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

Alright, Pa’Koulajp thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

The biggest risk I’ve ever taken is starting my business. I knew that my parents wouldn’t support this path of mine. It was so new to me and I had absolutely no idea how to run a business.

I am the oldest of 4. My parents are refugees from Laos and my siblings and I are the first generation born in the US. As the oldest, first gen, AND, a daughter, I had a lot of expectations. I was supposed to be proper. I was supposed to become a good house wife and daughter in-law. I “had to” go to college. This was the only way to become successful in this country. That’s what I was taught.

Growing up, I always knew that I was different. I didn’t know why, but I just felt it. I always knew I was going to become someone special one day. I always told myself, “Grandma did not bring my family here to the states for me to become a nobody. I am going to become something big.”

My parents believed that art, sports, and technology, were only hobbies. I had to become a doctor or a lawyer. or maybe an educator like them in order to succeed. They always preached about, they still do to this day, how they came here with no educational background and didn’t speak English but were able to go to college. And yes, I understand the struggles they went through and the amount of work they had to do in order to succeed and get into their careers. But, that’s not what I wanted. I never wanted to take the “normal” path. I’ve heard it one too many times that what I wanted or was interested in wasn’t “normal.”

“Girls are supposed to be proper and listen to their families and husbands.” I was not this. I’ve always been outgoing and a hot head and sort of rebellious. Not in bad ways, I just didn’t want what they wanted for me. I wanted to create my own path in life, but society and the cultural and generational differences made it so hard.

I always loved art. Anything that had to do with art: art class, music, graphic design, photography, videography, etc. When my parents would ask me what I wanted to do when I grew up, I always said things like, “singer, artist, web designer.” All I ever heard from them was, “No. That’s a hobby. You’ll never get a job doing that.” So when you grow up hearing this all the time, eventually, everything washes away. By the time I reached my senior year, I was no longer doing any of those things. I stopped drawing. I wasn’t singing anymore. I also stopped playing around with computer programs.

Right after high school, I got my Associates Degree in Accounting from the local tech college. I accelerated in math and was good with computers and spreadsheets, so why not? A year after that, I got my first corporate job and worked there for about 5 years. In between that time, I also decided to go back to college, but this time, at a 4 year college. My job, it paid the bills, but there was something missing. I needed more. I evaluated the potential growth in my current position at my job, and it just wasn’t there.

In 2015, my grandmother passed away. 2015 is the year I hit rock bottom. I finally realized that I was not happy. I wasn’t happy with my marriage. I wasn’t happy with my job. I wasn’t happy about the person that I had become. For the last 26 years of my life, I was trying to live my life to please everyone else. All of my ideas, my passions, shut down. I didn’t know who I was anymore. In 2016, my husband and I split. I moved back in with my parents. I was lost.

And then I met him. My husband now. He said to me way back when, “Just do it. I’ll support you.” I’d never heard these words before. My whole life I’d always heard, “No.” And so, I did it. For the first time in my life, I took control and did something for myself. All I ever needed was 1 person to help me believe in me again. I quit my full time job and enrolled in my nail program. Right after graduating, I opened my business. I made it a goal to never have to report to anyone ever again. I’ve finally taken control of my life and became my own boss. August 2017, PLee Beauty, LLC was established. It’s been one hell of a ride but I don’t regret a single thing.

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

I started my journey in the beauty industry with nails. The first time I ever got my nails done was in 2010. I was 22. Ever since then, I became obsessed with nails. The problem I had was that I couldn’t find anyone to do my nails the way I wanted. And so, I started doing my own nails at home.

I started with acrylic. That didn’t go well. I found out that I couldn’t stand the smell of the monomer. It gave me such bad headaches. That’s when I discovered gel. Oh gel, my nail savior! And that is how I became specialized in gel. I do not use acrylic. All of my nails are done with gel. This is what made me stand out in the first place. There was no one else in the area that specialized in gel nails who provided an odor free service.

My business motto is, “enhancing your beauty, one set at a time.” I was never the popular kid in school. I was never a girly girl or the “pretty” girl. I was always a tomboy and was never comfortable in my own skin. It wasn’t until my mid-late 20s that I finally discovered who I was and then the glow up finally happened. Growing up, I always struggled to fit in. I didn’t quite fit right into any group. I finally realized as an adult in my 20s that I don’t need to follow the crowd and I can be perfectly beautiful and confident in my own way. I had to teach myself to love my body and that all I need to do is to enhance my beauty, not change it. This is the mentality that I wanted for my business. I’m not here to change you. I am here to uplift you and enhance the natural beauty you already have.

I started with only nail services, but over the years, I have expanded my skills into lash extensions, PMU brows, hair extensions, body contouring, fine line tattoos, and educating others as well. Along with myself, I currently have 4 other very talented artists working alongside me offering lash extensions and hair services.

Throughout my years in business, I found a passion in educating and mentoring others. I became the person I wish I had when I started all of this. I walked my path alone. I didn’t have a mentor or a team to support and uplift me. It was rough, but I pushed through. I’ve now created a space where I can help others become the best versions of themselves while becoming their own boss and creating the life they’ve always dreamed of.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The biggest lesson I had to unlearn is that family will NOT always be there for you and it’s ok. As bad as it sounds, it is the hard cold truth. I am Hmong American, the oldest of 4, and the first generation to be born in the US. In our culture, family is everything. We turn to each other during tough times. We come together to celebrate happy moments. I grew up thinking that my family was my biggest support system. But in the end, it wasn’t.

My parents didn’t support my interests and when I opened my business, they doubted me. It wasn’t the “normal” path to take so they automatically assumed that I would fail. Even in my mid 20s, they would still tell me, “You should just go back to college.” I thought that my family members would be the first to support my business, when in reality, it is complete strangers who supported me.

It took a lot of time to process this. In the beginning, I was hurt. I was so hurt because I finally accomplished something on my own that I was proud of, and all I wanted was for my family to acknowledge that I finally did this. I finally realized years later that I didn’t need their acknowledgement. For the first time in my life, I chose to do something for me that I am so proud of, and it’s ok if they don’t agree.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

I was broke as a joke when I started. The little savings I had at the time wasn’t even enough to cover my nail program. I knew I needed to do something different with my life, so I took the savings I had along with my credit cards and paid for my education. It was the same for when I opened the business. I had no money. I was bartending part time and had no start up capital. So again, everything went on my credit cards. I just about maxed every card I had at the time. It wasn’t the best choice, but, I needed to make this business happen. I had no knowledge back then that there were grants and business loans available to help with business startups.

I had debt collectors calling me because I was past due on some of my accounts. The only bills I paid on time were my car loan and my phone bill. Those two were my lifeline. It was my first year in business and there were days I wanted to quit.

Gaining clientele was hard in the beginning and business was slow, so I took on another part time job to pay the bills. Now I basically had 3 part time jobs: my business, bartending, and the other part time job. All I wanted to do at this point was to try and get by. Little did I know that picking up this last job would be the best free advertisement for my business.

I started doing my coworkers nails. Customers would come in and see their nails and mine and soon enough, I was gaining clients from my part time job. Business started picking up and I was finally able to start managing my bills better. Slowly but surely I built my clientele and the business took off.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pleebeauty.com
• Instagram: @pleebeauty & @bl_inkd
• Facebook: facebook.com/pleebeauty
• Twitter: pleebeauty
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@pleebeautyllc
• Other: https://linktr.ee/pleebeauty https://www.facebook.com/blinkd.birdie