The Integrated Hair Care Experience – product launch and community celebration is a formal introduction to the NEW Integrated Roots International® premium hair product line. Whether your interest is that of a beauty professional, a business, a student or a member of a family, there will be something for everyone at this event which takes place Saturday, March 8, 2025 from 1pm – 3pm EST at Woolard Technology Center (WTC) (70 Innovation Way, Camden, SC 29020).
Integrated Roots International® is headquartered in Camden, South Carolina, which is in the heart of Kershaw County and is recognized for its revolutionary history and equestrian attractions. But war reenactments and horse races are not all that Kershaw County has going on, it is also home to many prominent beauty businesses and not one but two phenomenal cosmetology education programs giving this quaint community – of population just over 60,000 quite the competitive beauty industry presence.
Festivities for The Integrated Hair Care Experience will begin with a ribbon cutting ceremony brought to you by the Kershaw County Chamber of Commerce followed by a VIP Beauty Pro Tour through the beautiful WTC campus and ending at the School of Cosmetology state-of-the-art student salon. Participants will be provided a first-hand look at the featured hair products including live demonstrations and sampling of each product in various textures of hair. Demonstrations on the tour will include shampoo and conditioning, moisturizing, styling, and finishing. This tour will be a one of a kind “try before you buy” experience that you do not want to miss. Tickets are on sale now at Eventbrite and you must have a ticket to enter. Limited space available.
Next on the program will be a student hair showcase featuring the talented students of WTC and LeGrand Institute of Cosmetology (LINC). Students will display a variety of themes to demonstrate everyday grooming and styling using Integrated Roots International® premium hair products. Come and witness a red-carpet display of what these wonderful products can do. Both the hair show and reception are open to the public.
After an amazing display of featured hairstyles, it will be time to party! This will not only be a celebration to honor the opening of these amazing hair products, but it will also be a wonderful opportunity for mixing and mingling with others. Come meet Yolanda Johnson, owner of Integrated Roots International®, be among the first in Kershaw County to witness the full line of products in person, go behind the scenes with student hair stylists and hair models and network with members of the beauty community. A good time will be had by all.
The Integrated Hair Care Experience event was inspired by the spirit of togetherness within Kershaw County. Of course, this event is an opportunity to show off a new brand of hair products, but it is also the perfect place to gather and celebrate all of the exciting things that are currently relevant to the beauty industry, many of which can be found within Kershaw County.
“We wanted to create an experience to celebrate and share the beauty culture of Kershaw County with others.” -Yolanda Johnson, Owner of Integrated Roots
Planning for The Integrated Hair Care Experience began as an idea to celebrate new beginnings, create opportunities, highlight education and gather community. As plans for this event developed it became apparent that the original vision would be no small feat which meant that it was the perfect opportunity for collaboration.
To better understand the collaborative efforts that went into organizing The Integrated Hair Care Experience event we must go back to the beginning. Integrated Roots International® the cosmetology – based educational designers first discovered the popular natural hair products formerly owned by Confidence by GaBBY Goodwin a few years prior to taking over the brand. After they sampled the popular hair products for two years as loyal customers, the Confidence brand announced their discontinuation of the line.
Integrated Roots International® inquired about the line of products that they had grown to love advocating for the quality of the products and the wide range of functionality that they offered both individually and as a system. By August 2024, Integrated Roots International® would gain ownership over the product line.
The company announced their new ownership of the hair products in a soft launch and pre-sale. For two weeks customers from all over the country (and some international) who had waited patiently for their trusted hair products to return, did not hesitate to make their pre-sale purchases. Once production was completed, the first round of orders had been fulfilled, and supplies were fully stocked, it was time for Integrated Roots International® to formally announce ownership over their new hair product line and
Gathering specifics for this event made it evident how much hidden talent there was in Kershaw County, and Integrated Roots International® wanted to bring that talent to life for event participants. On one hand they knew they could throw a simple product launch party, sell some products and be done with it or or they could team up with other talented agencies and create an unforgettable moment.
