At just 9 years old, Zoe Oli is already behind a fledgling business that’s hoping to make a change for young Black girls around the country.
When she looked at the toys she had, Zoe also noticed the dolls didn’t have hair that matched hers, either.
Courtesy Evana and Zoe Oli
“I asked [my mom], why doesn’t the doll have hair that looks like mine?” she recalls. “We should have dolls that have curls and braids, so other girls can see themselves and their dolls and feel beautiful.”
“I told her I wanted to make dolls that have curls and braids, and I wanted to start a company,” Zoe added.
Evana says hearing her daughter’s concerns was an eye-opening experience.
“It was such an awful feeling,” she says. “What mother wants to hear their daughter doesn’t like their hair, doesn’t like what they look like naturally. And so, that really hurt me.”
“I sprung into action and I just was trying my best to do everything possible, to just make her feel beautiful because she is beautiful,” she continued.
Now three years later, Beautiful Curly Me has expanded to providing books, face masks and clothing.
Through a recent campaign, theGift-a-Doll initiative, the company donated 10 percent of all their proceeds to charities that focus on girls, according to their website. Next, they’re aiming to donate 5,000 dolls and books this year.
“You are beautiful and you are smart,” Zoe says of what she hopes young girls around the country remember. “You can do anything you put your mind to.”
source: people.com
