We recently connected with Aaron Scott Lacy and have shared our conversation below.

Aaron Scott, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Exploring natural hair texture started with a simple spark of creativity. I was curious to create and understand a variety of hair textures. However, I noticed a reoccurring trend, the majority of individuals that sat in my chair had never enjoyed a salon experience. Their opinion on salon professionals was typically shaped by a traumatic experience. They were told their hair was “difficult” which lead to feelings of disappointment, and broke any real trust with a professional. Clarity on this subject shifted my own perspective and had me determine what felt “right.” To provide a safe space for all hair types and make it my business to not only to be a resource, but to also share my knowledge with other aspiring stylists in an educational setting. Natural hair is in the majority, so let’s celebrate it’s beautiful diversity.

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 started in the beauty industry in 2005 as a haircutting specialist. My early years focused on precision cutting, think bobs & pixies. Ten years into my career I shifted gears and found my love for natural texture. Simultaneously I was training to become an educator during this period. In early 2020, I opened my first salon ‘Aaron Scott Lacy Hair,’ launched my independent education brand ‘A Simple Lesson for Curls,’ and was asked to join the Artistic Director Team for Innersense Organic Beauty. Balancing a full-time behind the chair, salon-owner role with part time independent educator, and clean haircare ‘Artistic Director’ position is continually fueled by passion and finding that perfect work/life balance.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I was trained by the best in the industry, DJ Muldoon. He is a career educator and provided me with all of the tools needed to be a proper educator. Spending countless hours assisting him during his live classes (loved every minute of it), opened me up to the power of his influence. Finding your own voice can be challenging. Since launching my own brand ‘A Simple Lesson for Curls,’ I’m continually reminded of all of the advice and lessons I learned from my time with DJ, but as I venture solo, it’s important to continually develop my own message while paying respect to the people who helped me get to this position.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

Opening a business is scary! My wife Celine and I had just purchased our dream home and put our entire savings towards the down payment. Then the pandemic hit and I needed to pivot my business into a private space. Being shutdown by the state for over 2 months made this a tricky maneuver. I expressed to Celine that the gamble would be worth it since I had already been in the early stages of being a business owner by renting a chair, managing my own books and handling all the social media responsibilities. Her stability as an Oncology Nurse gave us the opportunity to fund the opening stages of our salon space and we have been fortunate enough to succeed over our initial startup debt. We took a leap of faith and it paid off.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.aaronscottlacy.com
• Instagram: @aaronscottlacy @asimplelessonforcurls @innnersenseorganicbeauty
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aaronscottlacyhair
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/AaronScottLacy/videos
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/aaron-scott-lacy-san-diego?osq=Aaron+Scott+lacy