Black Haircare Vendors Say Their Business is Being Affected by the Coronavirus Outbreak

As the coronavirus continues to spread, black hair care businesses have started to feel the effects of the virus on the wholesale side of their business.

Due to the restrictions on imports from China, hair care businesses may soon struggle to fulfill customer orders on popular items such as wigs, weaves, and hair extensions from factories primarily based in China. The coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has already killed six people in the United States and more than 3,000 across the globe.

Shannle Wallace, who oversees District Cheveux in Bowie, Maryland, told WUSA 9 that she made an order for hair extensions from her China-based supplier in January. Her order still hasn’t arrived. The vendor is blaming the delay on the virus. “I just never imagined coronavirus would affect me, being in the states,” Wallace told the station. “Not directly as far as being sick, but my business.”

Wallace also mentioned that the scare has also affected customers worried that the hair they purchase might be contaminated with the virus. “When they get their hair, (they ask), ‘Is it going to be contaminated?’” she added. The CDC had said the virus dies on the surface. “There is likely very low risk of spread from products or packaging that are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient temperatures,” the agency wrote on its website. “Coronaviruses are generally thought to be spread most often by respiratory droplets.”

Stephanie Nolan, a beauty entrepreneur and owner of XOXO Virgin Hair based in Prince George’s Country, Maryland, said she is also feeling the effects of the coronavirus. “Due to the coronavirus, and the measures taken to cut down on the virus in China, people aren’t allowed to go to, or really return to, work,” Nolan told WUSA9.