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

Deja, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I never set out to start a business, especially not a nail studio. The idea for Beyond the Bars Beauty was born in the middle of chaos, exhaustion, and frustration. I was booth renting at a salon where the focus was all wrong and the rent was outrageously high, significantly higher than what the entire space cost to lease. It was clear we were being taken advantage of. It felt oppressive, like I was paying just to work, pouring into someone else’s pockets while getting little to nothing in return. I wasn’t about to keep feeding a system that profited off my labor without any real care for my well-being.
I had 30 days to make a decision: stay stuck in that system or take a leap of faith. I chose the leap. One of the women I was working with trusted me enough to leap with me. That alone gave me the strength to believe this wasn’t just a reaction, it was the beginning of something real.
We found a space quickly, a building in Cincinnati filled with other small businesses, creatives, and visionaries. It felt like the kind of place where something meaningful could grow. But what solidified my decision… what let me know I was on the right path was learning that the building used to be the county jail. I was 19 years old when I made a decision that changed the course of my life. I ended up serving 7.5 years of a 10-year sentence, an experience that shaped me, broke me open, and eventually pushed me toward something greater. I came home determined to live with purpose, not shame.
So when I found out the building I was opening my nail studio in used to be the county jail, I felt it in my chest. This wasn’t just a business move, it was reclamation. To create something healing, affirming, and full of life in a space that once represented confinement? That was divine timing. That’s when the name Beyond the Bars came to me. It wasn’t just a clever phrase, it is my truth. This studio stands for freedom, transformation, and the power to rewrite your story on your own terms.
From the beginning, I knew this would work because I wasn’t trying to build a “nail salon.” I was solving a deeper problem: this industry, like so many others, is built on gatekeeping, burnout, and underpayment. I wanted to challenge that. I knew I wasn’t the only one who needed a different kind of space. I knew there were other nail techs who just needed a shot, clients who wanted a slower, more intentional kind of care, and creatives who needed somewhere to just be.
Beyond the Bars is my offering to those who’ve been overlooked, underestimated, or locked out… literally or figuratively. It’s a reminder that beauty, liberation, and belonging don’t have to be transactional. They can be communal. And that’s what I’m here to build.
This isn’t just about nails, it’s about defying the odds and proving our stories don’t end with a sentence. I’m paving a way not just for myself, but for others returning home, who are still burdened by systemic barriers long after their time has been served. This space is living proof that we are more than our pasts, we are visionaries, healers, creators. And we deserve the chance to thrive.
So no, I didn’t plan this. But it’s one of the most intentional things I’ve ever done.

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’m Deja, the founder of Beyond the Bars Beauty, and right now we’re a small but mighty team of two (and now looking for other nail techs!). We each bring something different to the table, we both specialize in natural nail care, but our artistic styles are totally unique. That’s part of what makes the studio so special: clients get different perspectives, different hands, and different creative energy depending on who they’re with. It’s a beautiful balance.

I started doing nails as a way to support myself after coming home from prison. I was 19 when I went in, and I served 7.5 years of a 10-year sentence. Coming back into the world, I knew I had to rebuild everything from the ground up. Nails gave me that, a way to earn income, express myself, and reconnect with people while I went back to school. I’m now a senior at the University of Cincinnati and applying to law schools this fall, but nails have remained a constant for me.

Beyond the Bars Beauty isn’t a traditional salon. We focus on natural nails, builder gel, Gel-X, and intentional care. We don’t use drills, we don’t rush, and we don’t treat people like transactions. We’re here to create, to connect, and to hold space. Whether someone wants a bold full set with airbrush and gems or a clean, minimal builder gel manicure, we offer options without pressure.

What also sets us apart is how much we prioritize access. I am now offering affordable booth rentals to other techs who need somewhere to grow. I accept bartering when I can, because I believe community care should always come before profit. This is a space where people can be their whole selves, whether they’re clients, artists, or collaborators.

I’m proud of what we’ve built so far. Starting something from scratch, especially with a past like mine, isn’t easy. But we’re doing it with intention, and the response has been beautiful. What I want people to know is that Beyond the Bars is about more than nails. It’s about transformation, resistance, and joy, one manicure at a time.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

What’s helped me build my reputation is simple: transparency, values, and quality.

First off, I tell my story to every single client who sits in my chair. I believe people should know who they’re with, not just what I do, but why I do it. That kind of openness sets the tone. It creates trust, and it lets people opt into a space that’s rooted in honesty and realness from the jump.

Second, I’m unapologetically vocal on social media about my political views. I care deeply about justice, community, and liberation, and I don’t water that down. I think that draws the right kind of clientele, people who care about people, who want to support a business that stands for something beyond aesthetics. I don’t want everyone to book with me. I want the right people to book with me. And they do.

And finally, my work speaks for itself. I’ve built a reputation for creating nails that not only look good, but last. Most of my clients come just once a month, and many of them can go six to seven weeks without lifting or breaking. That kind of quality builds trust and loyalty. People know they’re getting intentional work that respects both their time and their natural nail health.

So between the story, the values, and the results, my reputation has been built on being consistent, real, and rooted in something deeper.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Honestly, I think my entire story is rooted in resilience. The fact that I’m running a business, working a full-time summer internship, finishing my senior year of college and studying for the LSAT all at the same time, is proof of that. Nothing about my journey has been handed to me or made easy, but I keep showing up.

What people don’t always see are the extra hoops I’ve had to jump through just to do the things others take for granted. When I applied for the space where Beyond the Bars Beauty now lives, I wasn’t just another tenant signing a lease. Because I have a record, I had to provide letters of recommendation and character references, things other people in the building didn’t need. I had to prove I was worthy of an opportunity that should have been based on my vision and my work, not a decision I made 10 years prior.

But I didn’t let it stop me. I never do. I leaned on the people who’ve seen my growth, who believe in me, and who were willing to vouch for me, and I got the space. That moment wasn’t just about securing a lease. It was about refusing to let a system that already punished me continue to block me from my future.

Resilience, to me, is continuing to push forward even when the rules are different for you, and doing it with purpose, vision, and integrity. That’s exactly what I’m doing, every day.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @Nailsby_ _dejaolivia @beyondthebarsbeauty

Image Credits

Lauren Hayes
Salena Steele