Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittany Brown.
Hi Brittany, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I guess you could say that becoming a hairstylist was instilled in me since birth. My mom has been doing hair since before giving birth to me and my twin sister Sade. I am the youngest of my mother’s four children. My mom received her cosmetologist license as well as a young girl and worked in the salon, and it just seemed almost inevitable that hairstyling would become a passion for me. I truly fell in love with being in the salon environment and just the smell of the Marcels and the sizzling sound as it hits the hair for the first time was almost soothing to me. For as long as I can remember, my sisters and I grew up in the salon every day after listening to songs by artists such as Mary J Blige, Lauryn Hill, and Sade and enjoying the company of other women in the salon. It was almost like the ultimate girls’ club where women would come and relax to get away from the struggles of their everyday lives. My mom was always in her element in the salon, and you could always tell by just the smile on her face and the faces of her extraordinary clients who had been with her for years. I wanted those types of friendships and relationships.
Growing up in Chicago, I never knew that I would go into a career in the hair industry. My grandmother and I used to watch Law and Order so much that she convinced me as a young girl that I was going to be her lawyer. We both had dreams of me becoming a lawyer, and I initially thought later down the line when attending college that I would continue in that career field. However, in 2006 my mom decided to move me and my sisters to Elkhart, Indiana. I met friends there in Elkhart who had let me practice my love for hair on them so much that I fell in love with the technique of braiding. I was braiding my friends ‘ and my brother’s hair all the time, and before I knew it, I had gained a nice amount of clientele for my braiding business. I began playing basketball in seventh grade where I used to do a lot of braiding styles with weave for girls like myself who played sports and did not like to have their hair out during the games. I continued doing both hair and playing basketball until 2011 when I graduated from high school.
At 15 years old, I went off to attend college at Cornell College in Mount Vernon Iowa. Due to a lack of salons in the area that could service girls with very kinky hair, I began taking clients on campus for braiding styles and sew-in extensions in my dorm room, as I also worked three other jobs. I fell in love with the adrenaline I got from hustling and being able to afford everything for myself. I rarely called home for help since I am so used to being independent, and was in Iowa on my own. I felt this would be the time to challenge myself to be great on my own. Fortunately, doing hair became the side hustle I never knew I needed. I did not know that this would become a passion of mine so much that once I graduated from college in 2015, I wanted to continue to pursue my career in hair. I moved back home after graduation to stay with my grandmother in Chicago until I decided where I wanted to go after. In June 2015, I found out I was pregnant with my first child, Alisha London Boyd, who unexpectedly was born six months premature and passed away a week later. I was very devastated, and in a very dark place so much that I did not know what my next steps were or how to handle the loss of my daughter. It seemed like nothing could help with the coping, except when I began taking clients once again. Shortly after the death of my daughter, I decided to move back home to Elkhart, Indiana with my mom and figure out what was next for me in life…
That is when I met my fiancé Tony. He was the light at the end of the tunnel for me. He brought me out of such a dark place of depression and dealing with a recent loss and gave me back the confidence I needed to get back out into the world. He was the person who gave me the idea to start wearing wigs. I used to buy hair from the local beauty supplies and would throw the hair out after I was done wearing it. He saw no sense in me wasting money every week to buy new hair extensions so I began my journey with wearing wigs. It was so new to me, and I was afraid that it would not look right on me. I was afraid that it was something for more elderly women. However, in 2016 I began doing wigs and taught myself how to properly install and wear them. They were truly a game changer for me in my career. I began working at the local factories in Elkhart, but I knew that this was nothing I wanted to do long-term. In 2017, we gave birth to our first son Antonio Moore III and I knew that working in a factory was not going to give me the life I needed to provide for my son. Something had to change…
