and "taming natural hair" as she put it. She did show some interesting styles for type 4 hair with pipe cleaners and popsicle sticks. Also I was probably just bored because it was "Natural Hair 101"; I'd love to see a hairstylist do a lesson on a more advanced topic.
As a side note, I found myself to be one of a handful of other Caucasian women at the expo. Now this doesn't bother me, but it makes me think about what the phrase "natural hair" means. Because for me personally, I think that includes all women that wear their hair without using heat or chemicals to change the hair texture.
So should companies in the natural hair market try to appeal to a broader spectrum of not just type 4 girls (kinky coily), but also type 3 and 2 (curly and wavy)? Are they losing business or should they stay in more of a niche market? I started this debate with a few online friends of mine, and we came to the conclusion that companies should be more inclusive in advertising to other races and hair textures. But also the consumers would have to make this change too, by creating their own meetups appealing to a wider range of women, contacting the companies, etc. What do you think? Let me know down below in the comments.
Overall this was a really fun event and if I'm in the Charlotte area and this happens again I will definitely go back. I feel like Charlotte deserves an expo or a convention with more "big" name vendors though, since it definitely has the population for that event to be successful. And I would love to see a hairstylist like April Couse Walker or Joy from JoyfullyCurly.com, who have a different approach to natural hair, at the expo.
Sarah @:-)
*Photos in this post were taken by my friend Tyler (@color_character on instagram).
 |
| lil ol me |
So this was the first year that this event occurred. I was fortunate enough to meet the founder of the event when my friend and myself were just walking around, and she was super nice! Overall I had fun networking- I met lots of people at the event and I need to bring business cards if I go to another one of these.
 |
| my friend Tyler |
During the event there was always a supplementary activity going on besides the general shopping. While I was there there was a singer, keynote speaker, a makeup demo, and a natural hair lesson. I went to "Natural Hair 101." I wont say much, but let's just say the stylist arrived kind of late. She had some good stuff to say, but I wish she had focused less on heat styles and "taming natural hair" as she put it. She did show some interesting styles for type 4 hair with pipe cleaners and popsicle sticks. Also I was probably just bored because it was "Natural Hair 101"; I'd love to see a hairstylist do a lesson on a more advanced topic.
As a side note, I found myself to be one of a handful of other Caucasian women at the expo. Now this doesn't bother me, but it makes me think about what the phrase "natural hair" means. Because for me personally, I think that includes all women that wear their hair without using heat or chemicals to change the hair texture.
So should companies in the natural hair market try to appeal to a broader spectrum of not just type 4 girls (kinky coily), but also type 3 and 2 (curly and wavy)? Are they losing business or should they stay in more of a niche market? I started this debate with a few online friends of mine, and we came to the conclusion that companies should be more inclusive in advertising to other races and hair textures. But also the consumers would have to make this change too, by creating their own meetups appealing to a wider range of women, contacting the companies, etc. What do you think? Let me know down below in the comments.
Sarah @:-)
*Photos in this post were taken by my friend Tyler (@color_character on instagram).
Videos:
