George E. Johnson, founder of Johnson Products and creator of iconic Black hair care brands like Ultra Sheen, Afro Sheen, transformed the industry.

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…