MEET OUR FOUNDER
The entrepreneurial spirit that pulsates through the veins of todays innovative and insightful thought leaders can only be defined through the hard work and determination that has helped create their empires and cement their place in history. As a beauty entrepreneurial expert and CEO/founder of Camille Rose, Janell Stephens has been at the forefront of the radical shift in the billion dollar beauty industry, and has been an iconic trendsetter within this space from the start of the movement. At a time when the natural hair industry was just beginning to create an identity for itself, Janell was in her kitchen brewing her popular concoctions with food grade ingredients and gourmet blends that became the benchmark of the Camille Rose brand.
Her beginnings may have been humble, a mother of five feverishly researching and
developing solutions for her children’s chronic eczema, but her rise to the top has
been nothing short of an inspirational tale of grit and determination. Vision and
action. Prayer and self-motivation. In a mere 3 short years, a hobby morphed into a
multi-million dollar company with legions of fans, throngs of supporting retailers and
infinite possibilities to come.
And to think that it all began in a small kitchen in 2011, 8 years ago. When Janell
initially planted the seeds of what would eventually grow into the Camille Rose brand,
her needs were simple. A dedicated vegan, the Louisiana native and mompreneur
created each handmade product under the mantra that whatever you put on your
body should be good enough to put in it. This standard was unlike the mission of many
of the popular beauty products on the market at the time with harsh chemicals and
unpronounceable substances being the industry standard. As Janell conducted
research into these substances that were the norm in the products on the shelves of
her favorite retailers, it became evident that a premium method of producing beauty
products was a dire need that wasn’t being met. It was then that she expanded her
initial objective of simply developing products for her family, and soon began the
process of creating the Camille Rose brand that we know and love today.
After years of making products for her own family, Camille Rose was born in 2011 and
took off in 2012 with a product line of skincare products ranging from diaper rash
cream to nursing mom cream. Each homemade creation held true to the Camille Rose
company mission to produce a line of high end, gourmet, ingredient inspired hair and
body products that offer clean living beauty solutions to a sophisticated consumer
base. Janelle knew she was on to something after making her products available for
sale on the Camille Rose website and saw an explosion amongst her target
demographic. Soon after, she created and released additional products including
Moisture Milk, conditioner and the most popular product to date, the Almond Jai
Twisting Butter.
In 2012, Camille Rose transcended the online retail space when the products became
available at over 100 Target stores nationwide after a chance meeting with a Target
buyer at a gifting event. A plethora of retailers followed suit with the brand now
being available for purchase in over 300,000 total locations in national retail chains
including Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Sally’s Beauty, Whole Foods, Walgreens and
CVS locations to name a select few throughout the US and also on a global platform
with the brand being launched over-seas at the health and beauty pharmacy chain,
Boots UK. The rapid expansion into brick and mortar locations was only overshadowed
by the immense following that the brand developed online by beauty experts,
influencers and everyday consumers.
Today Janell’s brand identity has outshone the mere “Founder” label, as she has
packaged her business savvy and devotion to helping others into the role of a “beauty
entrepreneurial expert”, mentoring and guiding women of color and small business
owners to help them reach their career objectives and beyond. This includes the work
of the Janell Ennis Stephens Foundation, which was founded to support women and
families in need with the mission of positively affecting the lives of families,
particularly single mothers, who are striving to succeed in business or simply working
hard to provide for their family.
The brand itself has continued to grow as well with the new expanded vision of its
CEO and can now boast over 30 hand-crafted product ranges as part of its total brand,
as well as 6 collections including the popular Around The World Collection which
sources ingredient pairings from around the world and the Mandarin Collection which
was made specifically for the younger of Camille Rose customers. Most recently, the
brand has launched Camille Rose Face, the brands foray into the skincare industry
that was met with much fanfare and support on a global scale. There is also Camille
Rose Spa and Camille Rose Home which has further established Camille rose as a total
lifestyle brand, not just a haircare company.
With appearances on The Real, Strahan, Sara & Keke, KTLA, Good Day NY, Good Day
Atlanta, Essence Magazine, SHEEN Magazine, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Huffington
Post, Black Enterprise, Ebony Magazine, WWD Magazine, ELLE Magazine, Vegetarian
Times, Teen Vogue, InStyle, Chase Bank, Walmart.com and more, it is clear that
Janell’s story, and that of the brand, is one that resonates to a wide reaching
consumer base. The needs of her rapidly growing consumer base continues to inspire
Janell, as much as the needs of her children did, many years ago when her journey
began. Janell is still very much hands on in the production process of the brand with
new creations being added to the company repertoire as quickly as she can invent
them. With beauty, food-grade ingredients and love being the cornerstone of the
Camille Rose brand, Janell Stephens knows that it is only the beginning for the future
of herself and her brand.
“You can trust Camille Rose to source ingredients with integrity, for every batch to be
hand crafted with love.” – JS
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For press-related inquiries about Janell Stephens or Camille Rose Naturals, please email
press@camillerosenaturals.com.
