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

Hi Tina, thanks for joining us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I got started in hair school by my little cousin LaMerria Perry who encouraged me to go with her. I had always done hair as a source of income as a teenager she asked if I would join her in school since I had just lost my job as a Custodial worker so it was perfect timing. I’m so grateful that I went and that she convinced me. Also, I had two young boys at the time to support and four years of college seemed so far fetched so I did something I knew I was good at which was hair!

It took me a year and half to finish school. I took a break for a few weeks but went back soon as I worked things out to support my kids and myself financially. Completing school was the happiest day of my life. Thanks to my support system my Aunt Vickie Payne who taught me a lot about hair. She is a Master Hairstylist who I looked up to as a little girl and spent a lot of time watching her do hair at the hair salon. My now husband Anwar Obeid, who I met while attending hair school at the time, supported me the entire way. A host of family and friends who allowed me to practice on them to get the latest hairstyles just right. I graduated in November 2009 a few days before my birthday and I celebrated with a big party with all my family and friends! I was proud to have earned my Cosmetology license, I worked very hard to achieve that goal!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Well I have always loved doing hair so school was the next step thanks to a little encouragement at the time, so consistency and patience helped me. Life can get chaotic at moments so you have to give yourself time and stay focused on your dreams and goals. Never give up despite obstacles and just stay consistent.

Surround yourself with people who are like-minded and support you! I went to school with great people who pushed me and then I had family support and great friends and people who encouraged me. Get you a mentor or more training with someone with experience in the field you are interested in. Take classes to elevate your craft and travel when you can to learn about other cultures and how to work all around the world.

We’d love to hear about you met your business partner.

I work with several outstanding Entrepreneurs and have multiple careers I juggle. When I’m not doing hair I work alongside two great ladies who are my sisters and business partners LaMerria Perry and LaRoxcia Payne. We have a pop-up shop business D.E.M GIRLZ where we support other local businesses. We recently just had our Health & Wellness Expo and were joined by several great Vendors and Healthcare workers who administered free health exams! We have different events throughout the year with different themes and all our events are filled with amazing Vendors from fashion to home essentials!

In addition, I work doing makeup and nail care events with my best friend Malika Williams who I’ve been friends with since high school. She was one of my very first hair clients and still is today. She is not only good in beautifying people she is an excellent cook and does so for her church and all of our events!

Velvet Clark is a great friend of mine and business partner that I met in the beautiful hair industry and we’ve been talking about hair ever since. She is an amazing Hairstylist from St. Louis, MO who is truly a blessing to work with when doing shows and has genius concepts on hair techniques. She is a fabulous model, inventive in hair color and braids and just an overall gifted person who makes working in hair a bit more fun!

We all share several things in common, one in particular is that we are all mothers and do our absolute best to thrive forward in business while helping our family as well as our community!

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

It takes a lot of momentum and responsibility to jump start a business but it’s all worth it. I wanted more so I had to take risks. I remember when I wanted to start out as a Platform Artist and didn’t exactly have it all to financially support my dream. Well, I did what I had to do and joined a few family and friends and we all split the cost on hair, makeup, travel expenses, etc. We worked as a team and made it all happen! I marketed heavily on social media for free advertising and did a lot of word of mouth through friends I knew as well as new friends I met at hair events. It was hard with low funds but all it took was a small group of us and the rest was history. Since then I’ve attended and performed in many great hair shows! Sometimes you have to motivate yourself and get as much help as needed to bring your vision to life. I’m thankful to all those who supported me from the beginning and now! Remember teamwork does make the dream work!

Contact Info:

• Website: http://tina-natural-hair-diva.yolasite.com/
• Instagram: divahair_85
• Facebook: Tina Obeid
• Twitter: @divahair85
• Youtube: Tina Obeid
• Other: Find us on Instagram: @d.e.mgirlz Facebook: D.E.M Girlz Pop-up Shop

Image Credits
LaMerria Perry Jamie Harmon