Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal care but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Taiyaba Saleem, owner of Soft Touch Studio, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I help people become their best versions by enhancing their natural beauty with permanent makeup, among other treatments, as well as train and coach fellow artists in various beauty techniques.

Tell us about yourself

I have a background in fine arts, so I had already a passion for aesthetics, but I discovered that helping others through cosmetic tattooing and other beauty treatments was my true calling because I think enhancing what's already beautiful is a delicate, more challenging art where I want to leave my legacy.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Being able to keep a thriving business from scratch, starting and managing everything by myself along with my family's and friends' support, and seeing what a heart-warming impact in the beauty industry and PMU community I've built by nurturing and helping others achieve their beauty and professional goals.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Staying organized and consistent and accepting accountability for every risk taken, failure or loss, in order to learn and grow from it.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Don't gamble on it blindly. Do prior extensive research about every possible thing there is to know.
  2. Have a support system or prepare a backup plan in case you stumble hard along the way.
  3. Always treat everyone else around you kindly even though they won't sometimes and network (which also means staying relevant within your community). You are not below or above anyone else, and you cannot do everything entirely just by yourself.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Check out my mentorship program for Permanent Makeup / Microblading artists looking to build a successful business or startup after graduation at www.softtouchacademy.com.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.softtouchstudio.ca/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/softtouchstudio.ca
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taiyabasaleem_official/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TaiyabaSaleem

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.