Soon after, we rented our first home in Elkhart, Indiana. It was a small, two-bedroom duplex. I knew that I wanted to continue my love for doing hair so I began Pretty in London, LLC in honor of my late daughter London. I had a small set up in my living room where I would take clients every day constructed out of a three drawer, dresser and an old cardboard box from my son’s ATV bike. I laugh now when I think about it, how I truly started this all from the bottom. With my business, I would sell hair extensions to locals as well as install the hair at their request. I began making more money in a day than I made in a week at my other 9-5 jobs. Shortly after, in 2019 I decided to go full-time on my own business and no longer work for the likes of others. My business was doing great. My clientele had grown so much that I was almost doing wig installs and sew-ins on almost every woman in the Michiana area. I had begun to see more money than I ever had in my life. I was not only offering services, but I was also offering products and clothes from my boutique. I had found comfort in making other women feel and look pretty. I enjoyed the client and customer interaction, and I enjoyed learning their life stories, and how we were all similar in our ways. I met women who had also lost their children through miscarriages, premature deliveries, or something of that nature. It was like I needed my clients more than they needed me at the time. Just hearing the stories of other women gave me confidence that I could get through the situation with the loss of my daughter and turn the tragedy into a positive thing. After creating my LLC, I knew I wanted my business to be grand. I was determined to make my business a household name amongst the individuals in my community. So I was determined to become the best hairstylist in the area, and my best form of marketing was Word of mouth. I Would have clients sending their colleagues, family members, and anyone they knew who would be interested in purchasing a custom look from me. I was highly known for all of the different color patterns I would create on my custom wigs. Even at times when I doubted my work, my wigs would quickly sell out. It was amazing and gave me the confidence I needed to take my business to the next level.
In February 2019, I gave birth to my second son Amari. I now knew with two boys that my income had to change. I had two boys who looked up to me and were counting on me to make sure they were good. In October 2019 I decided to attend cosmetology school at Michiana Beauty College with the hopes of opening my salon one day. There at cosmetology school, I met my best friend Racquel who was a phenomenal makeup artist. Together we would create the most beautiful looks that some of the girls have ever seen. At the time, my hair business was doing extremely well, and I had gained even more clientele from cosmetology school. Shortly after starting cosmetology school, I and a few friends of mine decided to go to the Bronner Brother’s hair show in Atlanta. It was an experience I would never forget. Me and my fiance began visiting Atlanta almost once a month so much I never wanted to leave. I would dread coming back to Indiana because it was so different and I’m very much a City girl whereas Elkhart is very slow pace. During my time, traveling back and forth, I met so many individuals in the industry they gave me the confidence I needed to take the leap of faith and move to Atlanta. After deciding this was what I was going to do, I focused on my skills and saved up as much money as I needed to move me and my family to Atlanta. I begin teaching my 1-on-1 master classes for $1000 to girls in the community who want to learn how to do hair with my techniques. I fell in love with educating and giving these women a different path and way to earn income and change their lives the same way I did. Even with the success of my classes, I knew I still was not where I wanted it to be. I knew being one of the best in 574 just wouldn’t be enough for me. Everyone would tell me that I needed to move to Atlanta and how one day I would be on TV doing celebrity hair. I too wanted change and a fresh start for my sons and myself. I have always loved a challenge; hence, I graduated high school at 15 and moved to Iowa all alone. I have been dominating the hair industry in the Michiana area, and I wanted to see if I could move to a place where I knew no one and do just as well. I knew that Atlanta would be the ultimate challenge due to the number of women in the area doing the same skill as me And due to my lack of family and resources. I also knew that I would be leaving behind what I consider to be guaranteed income from the clientele I have worked so hard to build over the years. However, it was not enough to make me give up on my dreams of becoming one of the best Hairstylists anyone had ever seen. I was determined to make it work for my son, and myself, and prove to myself that I can not only take over my city, but I could make it happen anywhere.
