Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in beauty and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Mai Le, Founder of MaiLash & Brows, located in Scottsdale, AZ, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are a salon that provides eyelash extensions and semi-permanent makeup services. We also certified professionals who want to pursue this career. Using our own products, we aim to provide our clients with the best quality products in our services. Both men and women would benefit from having lashes and permanent makeup.
Tell us about yourself
I was in a completely different industry before I started MaiLash & Brows. I was working in retail banking at the time. Realized there was a need for women to look presentable for work yet have no time. I decided to quit my safe 9-5 job and enter the beauty industry. Seeing my clients smile and making people look pretty is very fulfilling. It gets addicting when you see people are happy because of small changes aesthetically. It became my therapy, and I strived to be the best I could be for my clients.
I started out with just myself in 2015, and within two years, I grew to have a storefront. We opened our first official MaiLash Brows storefront in 2017. In 2022, we are moving towards franchising different locations within Arizona.
From the beginning and until this day, what kept me going has always been my family. We used to live on food stamps. There were so many times we had to think twice at every grocery shopping, even if it was just for a bottle of milk. I work extremely hard to build the salon and our Academy. The good thing is that it never feels like work when you feed into your passion.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
In our salon spectrum, we have grown to 15 artists providing eyelash extensions, semi-permanent makeup, and tiny tattoo. On the other hand, our Academy has certified hundreds of professionals across the States. Working on our goal, we are on our steps to franchising our salon.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest parts of being an entrepreneur are not financed, inventory, or customers. The hardest part is employee management, learning the diversities and personalities within your team and still manage to work with and make that team grow. This is what sets an entrepreneur out from a solopreneur. If you want to be successful and go far, you need the power of the whole team. The bigger the team, the bigger your success is!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Learn, always learning. Learn as much as you can on different aspects of the business. This is where you find answers to all constant arising issues.
- Don’t give up!
- Keep going! After each failed attempt, you learn valuable life lessons in business.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.mailash.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mailashbrowstudio
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mailashbrowstudio/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mailashbrows
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Turn your craft into recurring revenue with Subkit. Start your subscription offering in minutes and supercharge it with growth levers. Get early access here.