CurlMix, a Black-owned haircare model that was on the point of extinction on the finish of 2025, is already staging a spectacular comeback as the brand new 12 months begins.
Kim Lewis, the model’s founder, is celebrating and thanking her group of supporters after CurlMix met its pressing objective of 20,000 orders earlier than the tip of the 12 months.
“We did it, Joe. We obtained the 20,000 orders to guard CurlMix,” she mentioned whereas talking to the digicam in a latest video on Instagram.
“Thanks a lot for anybody who’s ordered, texted, DMed, shared the video, all of the issues,” she continued. “Some individuals ordered twice, two, thrice. You guys, I’m so grateful to you. Thanks. Thanks. Thanks. Thanks.”
Lewis went on to elucidate that CurlMix — initially launched in Chicago in 2015 as a DIY pure haircare product field that grew considerably after its look on “Shark Tank” bolstered the corporate in 2019 — fell on exhausting instances final 12 months because it struggled to maintain up with rising prices of doing enterprise, tariffs and the financial system. Because of this, Lewis mentioned she needed to downsize from a workforce of 40 to 14 staff earlier than making her plea on social media in November to “Shield CurlMix.”
With the orders fulfilled, she defined she was capable of repay roughly $500,000 in debt, permitting the model to maneuver ahead with much more ease. Lewis mentioned CurlMix was additionally ready so as to add 4 new jobs after downsizing so aggressively and put aside working capital, which can assist the corporate proceed to rebuild via the primary quarter of 2026.
“The marketing campaign additionally reached thousands and thousands and thousands and thousands of individuals. So far more individuals learn about CurlMix than knew about CurlMix earlier than,” she defined. “We added one thing, like, I don’t know, 10,000 new clients.”
Nonetheless, she added, “the exhausting half begins.”
Whereas acknowledging how difficult the previous few weeks of 2025 have been, Lewis famous that she now has to get the model via the remainder of 2026. After reaching 20,000 orders in simply 60 days, she mentioned her 2026 objective is to succeed in 100,000 orders.
“I feel we will do 112 [thousand], what do you guys assume?” she quipped earlier than closing out the video and promising to supply extra updates quickly.
Within the meantime, she requested clients for “persistence” as her workforce works to meet the brand-saving pre-orders of bundles containing conditioners, shampoos, and styling merchandise like gels and mousses.
“Please be affected person with us. It was a going-out-of-business marketing campaign,” she reminded with a chuckle. “And so we’re nonetheless in enterprise, however we nonetheless have a small workforce … So it’s going to take us a short while to get caught up.”
