Black-owned hair care company Mielle Organics announced that Berkshire Partners is investing in Mielle to support its growth plans and to help further its mission to educate, empower and excite Mielle’s customers and the broader hair care community.
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Co-founders Monique and Melvin Rodriguez will continue to be majority owners and maintain control of the company.
A portion of Berkshire’s investment will be used to support Mielle’s More Than a Strand program, which is core to the company’s mission to strengthen the bond between mothers, daughters and young girls across the United States, the Caribbean and Africa.
Berkshire typically makes equity investments of $100 million to $1 billion in size. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. William Blair & Company, L.L.C., served as the exclusive financial advisor to Mielle and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP served as legal counsel.
Monique Rodriguez said, "We are excited to forge this historic partnership with Berkshire Partners. Their investment reinforces our mission for community development and growth of Mielle’s vision of global expansion. We are also thrilled to continue this journey with New Voices. They believed in Mielle from the beginning and have truly been a great partner. These are the types of steps it takes to create generational wealth and jobs for people of color. We are truly grateful for their partnership.”
Melvin Rodriguez said, "We started this business in our garage, sparked by Monique’s passion to build a worldwide community of women. During the past seven years, we’ve been able to expand our product lines, increase our distribution and invest in our community; we are excited to continue innovating and developing new products, grow awareness of Mielle, and reach even more consumers to give them products that they deserve.”
Marni Payne, managing director at Berkshire Partners, said: "We are honored to invest behind Monique and Melvin and in Mielle. Mielle is an extraordinary business, but importantly has a larger purpose: to excite, empower and serve the community. Monique and Melvin have built this business from the ground up; we share their vision and are excited to support them as they continue their journey of growth and community.”
