NEW YORK — Over 900 influencers, media and VIPs packed NYC’s Iconic Gotham Hall to celebrate NaturallyCurly’s signature event Texture on the Runway last week during New York’s Spring 2019 Fashion Week to celebrate the beauty of curls and coils. Retailer Sally Beauty returned as the retail sponsor for the innovative runway show that puts textured hair front and center.

This year’s event was also a celebration of NaturallyCurly’s 20th anniversary. The media company has been at the center of a two-decade revolution that transformed the way the world views curls, coils and waves. Since 1998, NaturallyCurly has been the pioneer in empowering, educating and inspiring its community of consumers, influencers, and beauty enthusiasts. By focusing on texture from Day 1, NaturallyCurly has attracted an inclusive community of all ages and ethnicities, men and women, from wavies to super coilies.

Hosted by NaturallyCurly co-founder Michelle Breyer, and recording artist and breakout star of Love & Hip Hop Miami Amara La Negra, seven top texture brands showcased their distinctive take on texture down the runway. This year’s runway sponsors included Camille Rose Naturals, Cantu, Carol’s Daughter, Creme of Nature, Mielle Organics, SheaMoisture and The Mane Choice featuring their own unique textured hair inspiration and debuting looks that truly celebrate coils, curls and waves as well as fashion.

“At Sally Beauty, we believe the best hair type is your hair type, and we are committed to providing a diverse assortment of products for our customers,” said Linda Voracek, group vice president of Merchandising for Sally Beauty. “Texture on the Runway is unique from other events in that it allows hair to dictate fashion and highlights the diversity of hair textures and styles in a bold way.”

Since NaturallyCurly launched Texture on the Runway in 2012 at City Winery in New York City, it has become one of the most anticipated events in the natural hair community. The innovative runway show arose out of NaturallyCurly co-founder Michelle Breyer’s frustration that Fashion Week lacked inclusivity.

“As I covered Fashion Week, I was disappointed to see that the models on the runway didn’t reflect the diversity of our community,’ Breyer says. “We decided to create an event that celebrated texture and inclusion, and we wanted to do it during Fashion Week.”

Texture on the Runway puts curls, coils and waves front and center, letting the hair inspire the fashion rather than the other way around. Brands are encouraged to take their interpretations of texture down the runway, from intricate protective styles like braids and twists, to cascading curls or big luscious ‘fros.

In recent years, the brands’ creativity has expanded well beyond the hair and fashion. This year, Cantu’s presentation featured a true New Orleans second line band. SheaMoisture integrated a reggae soul performance by Meta and the Cornerstones and Carol’s Daughter energized the crowd with an electrifying dance group, The Red Project NYC.

“At Sally Beauty we are committed to helping our consumers find and celebrate their natural beauty,” states Karonda Cook, Director of Merchandising, Sally Beauty. “We know that beauty is not a one size fits all approach and believe in beauty for all. We were thrilled to be this year’s retail sponsor for Texture on the Runway to help tell our story. It was also a great opportunity to interact with brand partners and influencers to make sure they understand the importance of our brand and what our customers mean to us.“

Through 15-minute presentations, hair sponsors showcased their interpretation of modern, textured hair. This year’s event included:

Camille Rose Naturals

Theme: Carefully sourced ingredients meet exotic recipes. The diverse regions that create the new Around the World collection’s ingredient pallet was the inspiration backdrop to the Camille Rose presentation. The stage was transformed into a dramatic oasis of rich cultural fused interpretations using wardrobe, color design, music and the centerpiece of hair! The audience was invited to take a trip with us to the Amazonian Rainforest, South Pacific and the Middle East via a sensory overload presentation; which borrowed cues from this new exotic collection of conditioning treatments and oils. The Around the World collection launches at Sally Beauty during Texture on the Runway 2018.

