Co-Founder Simone Mair On The Return Of CURLFEST

Simone Mair’s billowing natural hair stands out in a crowd. It’s big, it’s beautiful, and it’s takes up its rightful space as a flower in the sun. It’s exactly what you can expect to see at Curl Fest. The annual hair festival is back after a year-off with new activations, new hosts, more panels and the same great melanin.

As one of the co-founders of CURLFEST and the Operations Director, Mair has her hands in every aspect of the festival. We spoke to her about what attendees can expect this year, the road to CURLFEST and the early journey of her learning to love her own natural hair.

“It actually happened after college,” Mair shared. “When I cut all of my perm off, I was still just wearing weaves [and] braids and I didn’t know what my hair looked like. And it was after I had that little bit of time between graduating college and having my first career, I decided to force myself to learn how to work with my hair, how to love it, how to feel beautiful in my hair.”

The Curly Girl Collective

Created by the Curly Girl Collective, CURLFEST was born to fill a void in the beauty industry at the forefront of the natural hair movement. And it has grown tremendously over the years and this year, fans can expect more events, vendors, panels and experiences.

“You can expect the same kind of Curlfest magic that we bring every…