A small, Black owned company is announcing the launch of Stretchy Clipz, a product innovation for those with sensitive scalps to detangle their hair pain-free.
“We are trying to change the landscape for natural hair girls who are considered tenderheaded and have suffered in silence,” says Co-Founder Jilea Hemmings. “This will help so many people with sensitive scalps.”
Stretchy Clipz is unlike any detangling comb or brush on the market, in that it actually holds the hair for you, allowing you to use both hands to detangle your hair. It features a unique design that contains two clips connected by an elastic cord, that grip on to hair easily and painlessly. This can cut detangling time in half and can help prevent hair breakage.
Stretchy Clipz was created by a loving father with his daughter in mind. “It would take me 10-12 hours to do my daughter’s hair,” Jilea says. “She was terrified and crying. My husband would be trying to help me. The only thing that gave her some form of relief was when he would hold her hair tight. He said we have to find something that will provide a very tight grip in order to diffuse pain away from the scalp.”
The husband and wife searched the market, but found the issue was not sufficiently addressed by any existing product. There was no tool on the market whose sole purpose was to remove the pain associated with detangling and styling hair. So they invented it themselves. Jilea says, “Since inventing Stretchy Clipz, hair detangling is no longer a dreaded chore in our house.”
There’s currently a patent pending for the detangling clip technology. “We filed the patent under all our children’s names, and the children are participating in manufacturing and sales, making this a true family affair!”
Each member of the family holds the title Co-Founder. Jamie is “The Inventor,” daughter Anika (9) is “Head Cryer,” son Omari (11) is “The Talker,” son Jabari (12) is “The Number Cruncher,” and mother Jilea is “The O.G. Cryer.”
Jilea and Jamie have been featured in media outlets including Black Enterprise for their prior entrepreneurial ventures, including Greenie Tots, Best Tyme, Leaf Tyme and Green Nyle. They were also semi-finalists for Shark Tank.
The family is aiming for Stretchy Clipz to be more than a product. It needs to be a movement. That’s why they’re soliciting tenderheaded people to share their stories. They’ve started a hashtag, #TenderHeadsMatter, on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. They’re preparing to launch a podcast to discuss how tenderheaded people view their hair and how the condition makes them feel. “You start to develop a non-love for your hair.” Jilea says, “When in fact, your hair is beautiful. It’s who you are. You just have to have a solution to help you manage your hair better. That’s what Stretchy Clipz is for.”
