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Nyakio Grieco

Alumni Spotlight

OU alum Nyakio Grieco celebrates business success with special homecoming


Nyakio Grieco cutting the ribbon during the opening of her store in Norman.

Nyakio Grieco’s smile grew with each familiar face that approached her. One by one, a homecoming party broke out inside Norman’s JCPenney store for the University of Oklahoma Price College of Business graduate. 

Grieco (B.B.A. ‘96) stood in awe inside Sooner Mall, where she frequented, and even worked, in high school. Her full-circle moment came decorated with red, silver and white balloons, framing the entryway to the new home for JCPenney’s flagship beauty brand, thirteen lune. 

While the brand launched just a little over two years ago, Grieco, the company’s co-founder, has taken the concept built on discovery and inclusivity from a novel e-commerce destination to the brick-and-mortar big leagues. 

Now living in Los Angeles, Grieco returned to cut the ribbon on the beauty concept that’s already launched in both Norman’s Sooner Mall and Oklahoma City’s Penn Square Mall. The brand is expected to be in 600 JCPenney locations by the end of Spring 2023. 

Price College recently spoke with Grieco on her latest beauty venture’s success.


How surreal was it to see your own brand in a Norman store?

It was such an amazing, powerful, surreal experience. It took me a couple of days to fully digest the magnitude of the gratitude and joy that I felt. There were people that showed up that I literally hadn't seen in decades and even friends of mine who don't live in Norman anymore. 

It was beautiful. Not only just having the experience in the store and this opportunity to be in partnership with JCPenney, but just to go visit my old high school, visit the Kappa house, visit campus and show my team – most of whom came in and are from New York and Los Angeles – Norman. 

I never really imagined that I would have a bunch of New Yorkers and Angelenos having lunch with me at The Mont.

How difficult has it been to get to this point in your career?

I think one of the greatest things that I gained from my childhood is the power to persevere and be resilient. Being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. At the end of the day, who wouldn't want to be their own boss? If it was easy, everybody would do it. Twenty-one years in, I am now in a complete place of gratitude for all of the challenges, the fall-down moments and having to get-back-up moments. All of the 'no's that I got. All the lessons and not listening to my gut on some of the ‘yes’s that I got, but it all led me to this place.

Success is really within a journey. There's not this light at the end of the tunnel. The success is actually continuing to learn and grow in the process.

I feel that at this stage of my journey, I just feel a deep gratitude that I finally figured out what I think is the secret sauce in business, which is aligning your purpose, your mission and your paths all at the same time.

Can you speak more to your mission with thirteen lune and empowering others in the industry?

I was a really passionate beauty founder for many, many years. But I often wondered, especially as the market became more and more saturated, what's my purpose?  

Yes, I was sharing my family beauty secrets and celebrating the continent of Africa and really trying to bring more attention to the continent of Africa and these regions from around the world. But from a purpose perspective, I was still constantly trying to find how my business could align with whatever it is that I was meant to do for the greater collective.  

And I think that is what the beauty of thirteen lune is. And it's that I'm getting to experience that every day, and that it's not just about being an entrepreneur that stays single business focused. Now I get to bring others along on the journey with me to help them achieve success.

Growing up around campus, why did you decide to stay home and attend OU?

I worried about going to OU, coming from Norman, that it would feel like more of the same. And it actually wasn’t.  

It was like moving to a new town when I moved to the dorms, and then ultimately my sorority house. It was lovely to have my dad (Dr. Jidlaph Kamoche) sometimes walking across campus and to have the option to go home.  

But it really did feel like I was away, because I was so immersed in the culture. It didn't feel like an extension of high school. It felt like an entirely new experience.

About OU's Price College of Business

The University of Oklahoma Michael F. Price College of Business has experienced significant growth over the past five years, becoming OU’s second-largest college with over 5,800 students. The college offers highly ranked undergraduate, master’s, executive and doctoral programs across six academic divisions. More information is available at price.ou.edu