Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ashy’li Willis. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Ashy’li, thanks for joining us today. Often the greatest growth and the biggest wins come right after a defeat. Other times the failure serves as a lesson that’s helpful later in your journey. We’d appreciate if you could open up about a time you’ve failed.

I believe like most business owners failing is necessary for the growth of your business. I personally have failed many times while pursuing goals that I felt were impossible for someone like me to achieve. When I first discovered the permanent makeup industry it was during Covid. I remember sitting in my room working a seasonal job at Walmart, asking God to reveal the plans he had for my life. I came across a woman teaching course on how to do micro blading. Prior to this I had never heard of the permanent make up industry, but as I did more research I was intrigued and felt as if God answered my prayer. I’ve always been into beauty mainly eyebrows, in high school I would do my eyebrows every morning along with some classmates and a few teachers. Once I seen how profitable the industry was I immediately wanted to jump in head first. Starting out it was a struggle to get a certification due to low funds but I was committed to obtaining it and pursuing this career path. Two years later I came across ombre powdered brows which was another permanent makeup service. After comparing I decided that ombre brows was the certification I would be most comfortable with. I thought once I received my first certification the clientele would instantly start pouring in but I was mistaken. I didn’t know anything about marketing to my target audience and how to build a community that would trust me enough to tattoo permanent eyebrows on their face. This lead to a lot of disappointment. I started asking family members and a few friends to be models for me at no charge. As I began to move from working on practice skin to actual humans I realized I needed a lot more training, this also was discouraging knowing how long I had waited to get my first certification. As time went by I felt that maybe I heard God wrong but he would continuously show me signs not to give up. With consistency and faith I pushed forward in my pursuit to make it in this industry. Though I’m not exactly where I want to be I have obtained more knowledge, experience, and certifications current day. When you fail it can be easy to throw in the towel and call it quits but now I look at my L’s as lessons and growing pains. Instead of rushing to an invisible finish line I now take pride in enjoying the journey trusting that everything will go as God has planned for my business.

Ashy’li, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Ashy’li, I am the founder of Ameerco Cosmetics my brand is apart of the permanent make up industry. I specialize in Cosmetic Tattoos such as ombre powdered brows and lip neutralization this is semi-permanent methods to enhancing beauty features. I also, specialize in eyebrow lamination and tint, eyelash curling, and ombre brow removal. The goal is to create long lasting results that will save clients time and money in the long run. I officially started my brand in October 2022. I joined this industry to help boost confidence in others, I also thought it was a unique trade. I was amazed at results I seen other artist able to provide their clients and wanted to be able to do the same. I am most proud of the opportunity to teach others the skills that I have acquired over the years.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

When I first discovered the permanent make up industry the courses were extremely expensive. I was unable to afford a certification at that current time. I told myself that once I got enough money I would invest into starting my business. I waited an entire year until tax season to make my first invest. The following tax season I invested into the equipment I needed to get started. Little by little I would use money from my 9-5 to grow my business. I invested into legal documents, marketing, and gaining more knowledge as time went on. The advice I would give to anyone pursing entrepreneurship is write the vision and make it plan. Don’t believe that you have to start off with it all figured out. Trusting yourself is the first step to success, oftentimes you won’t be consistent if you don’t even believe in yourself.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

In the industry that I am apart of it is mandatory to have a relationship with your clients. These are semi-permanent services which means the results will or will not last up to years at a time. Following up about healing process, touch ups or any concerns is how you build trust and retention.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.styleseat.com/m/v/ameercocosmeticsllc
• Instagram: Ameerco.cosmetics
• Facebook: Ameerco.cosmetics