George E. Johnson didn't just change the beauty industry. He changed what Black entrepreneurship looked like in America.
Alongside his wife Joan Johnson, this hair care pioneer created space in a market the industry dismissed as too niche. At the height of the Black Power movement, Johnson Products Company became the first Black-owned business to trade on the American Stock Exchange. His advertising campaigns, featured on Soul Train, showed positive images of Black people in professional careers and loving relationships at a time when mainstream advertising refused to. Decades later, his community-conscious efforts shine through his obituaries.
