Mielle Organics: Monique Rodriguez

Monique Rodriguez built a multimillion dollar hair and skincare brand, Mielle Organics, by experimenting with natural and organic ingredients that worked for women with textured hair. Her social media followers wanted to buy her homemade products, which led to the creation of her brand. Despite facing challenges associated with being a black female founder, Monique persevered and her brand eventually caught the eye of Proctor & Gamble, becoming the first black female founded beauty brand in their portfolio. Monique's upbringing, watching her mom work hard and aspire for a better life, instilled a drive in her to pursue her dreams and achieve success.

Monique Rodriguez's childhood experiences instilled a drive for a better life and a passion for beauty, leading her to pursue entrepreneurship in the beauty industry. Despite being encouraged to pursue nursing, Monique's desire to build an empire inspired her to create a hair care brand, Mielle Organics, which has experienced tremendous success. Her journey serves as a reminder that with determination and hard work, anyone can achieve their dreams and take charge of their own destiny.

Monique Rodriguez was inspired to pursue nursing as a career due to the lack of representation of successful black women entrepreneurs in her community. Despite enjoying the thrill of serving and helping people in her nursing job, she felt burnt out due to the long hours and taxing schedule. However, the experience helped her realize that nursing wasn't her true calling, and she eventually shifted her focus towards her passion for hair care and founded her own successful business. The lack of representation and support for women of color in entrepreneurship inspired her to create a brand that caters specifically to their hair needs.

Monique Rodriguez, the founder of Mielle Organics, had always had a spirit of independence and a visionary mindset. Before becoming a nurse, she and her husband had gotten sucked into direct sales, but never found success. Despite this, she continued to pursue her dreams, trying her hand at Mary Kay and other direct sales businesses. Meanwhile, her husband worked at UPS and eventually became a project engineer. Rodriguez's determination and drive to find success eventually led her to found her own haircare line, Mielle Organics, which has grown into a multi-million dollar business.

Monique Rodriguez, an introverted person by nature, applied her nursing skills of making people comfortable to build rapport and connect with people in her business. Challenging herself out of her comfort zone gave her growth opportunities. She attempted to start her own nursing agency, did the paperwork, but got discouraged and gave up when she couldn't establish contracts with hospitals. She realized she couldn't be what she couldn't see and thought entrepreneurship was for white men. However, she did not let that thought limit her and she took a chance by starting Mielle Organics, which has become a multi-million dollar business.

Monique Rodriguez's path to entrepreneurship was plagued by negative thoughts of doubt and fear, but she persevered and kept trying new things. When faced with setbacks, she adapted and found new paths, like transitioning to being a home health nurse after her daughter was born prematurely and dropping out of a nursing program. Even a traumatic experience in 2013, where she lost her son, became a turning point in her life as it inspired her to create her own haircare brand. Her journey is a testament to the power of resilience and determination in pursuing one's dreams.

Monique Rodriguez’s personal tragedy pushed her to find a higher purpose. Her faith helped her navigate through the loss of her son and become a stronger person. It inspired her to start her own hair company and share her knowledge online. Through her hair company, she empowers women to embrace their natural hair and feel confident in their own skin. Her journey is a testament to the power of overcoming hardships and finding a greater purpose in life.

Monique Rodriguez found solace in finding a routine that kept her busy after losing her son. She turned to social media to share haircare tips and unknowingly stumbled upon a potential business. Her joy in helping other women with their hair challenges led her to creating a product line. She started by sharing the concoction recipes on social media and was amazed by the positive responses. Her business grew from there, with the formulation of products that could be marketed and sold. Monique's journey showcases the power of finding joy in creativity and the unexpected paths it can lead to.

Monique Rodriguez's journey from experimenting with hair care recipes to becoming a successful entrepreneur is an inspiring example of how passion and self-awareness can lead to success. Despite having a small following on social media, she was able to build a brand and grow her business by seeking out resources and learning from experts. Her ability to identify her weaknesses and seek help in those areas was crucial. Additionally, her husband's encouragement and support played a significant role in her success. By combining her passion with a willingness to learn and the right support system, Monique was able to turn her hobby into a successful business.

Starting a successful business often requires taking a different path than originally planned. Monique Rodriguez's journey with mayel began with a desire to open a hair salon, but after receiving advice to focus on creating products, she pivoted to create an oil focused on scalp health. By showcasing the benefits of the product through personal videos and finding a chemist to help with formula creation, she was able to successfully launch her business. Taking advice and being open to new ideas, as well as utilizing personal strengths and resources, can lead to unexpected success in entrepreneurship.

Monique Rodriguez, the founder of Mielle Organics, started her business by saving money from her nursing job and carefully budgeting it for website development, inventory, and other necessary expenses. She built momentum and curiosity by taking her followers on the journey of creating her product and involving them in the process by asking for their feedback. This helped her understand their problems and needs, allowing her to create products that provided solutions. Despite not having millions of followers like some celebrity entrepreneurs, Monique was able to successfully launch her brand and grow a loyal customer base.

