Today we’d like to introduce you to Denn-warren Tafah.
Denn-warren, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve always been entrepreneurial-minded, from cutting grass to selling candy to selling CDs and SnapBacks all through middle school and high school. I mostly did it because I wanted cool clothes and shoes that I didn’t feel like stressing my mom for. I took the responsibility when I was young to be independent. I truly believe if you don’t build your dream, someone else will hire you to build theirs.
Anyways I began my business after I lost my job. I was working for a Chinese restaurant in Conway, Arkansas, where I did everything cleaned, cooked and delivered the food. My boss would take advantage of the fact that I was an immigrant and couldn’t file a complaint against him, so he would mistreat me and accuse me of stealing so I could give him my tips. When I got fired I received my last check which was supposed to be $200 but I only got $84, I took that $84 bought some containers from Amazon, coconuts, aloe Vera, rosemary, vanilla bean from Kroger, got an LLC, created a logo, and started my Hair and beard oil business. Since then, I have sold over 500 products and look to continue to grow. My overall vision is to become the African Shea moisture, a one-stop-shop for men and women’s natural grooming products. The natural aspect of my product comes from my mother and my grandmother.
Growing up in Africa, we used a lot of natural products for medication, healing, etc. I remember being sick and going to multiple hospitals, churches and nothing would work until my grandmother told my mom about mixing aloe Vera with water and letting me drink it. Who knew something so simple would heal me from a sickness that threatened my life. So since then, I’ve had an interest to natural products. All my products have aloe Vera in them. It has so many healing properties for the scalp and hair.
Has it been a smooth road?
No, it hasn’t been a smooth road, it’s very fun when things are going good but it’s also very depressing at times. I see my business like my child if I don’t nourish, take care or feed it, it will die. Also, starting a business is like taking the road less traveled and the road less traveled is always harder. Business is a journey to financial freedom and throughout that journey, you learn and realize a lot about yourself. It’s a journey of self-discovery and self-realization. Your business is just a reflection of who you are, an extension of your being. So if your a disorganized, positive, creative or a lazy person, it will reflect on or in your business. So getting over negative habits and traits has been my biggest struggle. The more I find out about myself, the more I am able to better and upgrade my business. Practically, finances, business is hard to conduct without a lot of resources. You need money to do business.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Tafah Oil story. Tell us more about the business.
We are concerned about the outlook of our customers as we add value to their appearance with the aid of our unique natural oils, conditioners and shampoos. Our natural unisex hair and beard oil functions to moisture our customer’s hair, shine and promote their hair growth. The success of our product comes from the multifariousness of the product, it’s usable by both women and men. A lot of other companies market to your psychological tribe “male and female” to make you build a relationship with their brand, causing gender division and making you spend a lot of money for individual products. At tafahoil we are celebrating love and unity through a product. The idea that a product can bring more intimacy and unity to a relationship isn’t far-fetched. After all a lot of male and female product have the same ingredients in them, they’re just marketed differently. Our Proudest accomplishment is starting with just $84 and selling over 500 products online around the world.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
My overall vision is to become the African Shea moisture, a one-stop-shop for men and women’s natural grooming products.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.tafahoil.com
- Phone: 4693963441
- Email: dw2009@yahoo.com
- Instagram: TafahOil
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Tafahoil/
Image Credit:
Yannick Nzinga
Suggest a story: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