After graduating from cosmetology school in April 2021, I moved to Douglasville Georgia in June 2021 and hit the ground running rebuilding my entire clientele. I would go out in public to meet individuals and tell them about my brand. I’ve always been a true believer in the idea that word of mouth can be your best friend or worst enemy. Luckily for me, word of mouth has been the backbone of my business. I have always taken pride in knowing that every client who leaves my chair is satisfied. I take pride in being an honest hairstylist, something that seemed to be a lack of here in the Atlanta Georgia area. I began joining hair groups in my area to promote myself and my business, and from there, my clientele began to grow. After grasping a nice amount of clientele in the Atlanta metro area, in July of 2023, I began doing celebrity hair with my first celebrity client Bambi, from Love and Hip Hop Atlanta. Two days later, I received a DM from her Co-star Karlie Redd. It was a great experience and I enjoyed the clients I came in contact with. I’d like to think that I treat all of my clients like they are celebrities no matter who you are I take pride in knowing I give everyone a fair and unbiased experience because this is what has gotten me to where I am today. So many of my clients have had such horrible experiences with different hair stylists, that I enjoyed being the change they were looking for. Being the highlight of their day and giving them a once-in-a-lifetime hair experience they would never forget.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I definitely wouldn’t say it has been a smooth road at all. There were a lot of hardships and obstacles along the way. There were definitely a lot of hardships and obstacles I had to overcome to get to where I am today. Losing my daughter at only a week old was the biggest obstacle I have had to overcome. I had to find a way to turn the worst thing possible into the best blessing in my life; because of that experience, I know that I can get through anything when you have the right people around you and walk with your faith with God. Another obstacle I have had to overcome is moving away from all of my family and on to such a big and expensive city where I have no family, no clientele or a guaranteed way of income. I had to continue to believe that my talents would keep me and my family fed.
I believe the biggest struggle was rebuilding my clientele away from the ground up. I understand how important and secret the relationship is between a client and her hairstylist. I tell my clients all the time that whoever they choose to do their hair they should stick with them and not change up so many times. Not only is it not healthy for your hair but it’s not healthy for your hair journey. Of course, it was a lot easier back home where my clients knew me and grew up with me. Here in Atlanta, I was new to the city. I had to regain their trust and respect as a hairstylist. I had to initially lower my pricing in order to just get clients into my seat and a chance to experience what I brought to the table. Not charging my worth was a new thing and something I was not expecting. However, that strategy did work out to my benefit because soon after rebuilding a nice amount of clientele, I was able to return to my original pricing and flourish to this day.
Sometimes, being an entrepreneur, time management can also be a struggle. With being a full-time mom as well, I like to make sure I’m giving my family just as much time but can sometimes get caught up in the lifestyle. I now make sure I set time aside for both business and family, as well as ensuring I’m taking care of myself along the way.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in creating the ultimate custom wig for my clients. A lot of clients like to call me for looks when they have events such as weddings, parties, birthdays, video shoots, filming, etc. My wigs are made with Raw Vietnamese hair and built to last. They give the fill a natural scalp appearance. I take pride in the fact that they are fitted like a glove and can last years for my clients. What sets me apart from the rest, well It’s very cliche, but I truly believe customer service is a make or break for any business. I take pride in knowing that I have a client who does return. My retention rate for clients has always been my main focus. I preach Quality over Quantity, and even though both are great, I truly enjoy building long-term friendships with my clients. I go all out for them, so I enjoy knowing that I’m giving that time and energy to people who love me just as much.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I come from a huge family of multiples. Together combined, my sisters and I have given my mother a total of 15 grandchildren, one late and 14 living. We have had three sets of multiples in the last four years. I have three boys, each from single births. My twin sister Sade has two boys and three girls, two of whom are twins. My eldest sister Shakella has four girls and two boys. Shakella had my eldest niece in 2017, soon after a set of triplets and immediately after a set of twins. My family has a lot of multiples. This has always been and will remain my number one reason to succeed. One day I would like to move my entire family into one huge forever home.
Pricing:
- Lace Frontal Wig Install $225
- Lace Closure Wig Install $175
- 360 Full Lace Wig Install $325
- Closure Sew In Install $275
- Frontal Sew In Install $300
Contact Info:
- Website: www.brittthehairgod.as.me
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/britt_thehairgod
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HairQueenBritt?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Youtube: Britt The Hair God
- Other: www.prettyinlondon.com
