Raven Paris: What inspired you to actually want to tap into the beauty industry? What was that inspiration?
Brittany Lincoln: I love beauty. I love to look good all the time. It just makes you feel better than you already felt. I actually was, dibbling a little bit in something else at first and then the beauty industry inspired me to start selling hair extensions when I was going to Morgan State. I started doing that and I realized, it’s really a need for good hair in our community. So I was like, okay, let’s help some women look and feel good. I started thinking, why not provide all of the services in one place so that you don’t have to go to multiple locations. So it started with me just selling hair and then it expanded into something more.
Source: Brittany Lincoln / Brittany Lincoln
Raven Paris: I love that, so, you said you wanted to basically have like a one-stop shop, right? What are some of those services that your salon provides? What is the name of your salon? Let’s get into it.
Brittany Lincoln: So the name of my salon is Renee’s Beauty Lounge, it’s located on 4449 Belair road, next to Morgan State as well for your the Morgan students, but everyone. Here we provide multiple services. I have a nail technician that does nails and feet. She specializes in color acrylic, but she does it all gel, manicures and pedicures. I also have a licensed cosmetologist here Brianna, and she’s like a Jack of all trades. She’s does braids, lashes and natural hair treatments, which are important because a lot of us like to wear wigs all the time. Wigs have certainly become my new go-to, especially since I sell hair extensions. Then we have Jada, she’s a fabulous makeup artist. The blend is definitely real.
Raven Paris: Your name is Brittany, what made you name your salon Renee’s Beauty Lounge?
Brittany Lincoln: A lot of people also ask me that. I did that because my mom’s name is Renee. I come from a good family. I have my parents so I’m fortunate enough to be blessed. I named my stuff after her because she’s my backbone and I wouldn’t be anywhere without her. My mom is like my number one supporter. I wanted to show her how much she meant to me, so I named my business after her.
Raven Paris: That was very beautiful. Everyone’s doing wigs now, what is your technique that make your brand stand out?
Brittany Lincoln: My technique is the quality of my hair that I sell. I sell Virgin Cambodian here. I’ve been with my vendor for a long time now, about three or four years. My hair is so soft, and you can color it. Another thing that makes me stand out too, is that I keep hair in my salon. Some problems in this industry are people having to wait long for shipping, bad quality hair and horrible customer service. I make sure to provide great customer service because I have been in customer service forever. I’ve drove Lyft before, and I was a waitress and a bartender for like nine years in college. I’m always going to try to find a way to make sure that you’re happy. A lot of new businesses, they lack that customer service and I’m there to pick it up, period.
Raven Paris: Now let’s get into the journey of entrepreneurship, what has been the biggest lesson or the most valuable lesson you’ve learned amongst this journey?
Brittany Lincoln: Um, I’ve learned to be patient. I’ve learned to be patient with a lot of people. A lot of people always have their own agendas. I try to be really nice to people, but you can’t be overly nice, you have to find a balance. I will say that I’m fortunate enough now to have a team that I can trust, that is with me to build. That’s another thing I’ve learned to do, find a good team to build with because that’s hard. We’re all family. We’re all gonna take care of each other and we all promote each other. It’s room for everyone to win.
Raven Paris: That leads into my next question, who are some women that you look up to?
Brittany Lincoln: I look at these three women that I’ve watched for a long time, Super scent, Tokyo Vanity, and Judy, amazing. Coming up, they was all about each other and helping other people, now look at them. I’ve watched their journey, how they started and how they used their platforms. Now they’re somewhere bigger and they made sure no man was left behind.
Raven Paris: I love that. Well tell us how can we follow you and how can we support you?
Brittany Lincoln: Well you guys can follow me on Instagram at Renee’s beauty lounge. You can also call me or text me if you have any questions about anything: if you’re looking for a salon home, I’m definitely hiring. I’m looking for hairstylists and braiders They can contact me at (646) 601-2107. Also you could stop in the shop as well and see us Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM. That’s another thing that I offer too, I know a lot of salons are closed Sundays and Mondays we’re not closed on Sundays. It doesn’t make sense to me. It’s not logical. People are about to go to school on Monday. They getting ready to go to work on Monday. Like let’s, let’s get to this and let’s help. I also rent out my shop for you to host events here. Someone is coming next week and they’re doing a brow class. I’m also having a pop-up shop this Saturday. We’re gonna have some banging businesses in here. You can come shop, sip a little bit, you know, have some fun, and get to know us.
