George E. Johnson Sr. was a pioneer in Black hair care whose multimillion dollar business was the first Black-owned company to be listed on the American Stock Exchange.

George E. Johnson Sr., the pioneering American businessman and entrepreneur who built a Black hair care empire, died at his home in Chicago on Monday.

The Johnson Products Company was founded in 1954, catering to African Americans’ evolving tastes in hairstyles and fashion, in an era when U.S. companies paid little attention to…