It's no secret that TikTok has the ability to blow up products, brands and individuals from zero to hero overnight - but its worshipped algorithm doesn't always ensue a positive outcome. At the end of last year, 22-year-old influencer Alix Earle posted her top 2022 Amazon purchases on the rapidly-growing social media platform, where she raved about the Mielle Organics Rosemary Mint hair oil for its "tremendous hair growth".
The blonde-haired and blue-eyed Miami student didn't anticipate the controversy that would later be sparked online, with hotly debated conversations moving from her 3.7 million followers to wider communities on TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Black consumers immediately expressed their concerns that the Black-owned beauty product, specifically targeting kinky and coily hair, would sell out and no longer be available to the minority it was created for.
