With a new semester half way over, as college students both our bodies and wallets are being drained. While we can’t help but stick through the entire semester when it comes to our bodies being drained, we can do something about our wallets. Student entrepreneurs are Suny Buffalo State’s solution to this problem. Students use their talents to help out their peers and supply them with a service, keeping them in tip top shape but not breaking the bank. Irene Scott is one of these entrepreneurs. I had the pleasure of interviewing her in regards to her business.

What is your major and college level?                                                                                                      I am currently a junior, business administration major.

Name of your company and why did you choose that name ?                                                        The name of my company is Glorious Braids.  I’ve been doing hair since I was 8 years old. I started off doing my own hair. I started to see my talent as a gift from God. So the glorious came from biblical terms.

What is a fun fact or something may not know about your company?                               Sometimes I do hair for free. I do it out of love and kindness. Some people can’t afford to do their hair so I ensure that they look and feel beautiful while going through financial difficulties.

How did you start your business?                                                                                                             I grew up doing hair for fun. So, I started doing hair in college for fun. Started charging for hair in July of 2017 after orientation here on campus. My prices started at $50. People were telling me that my services were good, and I was even using my own product so I thought the best thing for myself and others was to start charging. Creating a business meant expanding the people who were coming to me but it also meant that this was an extra way for me to pay my rent and other bills.

What services do your business provide?                                                                                                I can braided styles such as box braids, cornrows, twists, middle part weaves, crochet styles but I also perm hair as well.

Irene Scott

Do you have experience outside of this business in the same field ?                                                 I never went to school for hair. I am self taught hair stylist. I ask people to let me do their hair for free so that I can get some type of practice. do a lot of people hair for free without them asking, A woman in a beauty salon was admiring my work and even opened up the opportunity where she will send some customers for me.  

What is your favorite thing about the business?                                                                              Being able to do someone’s hair and making them feel beautiful inside and out is really what I do it for.  I love when people feel happy. I love to be the cause of that joy.

What are the strengths and weakness of having a business such as yours ?                              Cons- Being a college student is hard enough, but not having much support from family and friends makes it even worse. I have to buy products myself and one bad review can affect a lot. The thing about this business is that there is a lot of gossip. People like to spread each other’s business. You must be careful what you say when doing someone’s hair.

Pro- I did a girl’s hair about two weeks ago and she messaged me on snapchat. She asked someone else to do her hair and they cancelled on her at the last minute. The hairstyle she wanted me to do was something I had never done before but I thought I could do. I didn’t want to lie to her so I told her I had never done it on anyone and she trusted me enough to do it. I ended up exceeding her expectations and just that alone is a pro for me. Having people trust me enough to do a style I had never done before simply because they believe in me makes me happy.

Irene Scott

Do you see your business expanding outside of SUNY Buffalo State?                                                I do see my business expanding outside of SUNY Buffalo State. This is something I enjoy doing and want to continue doing on a bigger platform. Eventually, I would love to own my own shop and hire employees. I think I can make a change in the community and I think I would be able to give back and enjoy what I do.

What have you learned by owning a business such as yours ?                                                       One thing I learned is that everyone’s hair is different and everyone is different. You have to be careful not to contract illnesses from people. The tools we use client’s hair, we use on ourselves as well. Remember to clean them. Some people have dandruff and/or scalp diseases you can contract. You also need patience. You have to do things to the way people like it not the way you like it. Do a few braids and then show it to them to ensure that your customer likes what they are getting.

Can you recall the best experience that you have had with your business?                                    It makes me happy having customers come back or having them post pictures on social media of my work. I also like when people or groups such as like KCC, a student run natural hair organization on campus called Kinks Curls and Coils, can acknowledge my work

How about a negative experience?                                                                                                            I think I’ve only had one. I did a girl’s hair and I did what I always do. I let her see the hair before I finished to ensure that she liked the style and she agreed to it. She then left and complained the next day about how it wasn’t the style that she wanted. I actually ended up giving her half her money back. It made me feel so bad because as a business owner you want your customer to feel good but thankfully majority of my customers happily come back.

Do you have anything that you would like viewers/readers to know?                                                If you would like to see some of my work, contact me or have any questions, here is my contact information: Instagram: @braids_irene or @Irenes2454, Cooking page: @afantestouch

Every other week I will be choosing an entrepreneur who caters to Buffalo State students to be featured here in the Buffalo State Record. You will be co-host an Instagram and Snapchat takeover with me on the Buffalo State Record’s accounts. If you know anyone who deserves to be featured here, contact me me on Twitter : @BlogwithB or Snapchat: bri-izzle