SPRING 2020 BOX PARTNER

This season, the female founders behind the Spring Box are diving deep into the pivotal moments in their lives that helped them get to where they are today.

Lotte Davis, founder and CEO of AG Hair, dives into her incredible story on how starting AG Hair lead her to create One Girl Can, a nonprofit that aims to end racial and gender injustice in Africa.

Growing up in South Africa during apartheid, I was acutely aware of racial discrimination and basic human rights. My family, not wanting to be a part of an oppressive society, moved to Canada when I was young. But my understanding of inequality and injustice stuck with me as it became clear to me that women were considered inferior to men. But I knew in order to make a real difference, I needed to become successful first.

In 1989, with my husband John, we founded AG Hair. To this day it remains the only manufacturer of professional hair care products in Canada. John had a background in hairdressing and mine was in marketing and graphic design. We had a $5000 loan, a contract manufacturer and bottles and labels that we filled in the basement of our North Vancouver home.

We instantly saw the opportunity to create better-performing products using an abundance of meticulously selected ingredients. John began developing proprietary formulas and operations quickly expanded to a full-scale manufacturing facility.

By 2008, AG Hair had grown tremendously. We had a large team of talented people and were selling products across Canada, the U.S., Australia and Taiwan. My two daughters had finished university and were becoming capable young adults themselves. I knew that it was time to go back to Africa and fulfill my dream of empowering girls and helping stop gender-based injustice. I began building schools in some of the poorest regions of Kenya and Uganda.

In 2013, our organization became an NGO, One Girl Can, and we expanded our scope to include scholarships for girls to secondary school and university, as well as a comprehensive mentoring and coaching program. I believe success for One Girl Can is realized only when these students begin to earn a living and I am personally invested in each girl to ensure she achieves this goal.

One Girl Can has become a sustainable entity that supports thousands of girls with educational opportunities that will begin to shift gender inequality. We have built or fully renovated 108 buildings at ten all-girl schools in Kenya and Uganda and mentored more than 20,000 students. Through our fundraising efforts, we have awarded high school scholarships to 537 girls plus 313 for those going on to university.

AG Hair has been the largest contributor to One Girl Can. A portion of every bottle sold by AG Hair is donated to One Girl Can. At AG, we believe that giving back is the reward for our success.

John and I are still actively involved in AG Hair, but I am grateful for my decision in 2008 to pursue my dream of helping end racial and gender injustice in Africa. I believe in the ability of women to become leaders, no matter where in the world they come from. There is still a long way to go, but I am committed to continuing to provide opportunities for education and empower girls, who in turn, will help define the future of Africa.

xx, Lotte Davis

Want another inspiring read? This founder talks about how she used her Ph.D. in psychology to create a beauty brand.