Dawn Myers staked her home and retirement savings on a textured hair tool
Dawn Myers sold her home and cashed out her 401(k) retirement account to fund Richualist. The company makes Mint, a styling tool for textured hair. The bet helped bring in about 1.4 million dollars to commercialize and test the product. Development took roughly five years. In 2022, just before going to market, Myers was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer.
The company's records show a closed round, then a deal with Mark Cuban and Emma Grede after a Shark Tank appearance. They leave out what was put at risk: a house, a retirement cushion, and a round that Myers worked to close from a chemotherapy chair at Johns Hopkins. She calls the gamble crazy but says it worked. Her personal cost does not appear in any valuation.
Source: TechCrunch Startups · October 11, 2026