As a young bi-racial girl growing up in a mostly white neighborhood, I struggled deeply wondering whether my curly hair was beautiful, and truly, whether or not I was beautiful.

I would slick my hair back with gel to get it as straight as possible. I never wanted to wear it down,  and I had my mom cut it in hopes that it would be less curly (it only made it curlier). I begged my parents to let me straighten it. They wouldn’t allow it

As I got older, I began to understand that just because my hair was “bigger” and “more textured” than straight hair, it was still beautiful because it was part of me. I learned not only embrace my curls, but to love them. I learned to love me as me.

This fueled my love for hair and my mission to ensure that every curly girl can feel the same way. Curly is Beautiful. You are beautiful just as you are.

Over time, I realized that people of all hair types and ethnicities struggle to embrace their hair or other parts of their being. This realization was the catalyst behind JAYA.

Our mission is to ensure that people of all beauty types feel beautiful, strong, capable, and empowered. Furthermore, we at JAYA want to create pathways for each of you to help empower others, for that is truly when total self-love occurs.

With love,
Mal