December is here, and I know that many of us have already started looking and shopping for gifts for our loved ones. Chances are, someone on your gift list may have natural hair, so why not get them something to help them take care of their kinks, curls or coils? I always get requests to help create packages for someone's favourite naturalista around this time of year, so or 2021, I'll be referring them to Hub for Natural Hair. But what is Hub for Natural Hair? I'll let Chantelle Novoa, the mastermind behind HNH break it down.
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| Chantelle Novoa |
Tell me about you: age, occupation
I am 23 years old, a recent graduate of The UWI and the Founder/ Owner/ Manager of Hub for Natural Hair. Born in Trinidad, raised in Tobago from ages 2 to 18, my home is in Tobago along with my mom and 2 of 4 siblings.
What has your natural hair journey been like?
It’s been a rollercoaster. My mom is a black woman with a 4c hair texture and my dad a white man with a 1b hair texture, making me mixed with a 3c hair texture. My hair journey seemed to be nothing short of pure craziness and many tears till I was about 16 years old, in lower 6 with a very random big chop which I did at home in my bedroom with a kitchen scissors. Before that, my hair journey entailed my mom, who could not do my hair and sent me to the hairdresser every other Saturday and my cousins who actually knew how to comb and braid hair. They really hooked a girl up with the styles and taught me how to braid and comb my own hair.
I got my 1st relaxer at 9 years, never bone straight but relaxed just enough to be “manageable” and only redone every 6 months up until my 1st big chop. My big chop at 16 was essentially my journey to really learning about my hair, unfortunately, at 19 I had what some may say an identity crisis and no longer loved my natural hair. I wanted my hair bone straight and more “manageable” because it “suited me better” so, I got it relaxed again. This phase only lasted 11 months when one morning I called my hairdresser and asked her to squeeze me in for a big chop, I was ready to love the real me again. I’ve never looked back since and hopefully never again.
I am now 3 years natural and in love with my hair and the journey of trying new products, learning what actually works for me and having the best self-care Sundays with my wash days. I really fell in love with my hair and its beauty so much so that I started making and posting hair care routines and style tutorials to my social media platforms which, to my surprise, grew me into a hair care social media influencer. Brands recognized me, persons wanted my advice and I wanted to be able to do more, this is how my company, Hub for Natural Hair was born.
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| December's HNH Box |
Falling in love with my natural hair and other women wanting tips and tricks from me about my natural hair journey definitely played a big role in the inspiration to begin HNH but what really sealed the deal for me was the relationship I had with aunt. She has 4c hair and will often asked me to come over and comb her hair and every time I did, she’d always have a new product from different hair care brands for us to try. This really got me more inquisitive about hair care brands that actually formulated products for women of afro descent. She also began to purchase a foreign based monthly makeup subscription box and the idea for my company clicked. I wanted to provide the people of Trinidad and Tobago with a monthly natural hair care subscription box. I seemed perfect for me.
Break it down for us, what's the cost, how many products do you get? Is shipping included?
The monthly subscription service starts at $350 TTD for 1 month and goes to $3,840 TTD for 12 months with no additional cost for shipping within Trinidad and Tobago. In each monthly subscription box, you are guaranteed 5 full sized natural hair care items, this includes products, tools, and accessories. Subscription plans include 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months and can be purchased via our website www.MyNaturalHairHub.com or via our DM on Instagram @hubfornaturalhair. Persons can also create their own customized box or purchase individual items which we have in stock. We do our very best to curate subscriptions packages which are of good quality and cost effective to our clients.
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| December's Premium HNH Box which retails at $400 |
What has been your greatest challenge in doing it thus far?
My greatest challenge thus far would be having the patience and faith in my company that it will be all I want it to be in time to come.
You know I'm all about support local, how have you incorporated local brands into the subscription?
I also believe in supporting local and decided that from our very 1st month of operations each subscription box we curate at HNH will include at least 1 local item to help bring awareness and support that brand. We have really stumbled upon some excellent local gems through our operations.
What's next for Hub for Natural Hair?
The next step is hopefully international shipping as we believe that we’ve got our twin islands covered.
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