inHer Glam’s editor, Eva, had the opportunity to speak with creators Drs. Tiffani Bailey Lash and Tashni- Ann Dubroy of Tea and Honey Blends haircare line. They met while pursuing their doctoral degrees at North Carolina State University and through a common vision birthed Tea and Honey Blends. Check out the informative interview below!
Eva: How did you come up with the idea for Tea and Honey Blends haircare line?
Tiffani: We both had a passion for personal care products period. We had the know how of how to formulate the product. We started thinking about what we wanted, what we liked, what were some of the problems with some of the products that were out; a lot of products were really heavy. We came up with a product line, finished grad school and decided we wanted to share these formulations with the world. We decided to take it to the consumer market and December of 2009 is when we launched.
Eva: I was looking at your website and see you have products for a variety of hair types; relaxed, natural.
Tiffani: Yes. I have natural hair, but wear it straight so I needed a product for that. Tashni has relaxed hair, but wears her hair curly. It kind of depends on how you wear your hair and what products you will use to achieve whatever desired style you have.
Eva: What would you say is your most popular product?
Tashni: It’s definitely the hair catalyst system. It consists of our tea tree shampoo, tea tree conditioner and leave-in. I believe it’s number one, because people are interested in a set, they’re interested in a system; so when used together you can get the effect that you want. Tea tree is very well known for its ability to alleviate dry itchy scalp; it’s an issue that a lot of African American women have. It moves rather quickly because there are so many women who need that added moisture that our tea tree shampoo, conditioner and leave-in supply.
Eva: We have this sort of natural hair movement going on at the moment. What are both of your thoughts on it and the fact that hair companies are making all of these products targeted to natural hair women?
Tashni: It’s a beautiful way to go. Natural hair has always been around, it didn’t disappear. With the advent of social media you have groups that click and that people want to belong to, so I think that’s why you hear the buzz so much. I think its kind of the advent of independence for a lot women because now it’s like; accept me for my kinky curly hair, accept me for my locs, you know, me just being me. It’s really a movement that symbolizes so much more. Look at the response women with natural hair have evoked; they have now forced companies to address their needs.
Eva: I know, I have natural hair so its like an influx of products and you’re spending so much money trying to test out what will work or what won’t work. But it’s a good thing because now they’re making products that are for us, for our hair.
Tashni: I know, I know and now they’re beginning to recognize that natural hair women don’t need oily stuff. We said, why is it that every time you go into the ethnic aisle it’s greasy? Why is it that we were limited to all of these chemicals when there is so much more that you can do with chemistry? We wanted to introduce range, what we could do creatively, whatever women’s’ needs were; we wanted to create chemistry and turn those ideas into a product that was in a bottle.
Tiffani: With the bloggers and YouTube channels showing you how to maneuver your natural hair; I mean, a lot of people just didn’t know how to do it. That’s the way small business can get the really good products out there so we appreciate venues where our voices can be heard.
Eva: And what advice would you give someone who’s trying to start a business or get their product out there.
Tashni: Do your homework. If you’re going to start a product line for the first time you have to do your marketing research, identify what your product is, what need does it satisfy, is there something like it out there already, why should a customer buy your product over someone else’s and understand all of the facets of business before launching. We’re not afraid to speak to our competitors to a certain level and ask how they do it and you’d be surprised by how many people would give you advice. Not having so much pride that you can’t reach out to someone else to ask, can you help me? You also must be good to your teammates. We’re careful to solicit as well as implement their ideas.
Eva: And where can people buy Tea and Honey Blends?
Tiffani: You can definitely purchase online and we have some select retail locations currently.
Eva: Also where can people find you online?
Tashni: If you go to our website, teaandhoneyblends.com, you can find our Facebook page, Tea and Honey Blends. Our twitter is @thbhaircare.
Tiffani and Tashni encourage you to share your experiences with Tea and Honey Blends haircare products. If you’ve tried their products tell us what you thought through YouTube, blogs and other social media outlets.
Have you tried Tea and Honey blends? What were your thoughts on the interview and what was discussed about the product, as well as its creators? Let us know below and on the Facebook page!
Be on the look out for Eva’s review of Tea and Honey Blends tea tree shampoo!
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