Welcome to a Curvy Mom Blog. We are uber excited to have you within our community to share your story.
MEET Keisha Nelson from CeeCee’s Creations, LLC
What was your inspiration behind CeeCee Creations and have you always wanted to be an entrepreneur?
The inspiration behind Cee Cee’s Creations would have to be the way I’m pushing to work for myself. I have worked for major corporations in the past and it was a great experience, but I needed to spend quality time with my kids and find time for myself. And, working in corporate America was not allowing me those luxuries. Yes. The money was good, but the time away from my kids was the deterrent for me.
Now becoming an entrepreneur was always on my mind, but fear and challenges of life stagnanted me from pursuing my desire of becoming an entrepreneur. There were times the desire wasn’t looking so bright. Then one day I decided to pray, then I stepped out on faith. With faith and believing in myself, I knew I could do it. I just needed to make the first move.
Can you tell us a misconception about being a hairstylist that people often assume?
Yes, I feel the biggest misconception about us as hair stylists would be that each and every stylist is the same. Not all are different in their own way. Each and every stylist brings something different to the table. If you show a stylist a picture of what a client wanted to get done to their hair. Each stylist will tell you something different on how to execute their process. But the end result would be as shown in that picture. We all are unique and different.
What systems/programs do you use to help with time management and organization to better your business success?
Being a one woman show I use Appointfix for my appointments, which I love so much. I do all the advertisements, such as on Facebook,Instagram and other options that are either free or at an affordable price.
Related link: 7 Tips to Spring Clean your Business
What is a typical day like for you? How many hours do you spend on your business? Please breakdown by hours (7:00 am, 8:00 am etc.)
6:30 am: Wake up and pray
7:00 am: Workout
7:30 am: Shower
8:00 am: Check emails
9:30 am: Drive to work
10:10/15 am: At work (recleaning the shop)
10:30 am-4:45 pm: Full day work on clients anything from color to blowouts.
How do you stay motivated on the challenging days to continue with your business?
On day’s that are challenging for me, I stay motivated by keeping a positive attitude-no matter what challenges come my way.I face them! By praying and never letting that challenge get me down. Also, my kids help keep me on track. That’s how I achieve my goals.
Define what success looks like to you?
Well success for me… (smile), when my kids have a roof over their head, there’s food on the table, they’re healthy and have clothes on their backs. Most of all, I’m still in business and I have been able to knock out most of my business goals. So, I’ll say, I’m doing pretty good for myself. But, I can always do more!
During the pandemic how were you professionally and personally affected; can you share how you overcame the challenges?
The pandemic shut us down for about four months. I have amazing clients, because most of them paid for their services ahead of time. So,when I returned to work their services were paid for . Then there were two different contests that were held on Instagram and Facebook which I had filled out for and I won… I didn’t expect it. However, I did miss being at work and being around my clients. Also, during my time away from work, I cooked more, wrote out a few business plans for when I do return back to work. I had an action plan to revamp my business and I took a few courses online that helped me stay up to date with different hair color hairstyles. Yes, I took advantage of my time. Overall, the pandemic to me was OK.
Being a salon owner, mom, and wearing many hats that come with running a business, how do you self-care?
Self-care, what is that? Seriously, self-care is very important. It can be as small as just taking the day off to just do something for yourself. For me, I do take time for myself. It may not be as often as I would like, but I do take advantage of it when I take it.
Related link: 10 Self-Care Tips While Quarantine
How do you balance social media marketing and the day to day administrative tasks of running a business?
I use my time out of my day, while my clients’ hair is being processed with a treatment or a chemical (with my timer close by) or they are under the dryer drying. When I do/ don’t have my clients, I use my time wisely. I do paperwork, social media advertisements and anything else that I need to do.
How did you grow your customer base and following?
Referrals! ReferralsI Referrals! That’s the best word-of-mouth. Also, advertising on any social media and/or just when your clients are going about their day. They always get asked “who did their hair”after I’ve done their hair that same day, they’ll ask my client for my information. So it’s a lot of ways to advertise my business. I just have to be consistent.
What books would you recommend for entrepreneurs to read? Any books that inspire you?
For me, any type of anything that is inspirational, positive and uplifting. Those types that should help any entrepreneur in any way possible. Since I drive a lot I also listen to different radio stations on business or just the news stations to help inspire me as well.
What is the biggest pro to being a salon owner and what is the biggest con? What is one task you wish you could delegate?
The Pro:
I can do what I want within positive reasoning, especially during tax time. For example, I can write-off a lot of items which is a great great positive.
The Con:
Some days I may have to put in a lot of hours at work, so I’m always away from my kids and family. Sometimes I miss birthday parties and family gatherings. However, working for myself, I can create time management which allows me to attend these different family functions.
What advice would you give to a hair stylist who wants to become a salon owner?
My advice to someone would be to first work in a salon. The experience of being behind the chair and learning customer service skills, can help you put things into perspective/working with other people. Then you’ll be able to sit back and say to yourself “Hey, I can do this on my own, and be a people person”. However, you have to give the learning experience time.
What is next for CeeCee’s Creations?
Yessss! I have a lot of projects coming down the pipeline for CeeCee’s Creations, which I’m not sharing as yet. But, I will certainly share them with you when it starts to form into fruition.
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5 Spotlight Questions!
What is your daily self-care routine?
Getting as many body massages as I can. Lol
Best advice you received…
Favorite thing to do when you have alone time…
Watch NCIS
What would you tell your eighteen-year-old self?
What should I say? First, travel more, take time out to enjoy and learn yourself and set goals early in life.
What would be your natural talent if you weren’t doing this?
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Connect with Salon Owner Keisha:
Salon location: Waldorf, MD