Meet Joy Hankins

We recently connected with Joy Hankins and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Joy , really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

My mother named me Joy and from the time I was a little girl, she was very intentional in making me feel as though “joy” is something I deserve in my life. I’ve always loved children, so when I became a teacher I was happy, but I realized it didn’t set my soul on fire. What really intrigued me were two things that didn’t seem related at all. I had a passion for hairstyling, natural curls especially. I loved finding the right products for friends and family and seeing their reactions as they fell in love with their natural hair. I also felt an incredible urge to be involved in the foster care community. I wanted to be a foster parent, but it was more than that, I wanted to give kids in foster care a sense of joy somehow.
It was while getting certified as a resource parent, that I was told Black children in foster care need cultural connections and everything clicked. I knew I had to teach textured hair styling in the foster care community. I soon realized that I could also create the textured hair care brand of my dreams and make products that helped people fall in love with their hair.
There is one product, especially close to my heart, “Pumpkin Baby Curl Care.” It’s a head-to-toe nourishing oil, pumpkin seed oil based and a portion of sales allows me to this oil to kids in foster care. Glamour Magazine named Pumpkin Baby, “Best for Curly Hair” last Spring, and it’s become a bestseller. “Pumpkin Baby” also happens to be a nickname for my 6 year old, Kadir.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a wife, proud Mama, coffee lover, Salsa dancer and the founder of The Joy of Curls.
I would describe The Joy of Curls as a family operated, mission-driven, plant-powered textured hair brand.
What’s most special to me about my role as CEO, is I feel as though I’m carrying out my Grandmother’s legacy. My Grandma Cassie McGlaun, lost her mother at 11 and she and her 6 siblings were raised by their foster mother. She later became a foster parent herself and hearing this throughout my life, planted a seed in me.
The concept of launching The Joy of Curls as a product brand came to me after I started working 1:1 with foster and adoptive parents giving hair lessons. I recognized the things I craved, (simple wash days, products safe enough my kids could use them too) were shared needs.
Forget about not having entrepreneurial experience nor a clue about formulating products, I just rolled up my sleeves and went all in figuring it out. It absolutely terrified and consumed me and that’s how I knew it wasn’t only my passion, but my purpose.
After launching the brand in 2021, I created a course that teaches resource parents and caseworkers the processes of caring for textured hair through a trauma informed lens. There’s also a theme of taking the time to understand and celebrate the child’s culture. “Curls, Care and Culture,” is an interactive course where we take a deep dive into how to make our homes welcoming, how to care for and style textured hair, and how to moisturize melanated skin. The course is primarily virtual and although up to 50 parents can register, it has the feel of an intimate group bonding over shared experiences.
So what’s new?
I love the feeling of being able to connect and engage with other resources parents on a more personal level. The need for this education is global…I see us taking the course on the road in 2025.
As far as the products, they’ve developed a loyal following from customers of every hair type and texture you can imagine. We are in retail locally, I’d love to spread the joy to larger markets next year.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I am a Christian and it took unwavering faith for me to take steps and keep walking no matter what this journey looked like. Vulnerability was also important because as a CEO you’re expected to know what to do when, and for me I knew I needed help. Acknowledging that I didn’t have it all, drew others in to support me by offering mentorship and a listening ear…I am so grateful.
I launched The Joy of Curls at the height of Covid when we were all longing for connection.
Transparency has been a gift in this journey because sharing my life experiences, my family and my journey as a foster parent have allowed me to build community. My advice for anyone just starting their own journey in entrepreneurship is to find your community of support early. Have frequent meetings with yourself to assess your progress. Ask yourself, “what can I do this week to step out on faith? How can I share my vulnerabilities with mentors so that they can truly support me? What can I discuss transparently that listeners may be able to relate to?”
Be a good boss to yourself by checking in. You have to care for yourself in a way you never have to survive as a business owner.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

Absolutely! At the risk of leaving someone out I’m going to try to be specific here.
I’d love to collaborate with organizations hosting workshops or conferences, long-term and short-term residential facilities, and hospitals and nursing staff. Social workers and Caseworkers or child advocates. Every group or individual whose role is centered around supporting youth in foster care, teens aging out of care or children adopted from foster care and their families are my ideal clients.
Some of the organizations I’ve partnered with are interested carrying our shampoos, conditioners and oils in their facilities. There are multiple ways we can work together. What I want you to know is despite how this appears, It’s much deeper than hair and culture. We’re demonstrating support and cultivating self-love during the most traumatic time of a child’s life.
Our hair is our heritage so for children who are separated from their families it’s critical to their wellbeing to nurture it.

The best way to get in touch is through filling out a contact form on our website at: https://thejoyofcurls.shop
or emailing: [email protected]
I encourage you to join our online community on Instagram or Facebook: @thejoyofcurlsbeauty which is another great way to connect. Send a direct message to say hello, we would love to get to know you!

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Lee Chinyama
Christopher Maharry

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