Johnson Products Company (JPC) is a privately held American business based in Chicago, Illinois. It is best known for manufacturing a line of hair care and cosmetic products for African American consumers under the names Afro Sheen and Ultra Sheen. The company was a longtime sponsor of the syndicated US television dance show Soul Train until that program's cancellation.
History
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In 1954, salesman George E. Johnson, Sr., his wife Joan Johnson, and a barber who later left the company formed what would become Johnson Products with a $250 loan.[1][2] The company produced Ultra Wave, a hair relaxer aimed at men that George developed while at Fuller Products, an African American cosmetics company.[1][3] The product was sold in Chicago, Harlem and other African American neighborhoods of New York City to barbers.[3]
Joan repositioned the product in 1957 as Ultra Sheen and marketed it to women.[1][4] The product was aimed at African American women who straightened their hair to eliminate the need to use a hot comb, grease, and frequent trips to the beauty shop.[1][3] By the 1960s had an estimated 80 percent of the black hair-care market and annual sales of $12.6 million by 1970.[1] In 1971, JPC went public and was the first African American owned company to trade on the American Stock Exchange.[1][5]
The company's most well-known product was Afro Sheen for natural hair when afros became popular.[2][4] Marketing for the product featured slogans that encouraged racial pride, as embodied by the "Black is beautiful" movement.[6] These slogans included "Natural Hair hangs out. Beautiful!" and "soul food for the natural."[7] In 1971, JPC began sponsoring Soul Train. The sponsorship helped the program grow from a local show to a nationally syndicated cultural icon, making JPC the first African American company to sponsor a national television program.[3][8] In 1976, annual sales had grown to $40 million and had 500 employees in Chicago and a factory in Nigeria.[9]
In 1989, George and Joan divorced and a part of the divorce settlement, Joan became chairman and principal shareholder while their son Eric G. Johnson, was named chief executive.[10] In 1992, Eric resigned from the company, which was reportedly due to poor relations with Joan.[11][12] Ivax Corp purchased the company in 1993 and merged it with its line of skin care and cosmetic products for black women, Flori Roberts.[4] The sale ended its control by African American investors.[12]
The company was bought by Procter & Gamble in 2004 and its products were marketed as part of the P&G portfolio. In March 2009, a consortium of African-American investment firms bought the company from P&G to reestablish its position as an African-American-owned company.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Genzlinger, Neil (2019-09-10). "Joan Johnson, Whose Company Broke a Racial Barrier, Dies at 89". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b "Johnson's Afro Sheen Blowout Kit for the Natural". National Museum of American History. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b c d Delaney, Paul (1976-06-20). "He's Good to Hair; Hair's Good to Him". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b c "10 Black Business Power Couples In Black History - Page 6 of 10". Black Enterprise. 2015-02-24. Archived from the original on 2020-12-18. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "JOHNSON PRODUCTS TRADING ON AMEX". The New York Times. 1971-01-15. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ Rodriguez, Cheryl (July 2003). "Hair Story: Untangling The Roots of Black Hair in America:Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America". Transforming Anthropology. 11 (2): 64–65. doi:10.1525/tran.2003.11.2.64. ISSN 1051-0559.
- ^ WALKER, SUSANNAH (2000). "Black Is Profitable: The Commodification of the Afro, 1960—1975". Enterprise & Society. 1 (3): 536–564. doi:10.1093/es/1.3.536. ISSN 1467-2227. JSTOR 23699596. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "The Demise of America's Onetime Capital of Black Wealth". POLITICO. Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "Johnson Products Co". www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org. Archived from the original on 2020-02-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ Shapiro, Eben (1989-10-03). "BUSINESS PEOPLE; A Divorce Settlement Forces Out Founder". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ Hicks, Jonathan P. (1992-03-10). "BUSINESS PEOPLE; Another Vacancy at Top Of Johnson Products". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b "JOHNSON PRODUCTS SOLD". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-22.