When a group of newly natural girlfriends met up years ago in a Brooklyn, New York apartment after chatting via email about their hair journeys the magic was undeniable. Five women, Tracey Coleman, Melody Henderson, Charisse Higgins, Gia Lowe, and Simone Mair joined together to give birth to the Curly Girl Collective, an event business with a mission of making women with naturally textured hair feel beautiful, celebrated and appreciated.
After hosting several events that quickly captured the attention of the natural hair community they decided to create CurlFest to be the change that was long overdue in the beauty industry.
Six years later after having succesfully hosting CurlFest in New York, the co-founders have brought that magic to Atlanta.
On Saturday, Sept. 21 the festival that celebrates natural hair, self-confidence and empowerment took over Candler Park. Thousands of beautiful Black and brown women with their curls, coils, locs, gathered at the festival to show off their reining glory and their unique fashion style. The event offered attendees an interactive community experience with activations curated by natural hair brands, panel discussions, food vendors, an artisan marketplace, and a variety of music.
We spoke with the five founders of CurlFest about bringing the festival to Atlanta and the future.
“I think what we’re trying to do is give more women a chance to be celebrated, said Tracey Coleman co-founder and marketing director for CurlFest. A lot of women in New York come from nearby states whether it’s Philadelphia, Boston or D.C. Atlanta already has a Mecca of black women. You guys have style, beauty, and hair which is huge here. The AUC is here you have women from Spelman and Clark Atlanta, so I think it was a no brainer. We had to come here and start in what is a hotbed of beauty, culture, and history.“ Click here to continue
