We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Emani Haynes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Emani thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.
I got my first through Instagram. It was the peak of the pandemic, I had just started my business, and she was one of my followers on Instagram. I purchased my inventory in 3s because that’s normally how they sell. I remember posting the three bundles that I had on my Instagram story and she messaged me saying she would like to purchase them. I was so excited, it was my first sale but I didn’t have a car. I packaged the hair up in the cute little bags that I bought from the Dollar Tree (lol), got in an Uber and delivered the hair to her. My Uber driver was so nice and happy for me, he turned his app off and took me back home for free. That day will always be special to me because I was so nervous, I didn’t think anyone would want to shop with me. She gave me a great review and continued to get hair from me, and it’s been up since then.
Emani, 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 Emani and I am the owner of The Sunflower Collection. I sell hair extensions and hair essentials such as bonnets, hair scarves, durags, and much more. I started my business in April of 2020 during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, when jobs were scarce to none. The Sunflower Collection’s mission is to provide luxurious hair extensions and great quality essentials to keep our fellow Sunflower’s hair slayed and laid. I am most proud of the uniqueness of my brand, from the name, to the logo. I take pride in it being different from other hair brands. Not many hair business owners are offering bonnets, and scarves. I put a lot of thought and creativity into the purpose of my brand and its products. Everything has to go together and be able to go hand-in-hand with each other.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I built my audience on social media by word of mouth. I promoted myself and my friends and family helped as well. When I gained enough followers and engagements – I began to do raffles and giveaways to increase my audience. I am also learning how to create content related to my business to gain more exposure. My advice to someone building their social media presence is to not be afraid to throw yourself out there. The first thing people can do is tell you “no,” but one no can help you run into five people that may say “yes.” You have to have confidence and you can’t let the successful social media influencers discourage you.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Social media has been the best source of new clients for me because everyone is on social media, literally. Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, everyone is on an app. When I tell people about my business the first thing they ask is, “Do you have an Instagram?”
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thesunflowercollection.co
- Instagram: @thesunflowercollection_
- Facebook: @theesunlowerco
Image Credits
@kaay_eye Max,@nahjustmax