ABOUT US
Midnight Roots is a brand like no other but before we show you what sets us apart from all other
luxury & cosmetics brands, prepare yourself for a new experience, as we show you the significance of our ethnically diverse African heritage and prestige British excellence in our dedication to natural African scalp, hair and beauty.
How well do you know your black African ancestral history?
Have you ever embraced your roots?
Join our ever-growing tribe as we explore our diverse African heritage and the true pride of having a background so deeply rooted in our craft that you will be immersed into a rare scientific cultural understanding.
Before the invasion of the colonialists, hair played momentous roles and even attributed to fertility,
believing that thick, long and clean, neat hair indicated one’s ability to bear healthy offspring. Hair was the most elevated part of the body which signified closeness to the divine. Hairstyles also helped in classifying people according to religion, age, marital status and even wealth. The superstitions and beliefs surrounding hair were also fully embraced with hair dressers being close relatives as they believed that it was a bad omen for an enemy to get hold of one strand of hair.
When the white European colonists came to Africa however, they were appalled by the culture,
customs and beliefs and in an attempt to erase our way of life, the following happened;
● They considered common negroid 4c hair deplorable so colonizers shaved off the hair of the slaves with the intent of erasing their cultural identity.
● Incapable of taking care of their hair, negroe hair became tangled and knotted once it grew back.
● This conditioned black people in Africa to be more controlled plus it made them inferior,
unfortunately this idea was passed on to their children and future generations.
● The male slaves worked the fields with shaved heads.
● Women were expected to have their hair covered with rough fabrics because Europeans
considered it unappealing, ugly and offensive.
● The house slaves wore wigs that resembled their slave owner’s hair, which was popular in this era.
● Black women with kinky hair worked in the fields, yet those with looser hair curls which bared a
resemblance to Euro Caucasian-like hair were made to work indoors. In short, good hair was long and lacking in kinks and frizz, and bad hair was African hair in its purest form.
● In the 1700 and late 1800, as a result of slavery, African hair styles could not be maintained.
Therefore slave women used butter, bacon grease and lamp oil like kerosene as hair conditioners
and cleansers.
● The introduction of chemical hair straighteners and skin lighteners are advertised by white
companies, which suggested that black people are to change their physical appearance to be
socially accepted by the prevailing population.
● In the 1880’s metal combs became available due to the invention by the French. The hot comb is
still used to this day to temporarily straighten kinky hair to acquire a Eurocentric look.
● This era saw black women such as Madame C.J Walker and Anna Turbo Malone who launched
their own hair straightening companies. They contributed and encouraged the agenda of self-
altering among the black community amongst descendants of African children of slavery in the west and even as far as Europe in most recent decades.
The evolution of black hair has been a way for Europeans to erase our rich culture by convincing us
that we are unattractive unless we live as they would like us to. This somewhat changed and it was
during the period of 1964 and 1966, that the Black Power Movement was a result of the biggest black hair revolution since Africans arrived in America. True liberation of black people called out for this civil rights movement which included key leaders like; Malcom X, Angela Davis and
Medgar Evers.
This era was marked with the African hair signifying black identity at large, which carried such cultural weight that changed the perspective throughout the diaspora. This ushered in the adoption of wearing African clothing and adopting African names which showed a visible connection to their African ancestors.
The Black Power Movement had started to lose its momentum by 1971. This was due to internal
misinterpretations and misunderstandings. For instance, many of those from the older generations
detested change. They either experienced slavery or were the children of slaves, so they had a fixed mind-set that straight hair is better than afro hair.
Texturizing, relaxing, weaves and straightening our hair became such a norm for us that we forgot that hair was meant to tell a story.
What makes us different?
Well, we let you tell your own story however you like it whenever and wherever. How do we do that? We give you the best natural clinical and therapeutic cosmetics and we are home to the one and only naturally handcrafted hair growth enhancement formula; H.G.E. We are dedicated to your personal journey in reclaiming your true standard of African beauty, by ensuring we deliver a world class range of luxury products specifically innovated for the black African women throughout the diaspora.
Our visionary, founder and CEO Mr. Ackeem Henry has not only made sure that you, our esteemed
customers, receive true African British excellence but also embrace your true roots and curl patterns with products liberated from GMOs, parabens, silicones and sulphates. The best part is, we have gone above and beyond to ensure that we put the African culture, colour and heritage in everything we do. Truth be told, it has not been easy, we started this journey back in 2017 and though it has not always been sunshine, it has been worth it.
True revelation came from realising that all black women of full african ethnicity have had a rough time with their history as we have been taught to hate ourselves and feel inadequate. As most companies and brands over time have only dealt with Caucasian type of hair, it was no surprise that we wanted to work on a project that would be satisfactory not only to us as a brand but for our people as well.
What do you stand to gain?
If we stayed here and told you word by word what you stand to gain, it would take us all day. But we
can give you a general feel of what we are about, and what we guarantee you will love.
1. Family. We are a united tribe deeply rooted in our craft. We are by black people for black people
with no discrimination, prejudice or malice. We assure you that we create our products to deliver true luxury and our services are even better as we aim to make you feel welcome and at home. You are free to explore your roots with us in your corner.
2. Natural cosmetics and therapeutics. All our products are 100% natural, safe to use and are
therapeutic on the primarily the scalp and also hair. There are no side effects as we have handcrafted our formulas to cater to negroid scalp types, considering the 3 main reduction of hair growth factors. After years of research, we have perfected our cosmetic to not only meet your beauty requirements but also delivering natural clinical therapeutic results as well.
3. Love. Simply put, we are advocating for all black African women young and old to love your hair no matter how kinky, porous, long or short.
After all, who said you can’t have it all? As we continue to expand
beyond our African British borders, we welcome you to the family and ask you to feel at home in our ever growing tribe.