by Megan Moyer, corporate marketing manager, as appeared in Inside Beauty for Drug Store News
Ocoa co-founder, Nicol Varona Cancelmo grew up in the Dominican Republic where she says the culture there embedded that curly hair is bad hair. “’Pelo Malo’ is a very well-known term in Latin America, Caribbean especially. It’s not seen as beautiful and
professional, which is very sad to think about because everybody’s unique in their own way.” Cancelmo and her sister grew up going to the hair salon to get blowouts. “That’s how we saw ourselves as beautiful — with straight hair.”
The family moved to the U.S. when the sisters were teenagers. After college, Cancelmo started on a wellness journey which included using natural personal care products and considering the condition of her hair. “I was like, what happened to my curly hair? Through all those [salon visits] and coming to the U.S. and actually discovering the flat iron here, I was burning my hair! You couldn’t see a curl in sight.”
The realization led Cancelmo on a quest to find a way to bring her curls back, searching the internet for solutions. Although she found a number of possible solutions, the products were not a match for her hair type. “The products would weigh my hair down because we had different texture. Then a friend told me about a curly haircut.”
Cancelmo got a curly haircut and told her sister, Cory Varona-Corniel, co-founder of Ocoa, about it and invited her to join her. “We did that transformation together.”
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Varona-Corniel dove into research because the curl products that were available were heavy and Cancelmo said they had to use a variety of products to manage their curls. They both felt there had to be a better way.
Varona-Corniel enrolled herself in a natural hair formulator class online, around 2018, determined to learn how to make products. The school had a skin care focus, so she learned about the skin care approach for the scalp, which is a differentiator for Ocoa products. Cancelmo said, “We are using skin grade ingredients in our formulas which are not really well known or used in curly hair care, and the quality is a lot better for your hair. That really made us different from the beginning.”
In order to graduate, Varona-Corniel had to come up with her own formula. She set out to create the dream product they wanted to find on the shelf. They decided to simplify everything. Instead of using five products to style their hair, they set their sights on a curl
cream and a gel. Next, she formulated shampoo and conditioner. While the cream and gel were better than products available in store, the shelf life was only a few months.
Wanting to continue using the products Varona-Corniel created, they discussed finding a manufacturer and the idea for the business grew from there. “We always knew we wanted to start a business together, but we didn’t think it was going to end up being hair,” Cancelmo stated.
The sisters found a manufacturer, but then the COVID-19 pandemic started, and they had to pause everything until 2021. That’s when they formally launched their Hydrating Curl Cream and Curl Defining Styling Gel but under their first brand name. They rebranded in 2023 to Ocoa and added the Curl Care Shampoo and Curl Care Conditioner.
“We don’t use coconut oil in our formulation, so our formulas are very different when it comes to curly hair care. We take that skin care approach to the scalp and the ingredients are very high-end, like marula oil, mango butter instead of shea butter, a lot of the common things that people see in hair care, we went the other way and also were inspired by ingredients we grew up with, like mangoes, hibiscus flower, aloe vera, ginger extract. A lot of these things we grew up with also have really great health benefits for the hair and scalp. And they nourish the hair overall over time.”
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Ocoa’s most popular product is their
Hydrating Curl Cream, which is still the same formula to this day. Cancelmo said they added heat protection to it because “curly girls, we’re diffusing our hair. We’re not blowing out our hair all the time, but if you do want a quick blowout at home, you can actually use the curl cream as a blow-out cream.”
Ocoa’s growth has been grassroots from the start. Sampling has played a central role, allowing customers to try before they commit. Partnerships with curly-hair salons and stylists have amplified credibility, while being active on social media and selling on Amazon have expanded reach. Event participation allows them to position themselves as thought leaders as well as distribute samples and answer questions. The brand also uses advertisements and email marketing to engage with customers.
Cancelmo says it’s important to them to nurture their community with education and support. Customers are invited into focus groups to test new products, and Ocoa recently launched its own creators program, where content creators grow into brand ambassadors.
Ocoa’s mission extends beyond products. In 2023, the brand launched a back-to-school initiative, donating their Hydrating Curl Cream to their local community in Reading, Pennsylvania. The program has morphed into Helping Hermanas, a social impact program, with donations of full-size products to the Reading community.
For the founders, giving back isn’t just about products — it’s about empowerment. “Pelo malo is shifting and we are part of that movement. It’s not the norm anymore thanks to a lot of progress with more education, but there’s still work to be done.”
“We shift the narrative to your hair is beautiful. Embrace who you’re born to be. Love yourself. Because it’s also about confidence. It’s amazing to see the next generation loving their hair, loving their curls.”
Ocoa is a cohort of Ulta Beauty’s MUSE Accelerator, the 2024 class. They are one of the cohorts that has been added to Ulta’s assortment, introduced in 464 stores with an additional 100 added at the end of September. “Obviously being at Ulta is a major milestone. We are the first Dominican brand, so we’re very excited to be at over 500 stores and having our collection be more accessible to people everywhere.” Ocoa also has a TikTok shop.
“We’re just very excited to see where it goes, where we continue to grow and to see the brand really becoming a household name someday.”