Dream Chaser: Unveiling My Passion and Aspirations
“My personal experience inspired this business concept with consumer identity and the desire for representation.”
My new business venture is a mannequin head company with a creative focus on diverse products. I want to take this time and share my passion for this project as I genuinely want to impact my vision and creative development positively.
My commitment and passion for my business idea stem from my childhood fascination with Barbie dolls. I've always loved the Barbie brand and have grown greater respect for their Fashionistas line that promotes diversity and inclusion. I'm a doll enthusiast to the core. I've been a loyal and avid Barbie fan since I was first gifted my Christie doll as a little girl. My favorite doll growing up was Teen Nikki because I identified with her the most. I joined the Barbie Collector club not fully knowing what it all entailed as a child, but I was always blown away by the signature collections featured in the Barbie catalogs. My favorite was the Bob Mackie collection. The dolls and designs were absolutely gorgeous! I subscribed to the idea of pretend play and had my parents supporting my early hobby of Barbie doll collecting along with the dollhouses and accessories. I think dolls are fascinating because they look like us, and you can project your dreams on them, your wants, your desires, your losses, whatever they are, and the dolls can mirror them back. This is something that never escaped me, and I still collect Barbie dolls to this day, but I no longer play with them. I collect limited editions and enjoy creating a beautiful display in my home. My daughters have the luxury of playing with the Barbie Fashionistas dolls that I once didn't have, and I love watching them explore their imaginations. I was too hyped when they launched this line in 2016, revealing various skin tones, body types, hair textures, face sculpts with different features, and the fashions!! I could go on all day, but I digress.
Years ago, I wanted to design dolls similar to what the Barbie Fashionistas line offers and black-owned toy companies like Fresh Dolls and Healthy Roots Dolls. I no longer considered the idea because I felt these toy brands fulfilled the need for diverse and relatable dolls. Those ideas eventually translated to mannequins, as I've trained to use them as muses throughout art school. I always have admired mannequins of all types and, I grew an appreciation for them after studying the human figure and aesthetic.
Lately, I realized there aren't accurate representations of Black female mannequin heads, let alone full-body mannequins, in the industry. The rise of the COVID-19 pandemic encouraged me to seek alternative solutions to protect my natural hair, hence purchasing human hair wigs. I no longer had to get my hair done routinely due to mandatory lockdowns. As my wig collection grew, I needed to find mannequin heads to store my wigs for maintenance. And, in typical Tarra fashion, I needed a beautiful display! After searching locally and online, I realized that I couldn't find a mannequin head that looked like me, and some appeared grayish and dated. The search led me to makeup artists and wig makers who shared the same experience and have found themselves having to "fix-up" or repaint the same mannequins offered on the market to appeal to their customers.
Needless to say, my personal experience inspired this business concept with consumer identity and the desire for representation. The retail experience has an emotional aspect, and I want to contribute to relatability and representation in the beauty and hair industry through a socially conscious company. Businesses are also looking to incorporate mannequins in ways we never thought of using before, as consumers long for interaction. My goal is to fill a more focused need in the mannequin manufacturing industry by taking product display to another level initially with realistic and relatable mannequin heads with beautiful Afrocentric features and a range of brown shades. This type of product is missing and in demand in the beauty and hair industry for consumers, stylists, wig makers, beauty store suppliers, and beauty instructors. The African American mannequin heads for sale give a sense of belonging to certain prospective consumers/demographic. It's important to spread awareness of black consumer identity. Marketing reports indicate that black consumers long to feel authentically represented in advertising campaigns, especially black women. Black female consumers outpace other consumer groups in many spending categories, notably personal care and hair products, but feel unappreciated by top brands. Major brands are now recognizing the void and lack of diversity across different industries, and I've noted and identified an opportunity in the mannequin production industry. My products will look more like the customers buying from beauty suppliers, cosmetology students and instructors, makeup artists, and wig makers in the beauty and hair sector. If you perform an online search, most mannequins are dated and come with an ash-like brown color and features that lack authenticity.
