Entrepreneur and Marketing Executive
CROWN Act
Orlena Nwokah Blanchard is an award-winning entrepreneur and innovative leader behind game-changing social impact movements and marketing programs for some of the world’s biggest brands. She is an astute cultural marketing strategist and one of the co-creators of the CROWN Act legislative movement to end race-based hair discrimination nationwide. Recognized on the Root 100 2022 list of most influential Black Americans, Orlena has been featured in numerous publications including Cosmopolitan, The Root, Ebony Magazine, 21 Ninety, and on podcasts like Potential to Powerhouse, Heads Talk, and Business of the Beat.
For 3 decades Orlena has been building value for corporations and communities alike. She is the Managing Partner of Seven Elements Group, a culture first strategy and marketing company that guides brands in building inclusive strategies that drive growth and social impact. She is also the founder and CEO of WonderTree Skin, is an inclusive beauty and wellness company working to drive social, economic, and environmental equity in the beauty industry.
Prior to her current ventures, Orlena was co-owner of JOY Collective, an award-winning and nationally recognized cultural insights marketing and creative agency that ceased operations in 2023. As JOY’s lead cultural insights expert and marketing strategist, Orlena spent a decade leading cultural marketing education and developing inclusive marketing strategies for a diverse portfolio of clients in beauty and personal care, sports and entertainment, healthcare, retail, financial services, and higher education.
Orlena serves as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors and head of the Governance Committee for Digital Pioneers Academy, a public charter school in Washington DC. Her past board work includes the Board of Advisors of BeautyUnited, the Mid-Atlantic chapter of the National Association of Multi-ethnicity in Cable (NAMIC), and as former Board President of the Washington DC chapter of The WICT Network.
Orlena is a multinational citizen raised in the UK, Nigeria and the U.S. She holds an Industrial Engineering degree from Purdue University and an MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. She is a fiercely proud wife and mother of three sons.