Check out our interview with the multifaceted entrepreneur Janell Stephens, to find out her inspiration for Camille Rose and how she continues to grow her beauty empire.
OTC: What inspired you to launch Camille Rose and how did you get started? What inspired you to launch Camille Rose and how did you get started?
Janell Stephens: Created initially as a means of curing the eczema of [my] five young children which started on their skin and also resulted in severe dryness of their hair. In a matter of three short years the brand morphed into a multi-million dollar company with legions of fans, throngs of supporting retailers and groundbreaking partnerships that positioned the burgeoning brand as a certified leader in a space that was eager for what Camille Rose had to offer.
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OTC: What are your top selling products and why do you think they are doing so well?
Janell: My hero products are my signature collection. This collection includes everything with a pink label. In this collection there is Curl Love Moisture Milk, Curl Maker, Almond Jai Twisting Butter, Algae Renew Deep Treatment, Sweet Ginger Cleansing Rinse, Curlaide Moisture Butter, Fresh Curl, Mint Condition which is a braid and scalp spray. Just to name a few.
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OTC: How can OTC stores benefit from having your product line in their stores? What suggestions do you have about the store placement of your items?
Janell: Our brand is definitely one of the brands that are created for the culture. I also feel that because I am a textured hair girl, I have a better understanding of what our hair type needs and wants. Placement should definitely be front and center because of our beautiful packaging, it will be an attention grabber.
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OTC: What marketing efforts do you feel have worked really well for your brand and what do you feel sets your brand apart?
Janell: We focus on digital and social marketing along with some grass root marketing. We have been able to get to know our consumers this way and it has been working really well for us.
What sets us apart is that we really know our brand and the space that we are sitting in. We have created a collection of products that are rich in moisture with an infusion of herbs.
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OTC: What changes did you and your team have to make because of the pandemic?
Janell: During the pandemic we had to pivot a lot! Our marketing plan included a ton of in store events as well as taking our beauty kitchen on the road to multiple cities. Because everything was shut down, we had to figure out a way to bring our ideas to social. On our IG page we had more lives than normal. We had guests on our IG lives that included everything from hair events, cooking classes, selfcare classes, yoga, hair tutorials etc.
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OTC: Did you come from an entrepreneurial family?
Janell: Yes I did! A large amount of my family worked for themselves. This is where I get my drive and my place of YES from.
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OTC: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you regarding your business?
Janell: My advice would be to grow at your own pace and try to block out all of the noise and distractions!
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OTC: How do you balance things being a mompreneur?
Janell: I pray daily, workout, order my steps and make sure I take time to stop and acknowledge all of the works that I have done.
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OTC: Can you tell me about the BEAUTÉ NOIR FEST and why it’s important to you?
Janell: It’s a celebration of Black Beauty, Culture and Changemakers. This is a celebration of Juneteenth and what it stands for – Freedom Day. The official Independence Day of Blacks in America. This holiday commemorates the end of slavery —which wasn’t until two years after Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and the. Known to some as the country’s “second Independence Day,” Juneteenth celebrates the freedom of enslaved people in the United States at the end of the Civil War. It is believed that many enslaved people still did not know they were free. As the story goes, some 250,000 enslaved people only learned of their freedom after Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, and announced that the president had issued a proclamation freeing them.
BEAUTÉ NOIR FEST is truly a celebration of Juneteenth and its history and what it means and stands for with regards to freedom of life, economics, education, arts/entertainment, food and the black culture as a whole.
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OTC: What was your inspiration for starting the Janell Ennis Stephens Foundation?
Janell: My goal is to help single moms who are working and taking care of their kids alone. I have 5 kids and I know how hard it is with two parents. Doing it alone can be very hard. I just want to relieve some stress if I can.
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OTC: Is there anything else you would like for our OTC readers to know about your brand?
Janell: We seek to share the purest and warmest joy, happiness, trust and gratitude to each and every person who experiences our products.
