We recently connected with Joi Brown and have shared our conversation below.
Joi , appreciate you joining us today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?
One afternoon , I had just plopped on my bed ready to crawl under the covers and cry my eyes out . This rush of emotion and sorrow came from me combing wads of hair out after washing my hair and exploring the patches of hormonal acne all over my face in the mirror . What was happening to me was postpartum alopecia and hormonal acne , that happens to many others after giving birth . As my sweet fourth month old , at the time , giggled and cooed ; I was cheering up for her on the outside but I felt so hurt on the inside. As a new mom there were so many things that we always learn about our sweet bundles of joy before they arrive , what’s happening to our bodies and theirs as they develop ; but never the postpartum effects . My largest defining moment then is what began my cosmetic company . It was when I felt in my spirit say to get up ! To encourage myself even when I could barely believe the words of life that I was trying to speak into myself . Pushing to say that I am beautiful and loved in the mirror with a face full of tears. I was at the defining moment where every herbal lesson from my elders , every health class that I had taken , and prayers that I prayed had to come together on one accord . After that moment I got up , created my first batch of hair and skin care products and saw results in 2 weeks. I was astonished and so happy all at once . Listening to my intuition and making these products led me to healing . I was so excited I had gotten on my social media platform and shared my story . I had an overwhelming amount of people that experienced the same things that I did . I felt heard , supported , and loved by my social media peers . I no longer felt alone and for that I was so grateful . What started as a ball full of anxiety in my chest , later turn into virtual hugs and support as I told my story online. Later I received so many calls and questions on purchasing my products. I was able to use these new products along with other products that I created for
my clients when I did facials or made personal items for case-by-case skin ailments. This was my first “handmade” products. After review and being inspected , it was ready to help the people who were experiencing what I had just gone through . Just like that my pain became my praise . My tears of despair definitely turned into tears of joy at the impact that was made with others. These beautiful people took on a healing journey using my products and I am forever grateful.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
My name is Joi Brown and I am the founder of Joli’ Cosmetics. I got into the skincare industry in 2018 -2019 and really began to expand within this last year. We have products that help to solve an array of ailments. We help alleviate black heads , white heads , eczema , psoriasis, rosacea , hyperpigmentation, acne , hair thinning due to hormonal change , beard oil , beard softener. We also have products that help with dry and oily skin. We have items for men & women and we also do face mapping to identify any issues of maybe food intolerances that can be told through the position of skin ailments. What sets us apart is definitely our connectivity to our community and clients . We have wellness checks via email and if our customer opts in we give them a call to see if anymore tips are needed or a few minute chat on any concern. I feel many other companies are very impersonal and may view a customer as just an order number , but at Joli’ Cosmetics you all are our family. When a customer chooses products and begin their healing we say that they are on their Joli’ Journey ! Joli’ is French for the word pretty and we believe everyone deserves to feel pretty in whatever way suits them best .
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson that I had to unlearn in this journey , was that your support may not come from the people that you expect . I had support from familiar friends and family but the amount of support from strangers was beyond touching . I also had to unlearn a habit of being discouraged when people wouldn’t like my post so I had no idea on my engagement . At the time the algorithms of platforms didn’t show you your views . So , I had to say even if only one person likes my business post they still can see it . I am still unlearning and relearning things as we speak . I just want to give the message out to others who maybe starting a business or doing something new to remember that you don’t have to know it all at once . Remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day and to always check for resources to help with things that you don’t know . You will be surprised on how much information you can find .
Have you ever had to pivot?
All I can say is COVID . Covid had turned my business , career , and entire life upside down . Before Covid I was working on my career and doing skin care consultation and facials on weekends. When Covid hit my job down sized and went virtual , a lot of child care facilities were closed , and doing facials was not an option . I had to literally pivot and start selling all of my products online . I had to set up a website and create inventory, trying to learn how to market , all while being afraid for myself and my loved ones lives . My parents work in the medical field and I had seen so many disparaging stories that I would be afraid when people would call . After research , doing my own website , and doing live marketing on social media I had done way better in the pandemic than I thought possible . I am still learning , but along the way I remembered to stay positive and work with a heart of gratitude.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.shopjolicosmetics.com
Image Credits
@photograford