Cantu

Theme: The Faces of Cantu: Head Over Heels for Texture. We have an extremely dedicated and hardworking team, each of us doing what we love for consumers we love. Our theme showcased that love and dedication to the textured hair movement, while putting a spotlight on some of our most dedicated team members from sales, marketing, and even one of our interns. Our stylist, Maria Antoinette is an industry icon for her creative, yet somehow achievable hairstyles for naturalistas. Our textile designer and artist, Melissa A. Mitchell of Abeille Creations, along with Tailor Soila Konchellah, decorated our team with wearable art worthy of an exhibit. Last but not least, our Stylist and Creative Director, Morgan A. Wilder is the talent behind pulling everything together for a cohesive, runway-ready show that we’re proud to bring to New York Fashion Week with Texture on the Runway.

Carol’s Daughter

Theme: Carol’s Daughter founder Lisa Price always enjoyed spending time with her family. When she was younger, it was time spent bonding with her mother and now, she enjoys that same special bonding with her own children.

For Texture on the Runway, we recreated these special moments shared between, mother, and child by using models that are actual family. Lead Stylists Derick Monroe and Gabrielle Corney using the Pracaxi Nectar style and care line to create styles that celebrated each models uniqueness as well as their family bond.

Creme of Nature

Theme: At Creme of Nature we are shifting the culture and redefining the future of universal style and texture…with a bold Afrofuturism hijacking of the runway. The “Afro Punk Urban Queen” is fearless in her diverse expression of edgy street fashion, multicultural hairstyling and glow up beauty – which all reflect the glamorous ornamentation of her #BlackGirlMagic that extends to every corner of the globe. This supernatural goddess embodies a generation of boss ladies setting trends all over the world. The Afro Punk Urban Queen has grinded her way from the bottom to the top and from the streets to C-Suites, while empowering her beloved brothers and sisters on the journey.

Putting it all together, Creme of Nature brought to life the Afro Punk Urban Queen ethos through beautiful clothing and fabric from De La Cruz New York, cutting- edge hairstyles lead by celebrity hairstylist Pekela Riley, Afro Beat Dancers courtesy of Nedra The Dancer, music by MPerfect Marketing Solutions and visuals by Craig Brimm to showcase our dream.

Mielle Organics

Theme: Mielle Organics hit the runway with an edgy presentation that brought the brand to life. Hairstyles and looks were crafted and inspired by the woman warriors of Wakanda. Mielle Organics’ lead stylist Key Glover delivered edgy and dramatic looks. Hair was styled using the Pomegranate and Honey collection, including the three newest additions to the line: Moisturizing & Detangling Shampoo, Moisturizing & Detangling Conditioner and Curl Refreshing Spray.

SheaMoisture

Theme: “Celebrating Our Shine,” showcased the beauty and versatility of textured hair styles created with SheaMoisture’s award-winning legacy collection, Jamaican Black Castor Oil Strengthen & Restore Hair Care. The collection provides treatment and styling solutions with natural, certified organic and fair trade ingredients for all textured types and looks.

The runway presentation featured stunning styles that demonstrate the many dimensions of texture, designed with as much fashion-forward inspiration as any haute couture collection. Models were dressed in looks that brought the warmth and glow of a tropical day. Davina Bennett, Miss Jamaica and SheaMoisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Brand Ambassador, headlined the show as the first woman to rock her afro in all its splendor at the Miss Universe pageant, being crowned 2nd Runner-Up. Davina led this charge with celebrity stylist & SheaMoisture Textured Hair Ambassador, Diane C. Bailey, to celebrate our shine and how texture is at the forefront of redefining the hair care beauty standard.

The Mane Choice

Theme: Texture on the Runway has given so many multicultural brands in this space a platform to showcase textured hair beautifully during Fashion Week. Our goal through this partnership is to continue those efforts by showcasing how our brand is taking strides to empower and offer solutions to all textures.

Supporting sponsors included: As I Am, Aunt Jackie’s, ORS Curls Unleashed, Maybelline, Reshma Beauty, Smooth ‘N Shine and Tone Skincare.