We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Karmiyah Xi Amaru a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Karmiyah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I have been doing hair since I was 10 years old. It made me feel good being so young and knowing how to braid and do extensions. Then I started noticing all of my clients even since I was young would say how much their hair was growing and how much healthier it was since i had been styling their hair. Last year I began researching more into reiki and healing frequencies and found out that transference of energy is most likely the reason why my clients are noticing such a difference when I do their hair. So I decided to expand the services I offer with my business. I am currently working on opening up a holistic health and wellness center and a salon as well. Seems like a bit much to focus on at once, but this wont be your average health and wellness center. I am approaching this idea in the most unique way possible, by allowing my passion for giving and helping people and sharing knowledge to lead the way. My center will provide classes of all kinds to better guide my clients to wellness. Such as Mindfulness classes like meditation, yoga, qi gong, reiki, and sound bathing classes. I will be doing consultations for my clients and answering any questions they may have about their health and wellness. I am currently on my journey to begin the process of becoming an indigenoous doctor and once I have completed my schooling I will be opening up my center and serving my community and welcoming those even without insurance and funds. I am excited to be on the right path to do what I love the most!

Karmiyah, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

First I would like to introduce myself. I am Karmiyah Xi Amaru previously known as Robrielle Price. And I am a wife and mother of 5 beautiful children. I am a hairstylist and I am known as Indie Reaux (Ro) my Brand is Culture by Indie Reaux, and I have been doing hair since I was 10 years old. It made me feel good being so young and knowing how to braid and do extensions. Then I started noticing all of my clients even since I was young would say how much their hair was growing and how much healthier it was since i had been styling their hair. I specialize in Braids and Locs. I am always watching braiding videos or loc videos to stay up to date with new techniques to try on my clients. I will wake up early in the morning around 5 or 6 am at times because I can’t stop thinking about braiding someone’s hair or retwisting someone’s locs. I am most proud of sticking with my craft for this long. I am known to not finish things and will drop it like a bad habit quick if my heart isn’t there. But with this I am driven and this craft is elevating me to newer levels I didn’t think were possible. The main thing I want my clients, followers and fans to know is that I have a drive from God(Allah) I have integrity and I am ready to help. I will always do my best to give the very best experience to help your day go by better. I make sure I take time out to prepare for each client so that I am not unloading negative energy onto my clients. This is another thing that sets me apart from other stylists. I take care of my clients before they even walk through the door. My clients are not just another number, I am not the “hurry up and get them in and out” kind of stylist. I do make sure I’m not taking up too much time but my main focus is comfortability. And I definitely take pride in that.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Last year in 2022 I decided to stop hiding from everyone and let people know who I am and what I do. A friend of mine had to talk some sense into me. She said “go make you some business cards and pass them out, the worst thing they can do is say no, and you have to be ok with that.” I was like “Dang, you right.” So I got up and had my husband take me to go make my business cards and then I went to the mall and passed them out. I got a lead from an old classmate and he suggested that I talked to the barbershop owner and see if I could work in there. I was kind of scared to do that at that time so I said “ok”, but I waited about 3 weeks. Once it got closer to the holidays I went up there to get a cut and the owner just so happened to be the one that cut my hair. So as soon as I was finished I asked if he was looking for a braider and he said “yes, how soon can you start?” I started that following week. I had so many clients that week I couldn’t believe it. Then the obstacles started to roll in. I was having a hard time keeping up with the booth rent. I had to pay house rent and bills and at the time I lived 30 mins away so gas was just fleeing. I had to part ways with the barber shop and I was sad and almost felt defeated, but something in me wouldn’t allow me to. I kept getting clients and did their hair at my house. Fast forward to present time and I recently moved to a townhome 8 mins away from the mall and received a call from the owner to go back and work in the shop. Resilience is the word of the year for me. I will always push through and shine!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been networking at events. Speaking with people and getting to know people so that they can remember our encounter with one another. I love leaving a great impression on people and watch them book with me just because I had great energy and they love my styles!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: indiereaux