She turned $1.50 into a million-dollar empire. Can you guess how?

Answer: 

By developing and selling hair care products for Black women

Questions:

• Madam C.J. Walker built her brand through word of mouth and door-to-door sales. How do you think she would market her products today?
• Do you think it's easier or harder to become a self-made millionaire today than in her time?
• Walker’s beauty products filled a gap in the market that no one else had addressed. What is a product or service today that still needs to be created?

Here are the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the numbers (National Women's History Museum): 

Struggling financially, facing hair loss, and feeling the strain of years of physical labor, Walker’s life took a dramatic turn in 1904. That year, she not only began using African American businesswoman Annie Turbo Malone’s "The Great Wonderful Hair Grower,” but she also joined Malone’s team of black women sales agents. A year later, Walker moved to Denver, Colorado, where she married ad-man Charles Joseph Walker, renamed herself “Madam C.J. Walker,” and with $1.25, launched her own line of hair products and straighteners for African American women, “Madam Walker’s Wonderful Hair Grower.”

About the Author

Dave Martin

Dave joins NGPF with 15 years of teaching experience in math and computer science. After joining the New York City Teaching Fellows program and earning a Master's degree in Education from Pace University, his teaching career has taken him to New York, New Jersey and a summer in the north of Ghana. Dave firmly believes that financial literacy is vital to creating well-rounded students that are prepared for a complex and highly competitive world. During what free time two young daughters will allow, Dave enjoys video games, Dungeons & Dragons, cooking, gardening, and taking naps.

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