Afro Sheen: How I Revolutionized an Industry and Forever Changed American Culture

The inspiring and resilient story of George E. Johnson, creator of the iconic Afro Sheen and the first Black-owned company to be traded on Wall Street

You might already be familiar with Afro Sheen and Ultra Sheen, but have you heard of the man behind the company that produced these products? In Afro Sheen, George Ellis Johnson, the acclaimed self-made businessman, reveals his inspiring and captivating rise from humble beginnings to the top of the haircare industry.

At just twenty-seven years old, after years of traveling the country and going from barbershop to barbershop to sell his products, Johnson created the Johnson Products Company. JPC was the first Black-owned company to trade on a major stock exchange, became the financial sponsor of Soul Train, and was once considered the largest Black-owned manufacturing company in the world. At the height of its success, JPC was worth ＄37 million.

In this coming-of-age story, Johnson uses the life skills and strong character built from working odd jobs as a teenager and practicing the Golden Rule to create a business that both nurtures and advances the Black community. Without a formal education, he filled a gap in the Black haircare industry and created a high-quality formula for straightening hair and the iconic Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen products that supported Black people in expressing their authentic beauty.

For decades, Johnson has been an inspiration to Black entrepreneurs, setting an example of Black wealth and providing a safe space for Black people to work.

Afro Sheen is a timely, impassioned look at both an industry and cultural moment; Johnson’s impact is finally on full display, as he brilliantly highlights how having perseverance and a daring vision can create both change and a lasting legacy.

George Ellis Johnson, Sr., is the founder of the Johnson Products Company, the maker of Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen, the first Black-owned company to trade on a major stock exchange, the financial sponsor of Soul Train, and once likely the largest Black-owned manufacturing company in the world. Known for his generosity around Chicago and nationally, Johnson has received numerous honors for the philanthropic contributions of the George E. Johnson Foundation and the George E. Johnson Educational Fund, which awarded more than 1000 college scholarships. In 1964, he co-founded Independence Bank, the first Black-owned financial institution to operate in Chicago in more than 30 years after the Great Depression, and became its chairman. He served on the boards of the Chicago Urban League, Commonwealth Edison, Lyric Opera of Chicago, MetLife, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Northwestern University, and Operation PUSH. The recipient of nine honorary doctorate degrees, including several from HBCUs, Johnson received the Harvard Medal, Stanford Graduate School of Business’s Marketing Man of the Year recognition, and Chicago Mayor Harold Washington’s Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1999, the Wall Street Journal included him in its Special Report ＂10 Who Made a Difference: The minds that transformed entrepreneurship in the 20th century.＂