Hair Care Tycoon John Paul DeJoria Invests in ‘Curly’ Company
Billionaire hair care and tequila mogul John Paul DeJoria of Austin, Texas, is a new investor in the NaturallyCurly Network, a company whose social networking and e-commerce sites cater to consumers and professionals interested in wavy, curly and kinky hair.
DeJoria is one of the contributors to a new $1.2 million round of venture capital for NaturallyCurly. The Austin, Texas-based company says it will spend the money on acquisitions, infrastructure improvements and other projects, including a new smartphone app.
NaturallyCurly’s websites exceed 1 million unique visitors each month. Sites under the NaturallyCurly umbrella include NaturallyCurly.com, CurlStylist.com, CurlMart.com and CurlyNikki.com.
DeJoria told the Austin American-Statesman that he thinks the company has “a great future.”
“Curly hair represents almost half of the hair in the nation, and to be able to have a spot to go to that addresses those needs is really, really a necessity. That’s why I thought, ‘Wow, once people find out about it and it starts growing more and more — and they are doing pretty good now — that's a good thing,’” DeJoria said.
DeJoria is co-founder and CEO of John Paul Mitchell Systems Inc., a Beverly Hills, Calif.-based provider of Paul Mitchell hair care products. He also is co-founder of Las Vegas-based The Patrón Spirits Co., which produces premium tequila. Combined, the two companies generate roughly $2 billion in annual sales. DeJoria’s net worth is estimated at more than $4 billion.
In an interview with radio host Robert Reiss, DeJoria offered this advice to entrepreneurs:
“Whatever business you’re in, make sure the quality of your product is so good that people will want to reorder or do business with you again. This way you have sustainability, even though you may not have any money for advertising.”
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