March 25, 2022
Husband and Wife Duo Set To Pitch ‘Young King Hair Care’ on Shark Tank
Atlanta-based couple Cora and Stefan Miller will be appearing on NBC’s Shark Tank in hopes of continuing the growth of their Young King Hair Care brand.
BLACK ENTERPRISE previously reported that Young King Hair Care was the first hair care line that accommodates Black and Brown boys with hair types from 3A to 4C, and received a big boost within its first year. The brand was one of 10 emerging beauty brands selected to participate in Target’s 2020 Takeoff Beauty Accelerator Program. A total of 450 brands were selected. Young King Hair Care landed in 1,200 Target stores and online.
Walmart soon followed suit. These wins allowed the hair care brand to exceed their forecasted revenue and earn 544% year-over-year growth in 2021. In addition, the Millers are proud to have increased shelf space in Walmart and Target.
“The Sharks were very complimentary regarding the business we built,” Cora told AfroTech. “They actually even called my husband a ‘brilliant marketer,’ which as our CMO, whose professional background is all-around marketing, made him feel so proud.”
The business reeled in even more wins last year. Beauty Independent reported the brand raised $1.6 million in a seed round led by SheaMoisture co-founder Richelieu Dennis’s venture capital firm New Voices Fund. This funding places Cora in a small pool of Black women, particularly one out of nearly 100 to do so, as per Afro Tech.
The brand’s exponential growth caught the attention of a Shark Tank casting agent. After numerous interviews and meetings with the production team, the Millers felt prepared to “pitch to the Sharks to share these wins, our plans for scaling, and why we’d be great partners.”
“Having such validation from the Sharks is so meaningful. Not everyone leaves with a positive experience in the Tank like we did,” Cora said. “This assured us that we were built to do this and that our vision of the company is certainly within our reach.”
After the taping, Cora recalled: “Of course, they poked holes in certain areas of the business, but overall it felt so validating to hear them appreciate what we are building for Black and Brown young men. This type of encouragement for us to keep pushing forward only motivates us, even more, to keep grinding and building our business for the culture.”