“Less than 2 percent of Black founders ever raised more than a million dollars. We did it in under three weeks,” said celebrity colorist Kadi Lee, standing alongside business partner Myka Harris.
In 2019 the duo opened their holistic beauty atelier Highbrow Hippie — a wellness sanctuary meets hair salon on Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice, Calif. — with the help of their community and clients, which include Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kristin Davis and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Five years later, they’ve launched their first products thanks to supporters: a hair supplement line that features a $118 ingestible supporting metabolic, hormonal and immune health and an $88 water-based growth serum that balances pH of the scalp.
There were about 20 investors in the room at their launch party at Gjelina on Thursday night — including Lela Becker of Mother Denim, Vicky Tsai of Tatcha, Davis and the Duchess of Sussex.
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“We have come a long way,” Lee told the duchess, while shouting out her support during a speech. They met through hairstylist Serge Normant, who also came out. “We have grown together. I adore you.”
“I was using box dye until I met you,” the duchess yelled back to laughs. “Let’s be honest.”
“Kadi has been doing my hair since, well, forever, I don’t even know how long,” said Davis. Highbrow Hippie is her first investment, she revealed. “I’ve just been incredibly impressed with her work ethic, her morals, the way she does things, the way she treats her employees, how hard she works to do things the correct way,” she said of Lee.
The products have been four years in the making, with ingredients sourced globally and ethically. Next, they’ll introduce a hair mask, as well as an herbal tea. Everything is sold direct-to-consumer at highbrowhippie.com.
“We have one main chemist who does most of our topicals, and then we worked with two different formulators for our ingestible,” Lee explained.
“It takes a long time,” Harris said of launching goods. Later she added, “In retrospect, I realize that this is the perfect time for this to be happening. After the election, we’re all looking for a little brightness, community, which is how we were able to build this brand.”
