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

Hi India , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

One of the biggest risk that I’ve taken in my life is when I decided to go to hair school at the age of 26. Majority 18-year-old young ladies and was out of my element.

I didn’t have any experience in the beauty industry and on a whim, decided to pursue it.
I grew up straightening my naturally curly hair. So While pursuing this new career I was also learning how to style my natural curls. It was life changing. As I was learning to love my hair In it’s natural state it became it’s healthiest and strongest state.
It felt like a hair detox. And I wanted other women to feel the same way about their hair. I also learned less is more.

After I graduated cosmetology school at Paul Mitchell the school I got hired at PR at Partners salon in Downtown Washington DC. I started as a receptionist to get my foot in the door. Eventually I started their apprenticeship program to get hands on experience. I trained under one of the owners, Winston Thompson. He is know for his lived-in color and is still a mentor today. After I completed this apprenticeship I moved out of state to San Antonio, Texas. I was dated someone in the military and fall in love. After relocated I scouted to find the perfect salon. My goal was to apply to 3 salons. I only found one. The salon was a small business started by Lisa Weller. She’s a talented stylist that has been feature in allure magazine and works fashion weeks in Milan, London and Paris every year. She ran an intense program and I was lucky to get hired. When I interviewed she was in Europe for Fashion Week. I got hired! Is ok. During my first week I found out she was very particular and doesn’t just hired anyone to become a Twirl girl. After an intense year at Twirl I left. Things didn’t not work out in my personal relationship and it was in my best interest to move Back to Washington DC. I return back to PR at Partners in October 2019. A few months before the start of the Pandemic. I took two steps back in my career when I over to SA. When I got back to DC I had to rebuild my clientele. During March 2020 I was furloughed. It lasted 3 months. It was a really scary time for me. I got my first job at 16 and have never had a problem finding a job. For the first time in my adult life I did not work. It’s was a tough time for me. I also lost my Dad at 59 years to a heart attack and my Uncle and sister committed suicide in the 2020. That year I survived, divorce, losing a parent sister and an Uncle. 2020 was a year of lost. I also become more included in the community. With the BLM protest I attended as many as I could. I also became an election poll worker. I wanted to do as much as I could to help my community.

Eventually, I was allowed to go back to work and focused on rebuilding my clientele. In the last 2 years I had the privileges of servicing high profile woman. A few of these women were the first women in the position that they are in. It has been an hinted and inspiring.

Currently I am a curly specialist. I’m starting a Wella master colorist program this August and am always continuing my education. My motto is healthy hair first. I discovered a lot do women never learned how to properly care for their hair.
I consider myself a hair therapist. I want to get to the root of my clients’ challenges and create a regimen to help them have the best hair of their life. Hair is not serious but important. When my clients are in the salon it gives them a chance to relax and unwind. Sometimes they take meetings. Others are just happy to have a couple of hours to themselves . It feels good to help them become the best version of themselves.

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?

Being in the hair industry wasn’t my original career choice. It got into the beau try industry when I started to focus on my own hair and wearing it in its naturally curly state.

I want woman to become the best version of themselves. I want them to follow a hair regimen designed by me. So they can have the healthiest hair of their life.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

The best source of new clients for me is word of mouth. There are so many free tools that will help you reach new clients. However, when I find a client that I mesh well with I always ask her to send me all of her friends. They tend to be like minded and have similar qualities. Also, referrals are amazing. It’s an honest review from someone that has already experience a service with you. Social media is great. But it doesn’t always set realistic expectations.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What’s helped me build my reputation within my market is staying true to my goals and purpose. I want to help women become the best version of themselves. I want to educate them to create a regimen for their hair care.

Contact Info:

• Other: Instagram: @IndiaTravisHair

Image Credits
Photos were taken by me.