Oh, the dreaded struggle to find the right hair stylist who is familiar with Black women's texture. Are we right, fam? For many of us, a trip to the hair salon is more than a task on our to-do list — it's a sanctuary, a mecca, and frankly, a place to go when we just want to feel brand new. But let's be real, a hair salon is also an experience of hits-or-misses, where the L's sometimes outweigh the wins.
How many times have you plopped into a chair, spun around to meet the reflection of a white stylist in the mirror, and left looking worse than when you arrived? Well, no more, sis! By downloading the beauty app, Swivel, we Black Queens can discover the best hairstylists who actually know how to work with our hair types.
Photo: Swivel
Co-founders, Jihan Thompson and Jennifer Lambert, created the app to ease the hair salon selection process for Black women. "Sometimes you get lucky with your 11 hours of Yelp research," Lambert told The New York Times. "But we're trying to streamline that process."
There may be hundreds of beauty booking apps out in the digital world, but what makes Swivel stand out from the pack is its commitment to service the Black community. “Outside of the Black community or Black women, people haven’t taken a second to think about Black women’s hair — to even consider if we have unique hair needs,” Lambert revealed to The New York Times “The light-bulb moment occurs when we tell people that beauty schools simply don’t train stylists on Black hair.” By answering a series of hair-related questions, the app then connects users with a curated list of stylists and salons in Washington D.C., New York, Chicago, and soon plans to expand to Los Angeles and more cities. Similar to how you would choose a service at any salon — haircut, braiding, or styling — with the tap of a button you select a stylist, select a date and a time, and BOOM, you're booked!
Photo: Swivel
Whether your hair is curly, kinky, straight, in locs, or relaxed, Swivel will direct you to list of salons capable of meeting your needs. And for that — *insert praying hands emoji* — we thank the Hair Goddesses.
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