We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ericka Scott. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ericka below.

Ericka, appreciate you joining us today. Folks often look at a successful business and imagine it was an overnight success, but from what we’ve seen this is often far from the truth. We’d love to hear your scaling up story – walk us through how you grew over time – what were some of the big things you had to do to grow and what was that scaling up journey like?

I started doing makeup at the young age of sixteen. At the time, I was one of the youngest entrepreneurs in my city. Maybe the only teenage makeup artist on the Kansas City, MO side. So, as most could imagine it was hard for me at first to build clientele and prove to people that I was capable of doing great work. Yet, I had supportive parents who pushed me no matter what. My mother taught me to be a leader and to simply be kind from an early age. I know that my momma’s teachings played a major role into shaping me into the young woman and business owner I am now. I thank God for the talent I posses, yet talent alone didn’t open the doors I needed it to. It was being a genuine individual and appreciating each client who gave me the opportunity to showcase my abilities.

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

I have had a love for makeup, fashion, and essentially all the things that make a woman feel good, my whole life. I started off doing my own makeup for fun and posting pictures on Instagram. I noticed that whenever I would post a photo of me with my makeup done, it would gain a lot of attention but I never really thought anything of it. Then I slowly became some of my closets friends personal makeup artist. For a long time they were my canvases. Alongside my parents, my friends also challenged me to take my artistry to the next level and start a business.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I built an audience on social media by posting what I felt was true to me. Being transparent, yet maintaining a certain level of professionalism is what really sparked peoples interest in me. I share my beliefs, style, and uncensored self. My advice for girls and boys who want to build a social media presence is to be you. I know that’s the most generic advice anyone could give but people really appreciate a genuine soul. Also never post anything you have to second guess, your social media settings should be comfortable for you to abide in.

Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?

I’ve always been super dedicated to my business. In high school I would wakeup at 4am, take a client at 5am and head to school immediately after. I’ve had, hungry, sleep deprived, and stress filled days to ensure my business stayed afloat. Sometimes the sacrifices and the risks we take are definitely worth it. If I could go back, I would change nothing. The lessons I’ve learned can only be understood because I’ve worked very hard.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: erickarosie
• Facebook: Ericka Rose Scott

Image Credits
Shawn Riddle