How April Showers’ Afro Unicorn became 1st female, Black-owned business to own a licensed character brand in major retail

April Showers is the CEO of Afro Unicorn, a brand designed to represent the uniqueness of women and children of color in a truly diverse and inclusive fashion. She was inspired to start her business after a chat with a friend who referred to her as a “unicorn” owing to her ability to run multiple businesses, her children, and a bustling personal life.

With the unicorn becoming her favorite emoji, she started working with a graphic designer to create a unicorn of her likeness since the unicorn only available was in white and lacked representation. She, in turn, created multiple shades to “represent a range of women of color,” she said. Afro Unicorn was born.

A real estate agent and insurance business owner, she started her Afro Unicorn business in 2019 printing T-shirts. She would leverage social media to boost sales and grow her market base. She also dedicated Saturdays to going live on Instagram and interacting with her customers.

Today, her brand has 25 categories, ranging from apparel and accessories to toys, puzzles, books, bedding, bandages, backpacks, and collectibles, all with the design of a black unicorn. Her designs aim to inspire and remind women and children of color about the unique, divine, and magical nature of the universe.

“I have always believed that Afro Unicorn® would become a household name. Afro Unicorn is a movement to create representation in everything children touch. It’s a fantastic feeling,” she told OK Magazine. 

“The brand represents the beauty and uniqueness of vanilla, caramel, and mocha complexions,” she noted of how it all began. “The name Afro Unicorn signifies two ideas. The first is to empower and elevate emerging entrepreneurs. The second is an homage to Africa and a promise to amplify representation through my fully-licensed character brand. Building the brand from the ground up, Afro Unicorn started in the e-commerce industry in 2019. By then, it was an organic, grassroots brand, and I was pressing shirts and selling them through my eCommerce store, adding logos to T-shirts and bags at my customers’ request.”

In May 2022, she launched in Walmart, making her the first female black-owned business to own a licensed character brand in major retail. 

“It was a surreal experience,” she said about her historic success. “Overcome with emotions; I was shaking, I cried, and I felt overwhelming joy to see my dream realized,” the CEO and founder added.

Today, Target, Kohl’s, Amazon, JCPenney, HomeGoods, NovaKids, and more than 3800 Walmart stores nationwide carry the brand in various categories.

According to Forbes, the company recorded $15 million in sales in 2023, up from $5 million in 2022.