When building a business, focus on the benefits of your product and show the results. Success doesn't necessarily mean having lots of money instantly and can actually pose challenges when it comes to scaling. Monique Rodriguez and her partner bootstrapped their hair care company, generating a decent profit by selling direct to consumers without a middleman. They invested profits into more product and marketing to help them expand. Despite having no connections and being up against established companies, they were able to build a successful business based on word of mouth marketing and a focus on their high-quality product.

Monique Rodriguez grew her natural hair care products company, Mielle Organics, by attending trade shows and networking. By putting effort into their displays and showing passion for their brand, they attracted potential customers and partners. Rodriguez also recognized the importance of influencers in her marketing strategy and invested $3,000 per post in her first influencer. Learning to overcome her introversion, she was able to approach people and make connections to scale her business. Attending trade shows and networking events can be beneficial for small businesses looking to gain exposure and build connections.

Monique Rodriguez's success with her natural hair product line, Myel Organics, is largely attributed to her networking skills. She took a chance and approached a reality TV star at an event, ultimately leading to a contract and her first influencer. She also landed a deal with Sally Beauty, a massive retail chain, through word of mouth and social media buzz. Despite not realizing how hard it was to get into retail, Rodriguez's perseverance and determination paid off. Networking and building relationships can open many doors, but it's important to take advantage of opportunities and follow through with leads.

Monique Rodriguez's fear of rejection and procrastination almost prevented her from pursuing a valuable business opportunity, but her extroverted and persistent husband took the lead in making the call. This ultimately led to a meeting with a national chain, Sally's Beauty, where they impressed by presenting their analytics. Despite having their young children with them, they secured a deal to test their products in 95 stores. This serves as a reminder that sometimes, taking a leap of faith and pushing past our fears and doubts can lead to incredible opportunities and growth for our businesses.

Scaling a business requires a significant amount of capital to meet the demands of increased supply and demand. Going into retail is an expensive venture that involves paying for marketing and other support services. To launch into Sally Beauty, Monique Rodriguez needed a loan of $250,000 that her husband's friend provided after being impressed with their website's analytics. It's important to note that being in 95 stores doesn't necessarily guarantee success, as you're competing against thousands of other products, including those with larger budgets who can pay to block your product from the shelves. It's essential to have reliable suppliers and payment terms to ensure you can meet demands while growing your business.

Mielle Organics experienced rapid growth within six months after launching in 95 stores and listing every store on their website. Social media played a vital role in the growth, as the company announced the launch on Instagram, generating chaos in the 3000 stores they eventually landed in. Mielle Organics hit the $1 million sales mark in the first year and grew to $2.7 million in the second year. The company's success attracted big retailers like Target. Melvin eventually quit his corporate job to focus on building the brand. Mielle Organics' success shows the importance of social media and the potential of meeting the demand for products in underserved markets.

Monique Rodriguez, founder of Mielle Organics, shares valuable insights on being self-aware and knowing when to say no to opportunities, especially those that may not align with your business goals. She emphasizes the importance of timing and being aware of where you are in your business journey. When Walmart initially reached out to her company, she turned them down because they were not yet ready to keep up with their demands. She also discusses the challenges of finding and hiring the right people, including reaching out to mentors and industry connections like Rich Lou Dennis. Despite already being successful with products in over a hundred thousand stores, Mielle Organics received significant funding from Dennis's fund in 2020.

Managing a business well is crucial to its success, regardless of its apparent success on the surface. Understanding profit and loss statements, monitoring expenses, and having good financial advisors are crucial to prevent failure. Monique Rodriguez's experience with her business shows that having a successful brand does not always correspond to profitability. The pandemic that hit during the time of her business investment had a positive effect on her business due to people's increased interest in self-care, leading to four times growth. It is essential to have contingency plans and adapt quickly to unforeseen circumstances to stay afloat.

During a difficult time when stores were closed, Monique Rodriguez kept her foot on the gas pedal and pivoted towards increasing content to reach her audience on their phones. She emphasized the importance of maintaining beauty and confidence, even while at home. This resulted in significant interest from venture capital and private equity firms, leading to a series A financing of over $100 million. Monique learned that the best time to raise money is when you don't need it, which allowed her to dictate the terms of the investment. Despite speaking to over 60 interested firms, the process was exhausting, highlighting the need for resilience and perseverance in entrepreneurship.

Monique Rodriguez, the founder of Mayel, talks about how her black-owned company's profitability and growth attracted the attention of big firms. Partnering with Berkshire, ultimately led them to be acquired by Procter & Gamble. Her vision of creating a legacy led to the decision to partner with a major global company such as P&G, while still maintaining the independence of her brand. The partnership has given access to unlimited resources, advanced technology, marketing, media, and innovation. The acquisition proves to be a significant achievement for a venture that began on Instagram in 2014.

Belief in oneself and trust in the process are key to success, but hard work and effort must accompany them. Monique Rodriguez, founder of a company later acquired by P&G, believes that fate and luck play a role, but that faith and hard work are equally important. She encourages stepping out of one's comfort zone, networking, and challenging oneself to match effort with divine guidance. As co-creators of our lives, it's essential to recognize that success requires both trust and work.