We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ricka Graves. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ricka below.
Ricka, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today
Ownership. After a decade plus of consistent dedication and ingenuity to make our business stand the test of time, we were forced to close our doors due to the sale of the Metropolitan Pkwy plaza where we were located. With just a simple stroke of the pen, the property owners gave us 60 days to transition a 5000 square foot business elsewhere. That’s all. This is currently happening all over the Atlanta area as the “revitalization” of the city or what some debatably think is a form of regentrification. With the changes being made around the City of Atlanta, many landowners around the perimeter are cashing in their land plots during this modern-day “gold rush”. Large conglomerates are in search of commercial property for expansion within the city limits at an unprecedented rate. As a real estate professional, I can see the benefit of this for business, and the economy of the communities, however, as per usual it places our people at a disadvantage. In hindsight, as a small business owner that started with barely enough capital to get the basic resources to open the business, the location was a good choice because it was affordable, and due to the being a more run down area back then compared to higher income per capita business communities, it was an opportunity to break into a dream come true, Entrepreneurship. Like most people of color, we did not have the outstanding credit history or the inherited nest egg to prepare us for purchasing commercial property. This is something we can redirect our focus on more today as so many of us have made profound improvements by using our creativity during the pandemic to find means to earn a living that turned out to be blessings in disguise for some. It is our community’s dollars that drive the economy and our energy that brings this interest to once-overlooked places, so I think today with there being more programs available than 12 years ago there will be a stronger possibility that we can begin to purchase commercial spaces. With the advances of the internet, social media platforms, and so many successful small business owners who give back, it is much easier to come together and find solutions with just the touch of a button. This is a very important step and now is a good time to reprioritize to make generational wealth such as real estate ownership for the businesses we start up a cultural norm so that the future hopes and dreams we have for the next generation will stand less risk of being torn away.
Ricka, 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?
Well, I am the Founder and CEO of the Strands Beauty & Barber Salon which was featured previously as a hidden gem in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. We opened in 2010 and grew to become a pillar in the community. Over the 12 years of being in one location, I employed well 100 plus operators that I considered to be small business owners. That is one of the things that set us apart. Our focus has always been on family business and by family we mean humanity. So our doors remained open for anyone looking for a place to call home and many did just that. I was able to encourage many Stylists to brand their own products, start online businesses as second streams of income, formally set their own services up as legitimate businesses, create websites, and just overall believe in themselves. Some of these people had survival stories as we all do and it has been a part of our mission to let them know that they are not in this struggle alone. Some even branched out to open their establishments and others, like my daughter, Esthetician and Owner of the Lashed by Ki. She has taken off with talent and is now offering classes around the country. After covid, we began to offer special rates to Traveling Stylists and surprisingly it made way for Strands Salon Atl to become a nationally recognized establishment as well. I was interviewed by an HBCU in Chicago and was astounded that students there said they had heard of us! Simply put, I am passionate about inspiring people to be their best and love what they do for a living.
Now, We are still fostering this initiative and sharing our enthusiasm in a different way. The unexpected changes in our establishment brought about our blessings in disguise as we are fortunate to partner with the Ideal Salon Suites, founded by the Illustrious Dr. James and which is also located in the Southwest Atlanta community. The facility boasts over 30 plus individual and conjoined Salon Suites with immaculate taste and amenities that are sure to bring that same upgrade to an area that I am proud to call home. Being born and raised in the Campbellton/ Ben Hill Atlanta community this project is near and dear to my heart and I was elated when Dr. James brought the opportunity to include the Strands Salon Atl Business Model with his business brand. Thankfully Dr. James also OWNS the plaza, so it gives us even more pleasure to participate in growing this business mall that is strictly dedicated to Small businesses and especially the Beauty industry into a conglomerate that will bring life back to that area’s economy. Let’s hope that it will become as well renowned as the Strands Beauty and Barber Salon location also grew to be!
Strands Salon Atl is also doing some new individual projects that are set to launch soon!
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Ironically, we’re speaking about the topic of resiliency as RESILIENT is one of my favorite words. Back in the days when Strands Salon experienced what we call a downturn, I began working a “side job” as a mail carrier. The manager called me resilient one day when she discovered that I had been working the physically demanding position full-time job while running the business weekends( with the help of my Mother), maintaining a household with my four children, and also combating the stressors of having a spouse that was at the time incarcerated. On top of that, I had the audacity to try and convince her to give me more hours and she said to me “I know one thing, you are Resilient! No one would ever look at you and think that was your story.” It made me realize that I was stronger than I gave myself credit. It is the story of many people that become successful. Usually, something happens in their life that leaves them no choice but to go within and pull out the hidden gems buried therein so that they can keep going. Most times it is those same hardships that open the way for their wildest dreams to be made manifest. That is why we should always strive to remain in a state of continuous Gratitude because as long as we never give up anything is possible.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
In business, I unlearned the idea that “Business is always JUST Business”. Strands Beauty & Barber Salon took on a life of its own, inevitably becoming its own person. Like us people it evolved, at times I had to nurture it, sometimes protect it, give it room to grow beyond what I expected it to be, and then the day arrived that I had to face accepting that it transitioning into something totally new. Like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly, Strands the Beauty and Barber Salon has now ended and Strands Salon Atl, an online Health & Beauty community has taken its place. So you see, I learned that business is not just business when you have invested so much time and energy into it, the lifecycle of a business is not much different than our own.
One of the most important lessons that Strands Beauty & Barber Salon taught me is that BEAUTY is more about how we see ourselves than how others view us. Although the Beauty industry appears to focus on the Aesthetics of the surface level, there is a lot of beautification that takes place within the Salon business that is beneath the surface. Have ever heard a Stylist say that they feel like a therapist? I can attest that it is true to some extent. Your clients and the Stylists become to rely on one another and there is something about the whole “letting your hair down process that makes people release and open up to you. You have to be prepared for this and sometimes someone like me will have to learn how to separate the woes of others from my own or develop tough skin so that you protect yourself mentally from being constantly bombarded with so many people’s energy. I found myself doing more than just operating a business and also doing as much as I could to assist my Stylists and sometimes clients with situations in their personal life as well. I realized that finding solutions to problems relieves so much of us that we are literally beautifying ourselves by taking care of these things. When we feel good about our lives, our appearance gets a boost as well, our self-confidence increases and supports the way we present ourselves to the world, we shine!
For me, as the founder and CEO, the brand has never been just a business idea or just a way to make money. It’s always been about utilizing the business as an avenue to do something I love and have that business reciprocate my efforts in the form of financial rewards. I am passionate about helping others be well, at their best, and just enjoy the abundant life intended for them. Many people want to look like someone else and will see the glitz and glamor of this person’s persona and say “I want to look just-like-them”. Sometimes it can be accomplished and other times it is not possible. Finding a style that highlights the client’s own uniqueness, is a strength of ours at Strands that I can truly say is the real reward for me. We have been able to redefine the Standard of Beauty to complement our own metrics. Subsequently, I learned this fulfillment also makes a positive impact on the Stylists as well when they have accomplished making someone else feel good about themselves, the Stylist loves the work they do. With each service, we are making a positive change, one head at a time, and that makes one more person in the world making it a better place.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.strandssalonatl.com
- Instagram: Strandssalonatl
- Other: Partnership location: Ideal Salon Studio Suites 2797 Campbellton Rd SW Suite C, Atlanta, GA 30311 www.idealstudiosalonsuites.com
Image Credits
Ideal Salon Studio Suites