Meet ShayLa Smith | Hairstylist | Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with ShayLa Smith and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi ShayLa, what do you attribute your success to?
Hi my name is Shay’La. I am a hairstylist and entrepreneur based in Birmingham,AL. The most important factor in my beauty brand is success and maintaining my peace! No one tells you when starting a business all the obstacles you will have to overcome, the trials, the challenges, or even those days where you question is this really for me. I’m a young entrepreneur that started at the age of 16. By being so young people will try to get over on you. However, I have learned that I cannot please everyone and everyone is not the target audience for my brand. Nevertheless, we love those customers no differently than the rest!

What should our readers know about your business?
It’s actually a crazy story on how I started my beauty business. I tell people all the time the beauty industry chose me before I ever chose the beauty industry. I grew up in the salon because my mom, my aunt, my cousins, & my mom’s friends all did hair. I was always trying trendy styles and experiencing myself through my hair! I started doing my own hair when I was around 8 or 9. And I loved to make my hair into a bow or for my mom to do a rod set with popsicle sticks. At the age of 16 I got my first job at Tommy Hilfiger. The pay wasn’t that great but it got my feet wet to the world of retail. I was able to interact with customers, give them advice, & build relationships. So this definitely helped me when starting my own beauty brand. In 2020, the pandemic took a toll on the entire world and Tommy Hilfiger wasn’t paying for my expenses. So I was forced to take my “side hustle” seriously. In May of 2020 I launched my very own hair extensions line and my business went through the roof. My mom’s house was full of clients day in and day out. I graduated high school in May of 2021. After high school I went straight into beauty school and graduated in December 2023. Business has not always been great I have experienced the worst of the worst. Customers going on social media, unhappy customers, unreasonable customers and the most recent a customer that did not pay for their product or service. However, I thank god everyday for these obstacles because it is what is going to make me that multi billion dollar company that I know I have to offer.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my best friend was coming into town to visit me we would definitely have to take a girls trip to Bali or Jamaica. I love my city because it’s where I started and got off the ground. But it’s a small town with not too much to do that I would enjoy.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many key people that play a part in my story! Starting with my Aunt, she believed in me from the moment I sat down and told her I wanted to be a hairstylist. We brainstormed ideas, she let me practice on all of my cousins, & guided me along the way! Going from shop home to shop home definitely allowed me to see the ins and outs of the beauty business and running an empire. My current salon home is one of the best salon homes I’ve ever been in. Not because of the opportunities I’ve gained but because I have improved on myself as person, I’ve grown an even better relationship with god. & learned about myself as a young women! And in return I have created my very own community to help business owners like myself launch their brands, promote, market, get funding, work on their credit, & so much more! I’m so blessed and grateful for the opportunity!

Website: https://Www.snshairstudios.com

Instagram: https://Www.snshairstudios.com/connect