F
or New Orleans native Jesseca “Judy” Dupart, 2019 caps off a halfdecade of staggering growth. Since the former stylist founded her Kaleidoscope hair product line in 2013, the brand has achieved more than $20 million in sales. Kaleidoscope products, including the Miracle Drops hair and scalp oil that launched the line, are now available in major retailers including Target and more than 2,000 Sally Beauty Supply stores, with plans for more retailers, and product lines, in the works. It wasn’t always smooth sailing for Dupart, however. Her first salon, located in a shopping plaza in New Orleans East, burned down in 2013. She recovered, and her subsequent success has enabled Dupart to give back to the spot that housed her earliest venture. Dupart’s company now owns the 70,000 square feet of retail space in the 5900 block of Bullard Avenue called Miracle Plaza. “You know how they say if they close the door, you go back and buy the building?” asked Dupart. “To buy the building where my business was – besides the bragging rights of it – is inspirational for people to see. It tells the story: if I could do it, anybody can, because I started there.” This past July, Dupart attended the plaza’s ribbon-cutting ceremony during SneauxBall Fest ’19, which she hosted in Miracle Plaza accompanied by local political dignitaries. She said her investment reflects her ties to New Orleans East — an “overlooked” neighborhood that, until recently, Dupart called home. In addition to Miracle Plaza, Dupart has been active in philanthropic efforts across the city, creating the Kaleidoscope Fitness Center for trainees in the NOPD Education and Police Academy, partnering with the NOPD to provide more than 600 bicycles to children in need, and sponsoring the Carver Theater’s Summer Camp for children. These and other efforts helped earn Dupart an honorary key to the city of New Orleans in May 2019. Dupart said she hopes to inspire others, including her 1.2 million Instagram followers, to achieve their own goals. She said she often shares the following advice with aspiring entrepreneurs: “Never give up. Go with your craziest idea – that’s usually the best one — and don’t tell people what you’re doing, show them. Let the action speak for itself.” —By Rebecca Friedman
Jesseca “Judy” Dupart f o u n d e r a n d CEO Kaleidoscope Hair Products Owner Miracle Plaza