We recently connected with V Heiland and have shared our conversation below.

V, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Success can be viewed and measured in many ways. but at face value you may think about someone who is wealthy or famous. I have neither wealth or fame, but I do believe that I am where I am today because of my personal goals that I have accomplished. The self-worth that I feel when I think about how I flipped a side hustle to a full time job, is unbelievable in my own eyes. My goal was to work for myself, and when I quit my part time job to go full time with my henna business I would define what I do as a success.

So what does it take? Set that goal for yourself, then stay focused and work one step at a time towards it. Don’t wear yourself out trying to reach it overnight, but make consistent progress towards it and you’ll make it. I looked at it like each henna client got me closer to having a self-sustained business. So I worked steadily on getting new clients and doing more henna every chance I could. I will admit I was afraid of failing, or thinking about what others would think, or even wondering can something like henna turn into a fulfilling career. However, I had to tell myself that with each failure I was able to overcome barriers, and learn new experiences which would allow me to set my next goal and keep going.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Vidhi Heiland, but I just prefer to go by V. I was born in Mumbai, India and my family moved to Topeka, KS in 2001. I majored in psychology and minored in business at Washburn University. I got married in 2018 to my husband, and we have 4 amazing fur babies. I have always done henna as it’s a part of my culture that I grew up in, however I made my first decision to go full time in 2021 on the tail end of the pandemic. My hobbies include painting, watching Netflix, reading, and hikes with my family.

I had been doing henna as a side-gig which then turned into a part-time job after college. In college I had experienced severe anxiety and went into deep depression. During this time I found that henna was my source of comfort and healing, and that if it was healing for me I could turn it into something meaningful for others as well. At this time I realized that I could use henna as a way of connecting with people of all walks of life. My original plan was to graduate and find a job in psychology, however I decided to just find a part time job to gain some experience while I worked towards my goal of working with children. After a few years of having a part-time job and working for someone else, I found that I would much rather work for myself. So at some point in the pandemic I talked with my husband about going full time with henna and not working on someone else’s dream when I could work for my own. So, in 2021 I quit my part-time job and committed to pushing myself out of my boundaries and just focused on becoming “the” henna artist in Topeka.

When I talk about henna I want people to mainly know that henna is safe and 100% natural, if made correctly and with few simple ingredients. Henna comes from a plant that grows in different parts of Asia, which is then refined into a powder to be used for body art or hair dye. Many centuries ago, people used henna as a cooling agent, as well as body decoration and it also contains medicinal properties. I make my henna with 5 ingredients- henna powder, eucalyptus oil, sugar, lemon juice and water. I use henna as a temporary body art that can be applied/drawn on to anyone. The general rule for henna is to let the drawing/paste sit on your skin for a few hours and then scrape off the 3-D paste to reveal a stain on the skin. At first, the stain is orange and over the next 24-48 hours it will darken to a maroon/brownish stain. This stain will last anywhere from 1-2 weeks depending on how well you can take care of it! Just remember, always find a reputable henna artist that uses safe and homemade henna as there are some products out there that are made with chemicals and processed dyes which can be dangerous to your body/skin.

I also offer Jagua, which works similar to henna but it stains your skin dark blue. This is a dye that is derived from a fruit/berry that is native to tropical forests like North and South America as well as the Caribbean. Due to this being an exotic fruit, there is a small chance of having an allergic reaction. The reaction is nothing to be worried of, as the product is actually very safe to use unless you have allergies to berries or have sensitive skin. Due to the nature of this product, I only offer it to people 18 years and older.

The last thing that I offer as a part of my services is called Henna Crowns. I donate my time and supplies to do a henna crown on someone who is losing their hair to chemotherapy. If you know anyone that is going through a rough time and dealing with cancer, please have them reach out to me for a henna crown. I use slightly different ingredients from my original recipe to ensure that the henna crown is a bit more gentle for anyone who has a compromised immune system. The purpose of henna crowns is to bring some confidence, comfort, and an alternative to using a wig/hat or scarfs. Remember, henna brought me confidence and comfort during my depression, and I wish to do the same for others who are possibly going through a life threatening illness.

I take pride in what I do, because it allows me to hold onto a part of my culture which is one of the main reasons I love doing it. I can share everything I know with someone who is curious to learn about the background, origins, meaning, purpose of henna. Making this from a side-gig to a part-time job to a full time career has been very rewarding. I cannot believe that I am known as the go-to henna artist in Topeka, KS and my dreams don’t stop there. The main take away from this is that I use safe, natural, fresh henna for my clients and you should always ensure you are receiving the same no matter which artist you decide to go to. I have spent 10 years perfecting my recipe, expanding on my knowledge of henna and improving my design skills.
I have achieved what it takes to no longer refer to this as a hobby, but instead recognize that I am a professional artist. That doesn’t stop me from continuing to grow and improve as I keep trying to raise the level of henna designs I create every day.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

When I was attending Washburn University, I met an accounting major in class one day. This accounting major has been a big part of my business going forward, especially helping me turn it into a full time career. Don helped me form an LLC, pushed me to understand the business could stand on its own even when I did not believe so. He has allowed me to focus on the creative side of henna, while he worked on the website, logos, marketing, doing my taxes (of course cause he is an accountant) and basically picking up the back end of everything that I need to do to run this as a business. He has been so helpful that I fell in love with him and married him. With our two contrasting skill-sets we have both been able to pour in our minds into making this successful. I am thankful for him, and his ability to pick up the other 50% of this business.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

My reputation has been assisted by the fact that henna has been connected to my culture my entire life. There is authenticity behind my connection and passion for henna due to me being from India, and my clients have realized this. They know it isn’t a money grab but it’s actually me sharing my cultural passion with others and that I’m just thankful it makes a living for me. Another factor has been the Topeka market for henna didn’t really exist before I came on the scene. There were a couple people that did it as a hobby, but no-one that made it a full time commitment. Once my name was being seen in so many places (corporate events, festivals, birthday parties, etc.) soon my name became synonymous with henna in Topeka before I knew it. It’s interesting how people know of me but don’t know me. I always have henna on and I get compliments at the grocery store, and when I say “thanks, I’m the henna artist” then their face lights up while they say “oh yeah, my sister shared your page with me!”. One business card later I’m getting a facebook message to set up an appointment. I’ve been so fortunate to have clients that recommend me to their family and friends, but I guess it’s easy because they get compliments/questions about their henna tattoo everywhere they go. It just gives me that extra motivation to make every design absolutely beautiful because dozens, if not hundreds of people, will end up seeing that tattoo.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://essentialhenna.com/
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/essentialhenna
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/essentialhenna
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@essentialhenna?