Gabrielle Union and Dwayne Wade | Picture: Instagram
When American celebrities talk about visiting Africa, they usually mean one specific country on the continent, however, this is not the case with Gabrielle Union and her husband Dwayne Wade, who really plan to visit as many locations on the continent as they can.
The #WadeWorldTour, as the couple calls it, kicked off five days ago with a brief stopover in Zanzibar for the star’s 50th birthday.
“As we start this journey across the world for my 50th, I just want to luxuriate in my gratitude for my family, my amazing friends and all the friends I haven’t even met in person who have kept this train on the tracks this year, even after I collided with myself. Thank y’all for rockin with the old homie. I appreciate you guys more than you can imagine,” wrote Gabrielle on Instagram along with a picture of herself, her husband and one of their children, Kaavia.
She then followed up with a highlight reel of their visit in Zanzibar.
For years, the star has used her platform to celebrate women she admires, whether she has met them or not and recently, her “woman crush Wednesday” #WCW posts seem to have a golden thread, linked to the continent.
In recent weeks, she has shown love to women like designer Banke Kuku, climate activist Elizabeth Wathuti and Botwana’s Bogolo Kenewedo.
Her African love affair began weeks ago when it was announced that her Flawless by Gabrielle Union hair care range would now be available in South Africa, sold exclusively at Clicks stores.
She even made a special video just for the retailer confirming the announcement.
Some weeks later, the retailer shared a post hinting that she may be on her way here after alerting members of their loyalty rewards programme that they stood a chance to meet the star.
According to Clicks, Flawless by Gabrielle Union is a Black-Owned business that was created by celebrity and natural hair activist, Gabrielle Union, along with long-time friend and celebrity hairstylist Larry Sims.
Sims boasts a successful career that includes creating iconic looks for Hollywood’s elite while also educating the everyday woman about achieving her healthy hair goals.
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“His extensive knowledge of textured hair and natural ingredients created the foundation for the collection, which includes products designed to restore, protect and enhance hair of diverse textures.”
“Known and loved by women for her transparency and relatability as a mother and wife who has triumphed over challenges, Gabrielle has also emerged as a leading advocate of diversity and inclusion in Hollywood and strives to promote the same values in South Africa through her haircare collection,” added the retailer.
Gabrielle Union originally launched Flawless in the United States in 2017 while privately undergoing IVF therapy but suffered from severe hair loss – an unfortunate side effect of the treatment that countless women endure.
During this time, this dynamic duo worked tirelessly to identify the best options for restoring her hair to health and leveraged moments from this experience as inspiration to relaunch the Flawless by Gabrielle Union collection with improved ingredients and more options.
Speaking on her decision to bring her products to our shores, the Hollywood actress said: “South Africa holds a special place in my heart. Its rich history, diverse people, beautiful land and culture made the decision easy to expand globally to South Africa.”
“Clicks is very excited to welcome the Flawless by Gabrielle Union collection to our shelves. As a leading haircare destination, we are committed to bringing our customers the widest range of haircare brands to provide them with even more choice,” added Clicks Brand Executive, Phathiswa Sefatsa.
“I’m proud of this collection because we were intentional about crafting a line that is versatile enough to provide solutions for all style choices. From curls and waves to heat styles, braids, wigs and weaves, there is a Flawless product to support your hair’s need for brilliance, health and beauty,” concluded Larry Sims.
The collection offers solutions ranging from hydrating, to repairing, to defining, to heat protection and scalp care at affordable prices. You can expect to pay anything between R150 and R200 for individual products in the range.
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