Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker was better known as Madame CJ Walker, a famous African American entrepreneur. Many people know her as the first African American woman millionaire. She was actually the first female millionaire of any background.
She was born in rural Louisiana. She was orphaned at 7 years old when she was forced to move in with her sister Louvina and her husband who was abusive. Sarah ran away and married Moses McWilliams when she was 14 years old and was widowed by the time she was 20.
Her stressful life and chemicals in the laundry detergent at her job as a washwoman seemed to be taking a toll on her appearance and her hair started to fall out. She tried various products but none worked very well. She had a problem. Then she had a dream where she was inspired to send for products from Africa to make a new ointment. And it worked!
Looking at the market, she realized that there were almost no hair products available for african americans so she decided to fill that void herself! And what a job she did. She became a millionaire, lived in a mansion near the Rockefellers, her company employed 3,000 people. And she became legandary.
BKFK will be running an entrepreneurship challenge starting in April.
Sign up now to get started on your big business ideas.