by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors
Johnson died of natural causes at his downtown Chicago condominium, according to his son, John Edward Johnson, who confirmed his father’s death
George E. Johnson, whose Johnson Products Co. became the first Black-owned company listed on the American Stock Exchange and helped transform the Black hair care industry, died July 6 in Chicago. He was 99, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
George died of natural causes at his downtown Chicago condominium, according to his son John Edward Johnson, who confirmed his father’s death to the outlet.
“I think his legacy as a businessman and philanthropist speaks for itself,” John said.
George founded Johnson Products in 1954 after working for the Black-owned cosmetics company S.B. Fuller. The Chicago-based company developed hair care products specifically for Black consumers, including Ultra Sheen, Classy Curl, Curly Perm, and Afro Sheen.
In 1971, Johnson Products became the first Black-owned business to trade on the American Stock Exchange, marking a milestone for Black entrepreneurship in the United States.
The company also became known for pioneering marketing strategies aimed at Black consumers. It was the first Black-owned company to sponsor the nationally syndicated television program Soul Train, helping expand both the brand’s national visibility and the show’s cultural reach.
Born in a sharecropper’s shack in Richton, Mississippi, George moved to Chicago with his mother in 1929. He worked a series of jobs as a child before leaving high school to support his family. At age 17, he joined S.B. Fuller, where his experience in sales and product development laid the foundation for launching his own company a decade later.
George’s legacy endures through the barriers he broke in American business, his influence on the Black beauty industry, and the opportunities he created for future generations of Black entrepreneurs.
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Source: Black Enterprise
