Beauty Of 5: Meet Wakati, The Newest Line Catered Specifically To 4C Hair

Source: Wakati / Kao

There is a new hair-care brand on the market that prides itself on offering optimal moisture for natural textured hair. The creators of it stand by their products’ ability to do that because they took their time — eight years of research and development — to get everything right.

Wakati, the latest offering but first line catered to Black beauty buyers from Kao Corp., launched four products in January: a Water Activated Advanced Conditioner ($11.99 for 8 oz., $18.99 for 16 oz.), a Sulfate-Free Shampoo ($11.99), the Oil-Infused Cream ($11.99) and the Re-Activating Conditioning Mist ($11.99). All are currently available at Target and its online site, Walgreens and its site, Walmart.com, and in May, Rite Aid. The Advanced Conditioner, though, is the first product in the collection and a must-have that addresses tangled coils, difficulty gaining curl alignment, and difficulty maintaining curl alignment (it’s already sold out on Walmart’s site). The end result is a formula that prevents tangling, offers moisture and slip to each hair strand, and leaves consistent curl bundles once hair has fully dried. The brand says it’s the first and only patented conditioner of its kind.

“We knew we had a stellar formula, one that would deliver against the needs of modern women who embrace the natural hair movement,” says Kenya Foy, U.S. Marketing for Wakati. “For an audience traditionally overlooked by mainstream brands/products, we asked ourselves how we could create a product collection that would truly enhance the lives of our consumers and decided the best way was to go to the source – consumers with highly textured hair.”

They didn’t only seek out input from consumers in the development of their formula, though. They also worked with business students at an HBCU, Florida A&M, on ideation, marketing, and packaging design.

We talked with Foy to learn more about Wakati, the process to create it, and asked point blank period what makes it so special. Here’s what was shared.

Source: Wakati / Kao

Eight years ago when the concept for Wakati was being worked on, there were a lot less hair lines on the market dedicated to 4C hair. Things have changed and a lot more brands have prioritized this group, whether the products really work well or not. What would you say sets Wakati apart?

What sets Wakati apart is a similar philosophy to all the brands that fall under the Kao USA umbrella – the mission to be closest to our consumers is our number one priority. We knew in order to truly deliver a product that would meet the needs and wants of the 4C consumer, we had to build it from the ground up with their input and guidance throughout the entire process.

Source: Wakati / Kao

A shampoo, conditioner and leave-in are great and common first product launches for burgeoning hair lines. Tell us more about the Re-Activating Conditioning Mist because that is an interesting pick in a first lineup.

This is an example of the result of working so closely with the 4C community. We know the natural texture consumer has different wash-day cycles and there is a need to keep their curls and coils properly conditioned, moisturized and detangled for optimum styling. This was a true unmet need in the market. We wanted to create something that easily fits into the consumer’s routine by offering a mist that will re-activate the conditioning she receives from using our Water-Activated Advanced Conditioner. The Re-Activating Conditioning Mist was designed to be used as a leave-in conditioning mist to restore moisture, bounce and shine to your coils so that you can keep your styles longer.

Source: Wakati / Kao

Why was it important to collaborate with FAMU marketing students to come up with the look and concept? Did they play a part in helping to test and improve the formula when necessary?

In collaboration with Florida Agriculture and Mechanical University (FAMU), our team worked with the school’s business students to tackle consumer challenges and develop brand elements that would ultimately help birth the Wakati brand. Yes, they were involved in many aspects of developing this brand from packaging design, marketing plans, distribution guidance, and gaining product feedback. We will continue collaborating with FAMU and plan to expand to other HBCUs in the future to redefine and refine what beauty truly is.

Source: Wakati / Kao

You may have touched on this in the first question, but for those with 4C hair, how does this line of products, through the ingredients, truly provide nourishment and care that they can’t seem to find elsewhere?

The Wakati collection is the solution that transforms the hair care routine of those with natural hair textures. The blend of ingredients, some proprietary, provide benefits such as complete high slip coverage, water-activated coil alignment, coil stabilization, moisturization, the list goes on and on. Infused with natural oils, the formulas truly perform to leave coils soft and more manageable.

Source: Wakati / Kao

What sort of products do you see coming next for Wakati?

There is so much more in store for this brand. The initial collection provides a great base for our audiences to play with and build a strong foundation for their hair care and styling routines. But we’re having a lot of fun and we also know there are different nuances, uses, needs, forms that can be introduced to provide even more options to discover. Only Wakati will tell. (Wakati means “time” in Swahili).