We were lucky to catch up with Nia Gilleylen recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nia, thanks for joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

What I think it takes to be successful is of course the core things: passion, being committed, ambition, staying focused, having a plan and executing it. You have to forever be a student, being willing and open to learn more. But I think the major key to being successful is by keeping God first in your life and being obedient to His will. You can have all these plans for yourself, but if it doesn’t align with what God has for you, it won’t work. He already has our life predestined for us and His plans for us will never fail. It’s just the matter of being led by Him. Once you do that, you’ll have so much peace along the way. Don’t rush it either. Enjoy the journey and be exceptional in everything you do.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Nia Alexandria Gilleylen and I am the CEO of N. Alexandria Empire. I officially started this business in December of 2017. In April of 2017, I did my very first big chop. I’m very versatile when it comes to my style and I knew I would want to change my hairstyles as I pleased. I started researching on how to make my own wig by hand and went through with it. My friends as the time really liked my work and I started making wigs for them. They encouraged me to open my business for the public. At first I didn’t really know if I should but I went for it. It started off as ‘Wigs by Nina’ then I changed it to ‘N. Alexandria’ and later added ‘Empire’ to complete it. In 2020 is when I taught myself how to make wigs on the sewing machine, which make the process more efficient and in ’21 is when I opened my website to start selling hair extensions. I now offer hair ranging from Brazilian, Burmese, Cambodian, Indian, and Vietnamese. My brand is more than just hair and wigs though. It’s also a ministry, reminding women that they are fearfully and wonderfully made. Healing, deliverance and bringing awareness to your purpose also happens. N. Alexandria Empire provides quality and luxury wigs and extensions. The brand is still growing and is continuously being a light to everyone.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

There are three things that I found most effective when growing my clientele and customers. First, I wrote out a confession for my business. One part is a goal for how many customers I would like to gain. Along with that desire, I pair it with a scripture and I declare it everyday. The second thing would be by word of mouth. If you operate exceptionally and put create quality work, not only will your customers come back, but they’ll brag on your business or it’ll get recognition in public. The third thing I found most effective is marketing. I’ve really been on top of my marketing lately and have been strategic and intentional when it comes to releasing content and making posts. Like I tell everyone, post your content. Don’t wait for the ‘perfect’ moment. There is no better time than now.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

So I do have two vendors that I receive my extensions from. I did my research and testing before putting it out. I’m grateful that God led me to some great vendors that I didn’t have to spend a lot of money trying out different ones. In the future, a goal of mine is to manufacture my own extensions. I really look forward to that.

Contact Info:

• Website: nalexandriaempire.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/n.alexandriaempire?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NiaGilleylen?mibextid=ZbWKwL
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nia-gilleylen-973907140

Image Credits
Mara’s Memories, Stella Shots, and Shots by Sesame