Her name means life and she has committed her life to enhancing the lives of others. Mrs. Kannike was born in the small town of Trelawney, Jamaica. Mrs. Kannike was formally educated in London where she graduated from nursing college in 1960. As a registered international nurse Mrs. Kannike was qualified to put her skills to work in Wales, Scotland and in Europe. Vida became fascinated by the world if cosmetics.

 

In 1972 she saw that there was a great need for hair products and cosmetics for women of color. Mrs. Kannike created The Hollywood Curl Hair Products and Cosmetic Company. News of the Hollywood Curl spread through London and was a great success. Africa was soon to catch wind of these new and amazing products and as a result, Mrs. Kannike was invited to Africa to train students on the use of these hair care products.

 

In 1982 she had built The Hollywood Curl into a multi-million dollar business. The Hollywood Curl blazed through South Africa and teams coming in from the United States and London instructing the locals on how to maintain proper hygiene and beauty maintenance and how to be entrepreneurs. Within a year there were over one thousand Hollywood Curl Salons in South Africa giving a new sense of pride in a repressed nation. A Hollywood Curl factory was also set up in Johannesburg, South Africa.

 

Mr. & Mrs. Kannike were responsible for providing the initial down payment to purchase the National Council building in Los Angeles which serves as the Southern California headquarters for the National Council of Negro Women. Vida Kannike is a long time member of the National Council of Negro Women View Park Section and a member of the Life Time Members Guild.