My Little Investigation into Amika
Alright, so the other day, I was in the hair care aisle, you know how it is, just staring at the walls of bottles. And Amika’s stuff, it always catches my eye. Super colorful, looks kinda fun. And it popped into my head, “Huh, I wonder if Amika is Black-owned?” I’ve been making more of an effort lately to support Black-owned businesses, especially when it comes to beauty products, ’cause, well, it just feels right to put my money where my mouth is, you know?
So, when I got home, I figured I’d do a little digging. It’s not always straightforward finding this stuff out, but I was curious.
My usual first step for these things? Straight to the internet. Typed in the classic “is amika black owned” into the search bar. You get a bunch of stuff right away, but you gotta sift through it.
Then I thought, okay, let’s go to the source. I went to Amika’s own website. I usually look for an “About Us” page, or “Our Story,” something like that. Sometimes companies are really open about their founders and their background. Sometimes… not so much. Their site had a lot about their philosophy, the ‘all hair is welcome’ vibe, which is cool. But I didn’t immediately see clear info on Black ownership in the way I was looking for.
I also poked around some articles. You know, those listicles that pop up – “Top Black-Owned Hair Brands” and stuff like that. Amika wasn’t really showing up on those specific lists, which was a bit of a hint.
So, what did I find out?
From all the bits and pieces I gathered, it looks like Amika isn’t Black-owned. The information I kept coming across points to its co-founders being Vita Raykhman and Shay Kops. They started it back in, I think, 2007 in Brooklyn. So, not a Black-founded company from what I could tell.
It’s always a bit of a process, trying to track down the real story behind a brand’s ownership if you care about that kind of thing. And honestly, I do. It doesn’t mean the products are bad or anything – lots of people love Amika. But if you’re specifically looking to support Black entrepreneurs with your purchase, this one doesn’t seem to fit that bill.
It’s funny, sometimes you just assume things about a brand based on its marketing or vibe, but you really gotta do a little homework. This whole thing actually reminded me of when I was trying to find out about another brand last year… spent ages on that, too. It’s like a little side hobby now, brand detective work!
Anyway, that was my little journey with Amika. Good to know, right? Just helps with making informed choices, and that’s always a good thing in my book.