They came up with a solid line-up at first. As described above they had a great collaboration with the Confidence by GaBBY Goodwin brand. Next, they added the two incredible cosmetology programs to the roster, and figured that they had a pretty good program. However, after careful consideration they realized that they wanted to offer a complete experience, so we invited the Kershaw County Chamber of Commerce and Professional Beauty Association to join in celebration. Now they were cooking, and a celebration of this magnitude truly stands to make a difference.
About the Owner
Yolanda Johnson has a rich history in the beauty industry, beginning with her experiences with hair care as a young child. As a young Black girl from Boulder, Colorado she experienced first-hand how intrinsic hair care is to self-esteem particularly when it came to the ethnic experience. Making this association early in life would prepare her for the discovery that she would make decades later.
When Johnson went to college at Coastal Carolina University, she had to teach herself how to care for her hair. After much trial and error and as luck would have it, she fell in love with managing her hair. She dedicated countless hours of practicing on herself and her classmates. Eventually she would develop a knack for basic grooming and hair styling. Yolanda discovered that the more acquainted she became with her hair and others, the more she felt like she understood herself and this lesson stuck with her.
Yolanda began her journey as a stylist like so many other Black stylists do, as a braider. After 14 years of braiding, she became a natural hair care coach for individuals and families. Still as dedicated as ever to perfecting her craft, Yolanda’s consistency afforded her an opportunity to travel statewide to provide her services. While doing so, she met an amazing family who was looking for help with hair care for their adopted daughter. She was a toddler with notable medical conditions whose parents had been struggling to find the right support to care for her hair.
At their initial appointment, the young client’s mother was bursting with questions. They discussed culture, products, tools, and basic styling. After a while, the mother began really opening up to Yolanda and revealing some of the challenges that their family was facing with finding assistance for hair care. The mother explained that they had reached out to countless salons and barbershops, and in most cases, they were met with judgment, embarrassment, and ridicule. And with tears in her eyes she revealed that there were so many families just like theirs who were struggling to find a safe place to learn how to care for their children’s hair.
That first appointment was all it took for the aspiring stylist to make the life altering decision that would change her life. From that point on, Yolanda made it her mission to help people own their beauty through hair exploration but there was one condition. No matter how long it took or how hard it got, she would not stop until every person who needed personal hair care education received it.
By December 2020 (24 years after college), Integrated Roots International® was born. Integrated Roots International® allowed Yolanda to scale her private services and scale them for group learning.
Eventually, what began as a desire to educate herself on how to properly care for her own hair, quickly developed into a passion for guiding others through the same process. Yolanda had found a way to apply her talents and abilities towards raising the standards for sustainable beauty practices. She exercises every opportunity that she can to engage with her professional peers and she dedicates a significant amount towards giving back to her community. Her journey has been far from smooth, but Yolanda says that rough roads only sweeten the reward. Through resilience and resourcefulness, Yolanda learned that she did not have to go at it alone. She became known in her community as the unstoppable businessperson who in five short years built an international business from the ground up.
About Integrated Roots International®
Integrated Roots International® is an educational design and consulting firm. We design cosmetology-based public health workshops and training programs for government, business and nonprofit. Our designs are the cornerstone for technology and tradition and are best known for easy integration into everyday life such as public health and safety, human services, and youth and family advocacy. Our products and services have been a preferred choice with school districts, hospitals, and institutions of higher learning throughout South Carolina.
Integrated Roots is backed:
🗸With over 25 years of stylist experience
🗸12 years as a private hair care management coach
🗸Reaching hundreds of adoptive and foster care families
🗸as a licensed cosmetologist
🗸as an acclaimed Up-Do Stylist
Follow us online at integratedrootsinternational.com, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn for the latest updates on The Integrated Hair Care Experience and we cannot wait for you to experience the magic!
