We were lucky to catch up with Lia Abels recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Lia thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

I have always been into makeup. Since high school. I would sneak and wear eyeliner or lashes behind my moms back lol. She would catch me but it wouldn’t stop me. My sophomore year in college I had a roommate who did makeup really well. She would help to teach me a few things and after years of practice on my own face using professional makeup I was able to apply makeup flawlessly on my friends/family. I decided why not get paid for this and started to service clients. I worked out of the living room and bathroom in my apartment and was able to build a nice clientele list. Shortly after I had my daughter and so it pushed my MUA career to the back burner while being a full time mom. After spending enough time at home I decided to reopen my business. I was even more prepared this time around because I used that down time from working to really plan. I practiced more on my makeup, rebranded my logo, register my business officially, added my business to google maps and even purchased new and better quality makeup.
By this time I had found a space to open a makeup studio. I was prepared. I slowly purchased everything I needed for my studio week by week. I put together my couch, hung my sign on the street billboard, decorated and set up everything with my own two hands. I wanted to do it that way because it made it feel like an honest win. Like I’m really putting my own blood sweat and tears into this lol. That’s a part of being a business owner. Being active in every part of your business. Wether it’s physically or mentally.
I opened my makeup studio shortly after and it has been nothing less of a blessing.
My cosmetics line “Lia’s Locker Cosmetics” is a stem from my makeup studio. I created a vegan beauty line inspired by my favorite makeup looks. I have lashes, lipstick, and lipgloss of my
own which I use mainly on my clients. Creating my line took a lot of planning as well. I started to spend more time studying my clients skin. What colors looked best universal, what type of primer works best etc,. Eventually I found what type of products I liked best. I ordered samples and then spent even more time testing them out. It seemed like forever getting this beauty line started. Took months actually before I could release it. Finding the right prices and ingredients takes patience and time. I had a mood board I was going for so I had to be really precise and picky about a lot of things. Which I learned is okay. Your business is like your baby.
I plan to release new collections annually for women of all shapes,, colors, and backgrounds to simply feel beautiful in their own way. As what makes you unique makes you beautiful.

Lia, 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?

I first and foremost want to say that who I am, what I have and what I’ve done would be impossible without Jesus Christ my Lord and savior. Since I could remember I have been into fashion, makeup, and art. Anything that allows me to be creative. My family is from Kingstree, SC so I am a country girl at heart but moving to the city is what gave me a closer look at the beauty world, as it is very popular in south FL. Everyone always has their makeup done, hair done, dressing nicely and all. It was easy to be influenced by this.

Growing up I was a bit of a nerd. I always performed at the top percentage of my class and in high school I was in a program called the international Baccalaureate program. In these classes we did not mix schedules with the other students at school. We basically had one group of students and we took all the same classes with each other. So instead of being able to mingle with all the other kids in school I saw the same 30 people all day in every class. At the time I use to hate it but grew to appreciate being close to scholars from different parts of the world. One thing I will say is that there’s always a stereotype surrounding looks and education. Some people believe that if you look good you can’t be that smart or if you’re smart you may not look that good. This is a stereotype I completely hate. You can definitely be both! Brains and beauty is a real thing.
I must admit that there’s something about feeling beautiful inside AND out that gives me a level of confidence I never knew I had. I started off only wanting to perfect my craft for myself but decided I wanted to share that feeling with other women. To me. being expressive in this way is both positive and self caring. I aim to make women feel empowered and Chosen. Sometimes as moms, wives, daughters and friends we miss sight of taking care of ourselves. I know how easy it is to forget about your physical appearance, especially when you are juggling so many other hats in your household. But that is where I come into play. I remind women of how gorgeous they are, how strong they are, and how special they are to their families. I love it when I finish servicing them and they are in complete disbelief and awe at how amazing they look. I just tell them “that’s you girl, you really are that beautiful!”
But my mission doesn’t stop there, I cater to the inner beauty as well. During appointments me and my clients exchange our life stories and give advice and support to one another. I love hearing about their walk in life and the impact they’ve made. I gently remind them of all their great qualities.
At Lia’s Locker I also like to serve and give back to my community. I recently just did a back to school giveaway and was able to help many families with free book bags, supplies, and I even serviced high schoolers with free lashes. I hope to continue the tradition every year going forward.
Currently I provide services such as makeup appointments, lash installation, eyebrow grooming and tinting, I also even offer makeup classes. My dream is to be able to service all of my clients using nothing but my cosmetic brand products, Lia’s Locker Cosmetics. As of now I have lashes, matte lipstick kits, and lipgloss available for use and purchase. My products are not only vegan and cruelty free but they are truly some of the most beautiful cosmetics I have ever seen. My favorite is a matte red lipstick that I have called Selena (named after my daughter). It’s a universal red and looks good on every single complexion shade. My cosmetic line is like a sister company to my makeup studio. It’s composed of my favorite colors and styles I’ve grown to love over the years as a MUA.
I am most proud of the fact that I am a single mom creating a future for me and my daughter by doing something I absolutely love. I am passionate about everything I put my hands into, that’s what separates me from other MUA. I do not do what I do to solely create revenue, but I want to make an impact on others. That’s when I feel I know I am walking in my purpose. I had a client tell me recently that while she was on a date night with her husband that he whispered in her ear all night telling her how beautiful she was and that he loves when she gets dolled up. I was blushing like it was my man lol, but hearing things like that really warms my heart. I’ve even had a client of mine cry after a service because they couldn’t believe it themself how great they looked.

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

The most effective strategy I would say for growing my clientele would be honestly just talking to people. Wether online or in person, networking with others has proven to be a successful approach to gaining clients. So if im online, like Facebook, I join beauty groups in my area. These groups are filled with thousands of people that need what I offer. So it’s really easy for me to gain new clients online. Whenever I see someone post about needing services I will inbox them, show my work, engage in conversation with them, and answer any questions they may have.
I also like to take weekly trips to my local beauty support store and cosmetics store. I always find clients at these 2 places. Usually there’s someone there looking for a makeup artist or have an event coming up that they need one for. Again, engaging in conversation with them and answering any questions they may have about prouducts, lash styles or foundation matching. Giving beauty advice is free so I never mind giving it out. One thing I always say is a benefit of being a business owner is you always have a reason to talk to people lol.
When I do speak to the people I meet I always always exchange contact info and make sure to show them pictures of my makeup portfolio work. Networking like this has really opened a lot of doors for me and led me to meet some really amazing people.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I used my job to find my business. Before I became a MUA full time I was working full time in the accounting/finance admin world. I work for some of the biggest companies doing accounts payable and recoverable, I also did office management and financial administration work. I would get paid every 2 weeks and would take money from each check to get something done. It took me several months of course because I had to spread out my spending since I still had my own personal bills and obligations. So for example one week I got my LLC, the next paycheck I paid the deposit for my space, etc. I will say though that it wasn’t always major moves or purchases, sometimes it was simple things like getting a rug to decorate my space with, or just buying sanitizing products that I would need to use. A couple of months down the line I had everything I needed to open up shop and really get my business going.

Contact Info:

• Website: Liaslocker.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/liaslocker
• Other: Instagram.com/liaslockercosmetics Instagram.com/msliatoyou Email: liaslocker@gmail.com