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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CURLS POPPIN’ DOLLS’ ‘MANNY’ PRESALE IS OFFICIALLY UNDERWAY — AND SHAPING UP TO BE THE HOTTEST TOY OF 2026
First Male Doll Line Celebrating Textured Hair and Cultural Identity Opens Presale With Signed, Numbered Collector Boxes for the First 500 Buyers
SAN DIEGO, CA — August 10, 2026 — Curls Poppin’ Dolls, the industry’s first natural hair fashion dolls, today confirmed that the presale of Manny — the debut release in its new Men of Culture collection — is well underway at www.curlspoppindolls.com, with orders arriving daily from collectors, parents, and press across the country. Early momentum, organic media attention, and a fast-growing wait list have doll industry insiders already calling Manny one of the hottest toy launches of 2026.
Available now for $59.99, Manny extends Curls Poppin’ Dolls’ legacy as ambassadors of diversity and self-acceptance to men and boys who have never seen themselves reflected in the toy aisle. Delivery is targeted for early December 2026.
To celebrate the buyers helping launch the doll, the first 500 people to purchase Manny will receive an exclusive collector’s box, personally signed by Manny, that includes:
● The Manny doll, in full collector packaging
● An individually numbered collector’s card (1 of 500, 2 of 500, and so on) marking the buyer’s place in Men of Culture history
● A certificate of authenticity
● Additional surprises not yet revealed publicly
Presale buyers are also personally invited to an exclusive Zoom call to meet Manny and Ashley Head, live, on Sunday, August 16, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. PST / 1:00 p.m. EST. The call is the first in a recurring series of live buyer meetups planned throughout the rollout.
The journey began in 2009, when co-founder Ashley Head and a close friend traveled to the Dominican Republic and noticed something striking: not a single doll on the shelves had beautiful, natural, textured hair. In a country where so many people have exactly that hair, the toy aisle told a different story. That observation planted a seed.
In 2012, Ashley Head — a Morehouse College graduate, scientist, and self-described serial entrepreneur — commissioned his first prototype: a doll modeled after himself, brown-skinned with brown eyes. When it arrived from the manufacturer, his brown eyes had been changed to blue. He rejected it. The experience was a preview of the exact problem he was trying to solve — even in the making of a doll meant to represent him, his authentic features were altered without his consent.
Years later, after launching the Curls Poppin’ natural hair care line in 2018, he returned to the doll concept with renewed purpose. In 2019, he created the first Curls Poppin’ fashion doll from his own image — this time, on his own terms. His wife and business partner, Lindsey Head, MBA, told him to keep going.
He did. In 2021, Curls Poppin’ secured the first-ever doll line licenses at both Spelman College and Morehouse College, making it the first HBCU-licensed doll line in history. In 2023, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated joined the brand family, and Curls Poppin’ debuted its full line at the sorority’s National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Men of Culture is the next chapter in that legacy. Manny is modeled after a real man: Emmanuel Rodriguez, a Dominican stunt artist and model based in Miami, whose likeness, textured curls, and presence inspired every detail of the sculpt. His hair is rooted, not painted, and styled to match the natural texture and pattern Emmanuel actually wears. His body is fully articulated, with a sculpted range of motion — including double-jointed elbows — built to hold dynamic poses rather than a single static stance, a detail aimed squarely at collectors as much as at play.
Manny is the first of an ongoing series. Every subsequent doll in the Men of Culture line will be modeled after the likeness of a real man, with Ashley himself set to become the second release.
“Manny isn’t just a doll — he’s a movement. The response we’re seeing tells us this is shaping up to be one of the hottest toy stories of 2026, and we built it to reward the people who believed in it first.”
— Ashley Head, MBA, Co-Founder & CEO, Curls Poppin’ Dolls
About Curls Poppin’ Dolls
Curls Poppin’ Dolls is a San Diego-based hair product and toy brand co-founded by Ashley Head, MBA and Lindsey Head, MBA. The brand operates two pillars: Curls Poppin’ natural hair care products (hero product: Curls Poppin’ Amplifying Cream) and Curls Poppin’ Dolls, the world’s first natural hair fashion doll line and first HBCU-licensed doll line. The brand holds licenses with Morehouse College, Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Tuskegee University, Jackson State University, Virginia State University, Prairie View A&M University, Hampton University, Howard University, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and is onboarding to Walmart.com. Curls Poppin’ Dolls received organic recognition from Daymond John on his personal social media on June 3, 2026. Visit www.curlspoppindolls.com.
Media Contact
Ashley Head, MBA
Curls Poppin’ Dolls
ashley@curlspoppin.com
646-570-7566
curlspoppindolls.com
