Brief
Dawn Myers launches Richualist tool to cut curly‑hair wash time to minutes
The Mint device combines detangling, conditioning and styling in one heated stroke, aiming to simplify wash days for textured hair.
By Felo News Desk · Published
Entrepreneur Dawn Myers announced that her company Richualist’s new Mint tool can reduce the typical hour‑plus wash‑and‑style routine for curly hair to about seven to ten minutes, according to an interview with TechCrunch.
What happened
Myers, who grew up wearing a large afro, recalled being inspired by a "Shark Tank" episode about a curly‑hair product roughly eight years ago. She sketched a prototype on a legal pad, assembled a rough version from parts bought at Ace Hardware and CVS, and entered a startup accelerator where a materials‑science firm, Dow, took interest. The resulting Mint device uses refillable pods that dispense a conditioning gel, which the tool warms slightly before applying, allowing a single stroke to detangle, condition, gel and style hair.
What the report adds
TechCrunch notes that the device’s heating element is intended to make the product easier to spread, and that a travel‑size version is also available. Myers claims the tool can cut shedding and breakage by up to 70% because users no longer need to tug at strands during washing and styling. She also highlighted that Richualist is one of the first Black‑female‑led hardware startups to raise over $1 million in venture funding.
What was said
"It takes around an hour and 20 minutes to wash and style my own hair," Myers told TechCrunch.
"We get that styling time down to about seven to 10 minutes," she added.
"If you think back to slavery, we were mandated to cover our hair. That’s where do‑rags come from. You had to cover your hair. Why? Because our hair was seen as ugly and unkempt and unacceptable," Myers said.
How it came about
Myers said the idea emerged from a perceived gap in the beauty‑hardware market, which she described as "complex, expensive, and just overlooked" for textured hair. After the prototype attracted Dow’s attention, the materials company provided engineering and manufacturing guidance, aligning with its own newly created textured‑hair care unit. Despite the breakthrough, Myers acknowledged the difficulty of securing hardware funding, especially for niche problems.
Key facts
- Richualist's Mint tool can style curly hair in 7‑10 minutes (techcrunch.com)
- The device uses refillable product pods with warming technology (techcrunch.com)
- Myers claims up to 70% reduction in shedding and breakage (techcrunch.com)
- Dow collaborated with Richualist on engineering and manufacturing (techcrunch.com)
- Myers became one of the first 100 Black women to raise over $1 million in venture funding (techcrunch.com)
Sources
- [1] techcrunch.com — originally reported as “Dawn Myers is making it easier to style, detangle, and care for curly hair”
