Yve-Car Momperousse, MPS ’14 and Stéphane Jean-Baptiste recently appeared on the popular television show, Shark Tank, to pitch their beauty product startup, Kreyòl Essence. Kreyòl Essence, a proud member of eLab’s Class of 2014, produces luxury beauty products for skin and hair that are sourced from organic and raw ingredients from farmers in Haiti.
While Kreyòl Essence’s products have been praised for quality and effectiveness, what stands out most about the company is their social impact. After years of planning, Momperousse launched the company in 2012 with the goal to create more jobs and contribute to the economic growth in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake.
Creating jobs, empowering women, and caring for the environment are three values that are held close to the core of the company. As a women-run and led company, there is a focus on raising employment rates among Haitian women. According to their website, 90% of Kreyòl staff are women.
Momperousse and Jean-Baptiste can be seen making their pitch to the Shark Tank investors in an episode that aired on January 12, 2020. While not all of the show’s investors were easily convinced, the pitch resulted in a $400,000 deal with Kevin O’Leary, known on the show as “Mr. Wonderful,” which the two founders accepted. Watch the full episode.