Today we’d like to introduce you to Cici Cotton.
Cici, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
—I have always had an affinity to for all things creative: Colours, shapes, social behaviors, interactions, makeup, beauty, hair, architecture, textures, interior design, etc.
I can remember combing my hair at the age of maybe eight years old. I also can remember having my first paid client at 12 years old and getting paid a whopping $10 for a style! Those really added up and I was able to save money even as a young preteen. I vividly remember when my grandmother would fall asleep after working and raising her children/ grandchildren I would color her toenails with washable markers and put ridiculous amount of products in her hair and she would proudly wear it to her corporate office job and brag that her granddaughter did her hair. I’ll never forget those moments. I also can remember begging my grandparents and mother to allow me to either go to the beauty salon a little early or to allow me to stay a little late just to sit and “soak up” the atmosphere of the beauty salon. The deal was if I behaved properly in school and maintain satisfactory grades I was allowed to go and hang out at the hair salon. Thank you to each and every single Hairstylist and owner who sewed a seed into me by allowing an annoying kid to hang around their establishment. As I began to go and grow within the salon atmosphere – I “graduated” from just watching the stylist in the salon to gradually being able to sweep around the salon to assisting them and passing them hair rollers in the salon to eventually getting my shampoo license and becoming a shampoo assistant. That literally was one of the highlights of my whole entire life because it afforded me the opportunity to see the dos & don’ts behind the scenes with in the salon arena. The joke around the community was I will be a professional shampoo girl but that was not it at all; what I was doing was strategically working underneath some of the best known hairstylist in the area and absorbing as much knowledge and intellectual wealth money absolutely could not buy. After being a shampoo girl for some time I finish college and then I moved to Atlanta Georgia to attend Paul Mitchell the school of Atlanta. My tuition, at that time, was around $1100 monthly! Thank God my mother sacrificed and help me pay that or I would literally be a beauty school dropout! I was working three jobs to maintain mediocre living in Atlanta Georgia( I believe I was a bartender, CNA for a dementia unit, and a shampoo assistant for a well-known salon ) . In the mist of all of the craziness going on, I manage to dislocate my knee and broke my ankle on both sides during Thanksgiving holiday. I had to have surgery , have plates and screws put in my leg , and take time out of beauty school so of course I just knew my life was over and I was officially a beauty school dropout. However my support of family/friends did not let that happen and I was still able to do hair while my leg was propped up on the stool in a cast and I still manage to graduate on time with the other night school students. I then went on to receive Opportunities to go abroad to London and surrounding areas. I was afforded the highly esteemed opportunity to attend the Alternative hair show where I met the one in only Vidal Sassoon 1 year or so before he transitioned from this earth. Once I return back stateside I then begin working in a well-known salon again and I had no idea I will soon start my own salon Majour Elleament Salon. Of course it was not easy. Entrepreneurship, still , is not easy but it sure is darn well worth it. While owning my own salon I was working for a major cosmetic line and I quickly observed how brown women were not offered the same range of products shades and service so then I begin to think “what if I developed a line for women of all ethnicities and all shades of brown color?” Four years later that is when I developed after much grueling research in trial and error …My very own indie cosmetic line: Make Me Up Cosmetics. I am certainly proud of our accomplishments thus far. Even with all the progression of the beauty industry, I wholeheartedly believe there is still so much more for us to learn and gain so that I may share with my clients. I certainly look forward to going and growing within this industry and cultivating and perfecting my craft.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Just like with anything in life, if it’s worth having, it’s going to be a fight involved. Of course not physical fight -at least not in this situation but there were a lot of hurdles & there still are a lot of challenges I have to conquer. One of the most recent challenges I’ve endured is the transitioning of my Father . He was and is one of the greatest humans to walk this Earth. When I started out, I vividly remember not being able to hang out like the rest of the young adults who were in my social settings because of school. Before beauty school, I went to college. After, college I went to beauty school and then because I chose to go to one of the most prestigious cosmetology institutions,Paul Mitchell, cost was indeed a factor in maintaining my curriculum and education there. That means I had to work many odd jobs and ask my mom for help just to be able to make it. So some of the challenges in hurdles and or struggles I’ve had to Endure with entrepreneurship and the road to be a beauty industry professional are surrounded by financial responsibilities- although now I am more financially stable and comfortable ,thank God ,I’m still not satisfied and I still have not “arrived” at least not by my standards .
I will also say another struggle is that , in the middle of a cosmetology school, I dislocated my knee and broke my leg and my ankle which meant I had to have screws and rods put in. Which means I had to take time off a beauty school and move back home for Alabama -I just knew my life is over at the time -obviously it wasn’t. I was being a bit dramatic but at that moment I couldn’t do what I love to do. I’m grateful I still finished on time and graduated with my other classmates. I would say another struggle or mental battle is staying consistent And consistently being motivated we live in a world where we constantly can see what someone else is doing because of social media platforms. That can be tiresome and grueling on the creative individual ; because either we don’t think we’re doing enough or maybe we’re doing too much . Mental warfare is very much so a big part of being a creative in today’s society.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about ME Salon & Make ME Up Cosmetics – what should we know?
Both business entities ME salon and Make Me Up Cosmetics are created With love and the best interest of each client in mind. I know people probably say that all the time but I really mean that when I say it. I don’t believe in overbooking! I am dealing with people- not material on an assembly line. I don’t believe in herding clients like cattle “first come first serve “-that defeats the purpose of an appointment. I also don’t believe -in I know I’m probably the dinosaur of beauty industry and quite antiquated -but I don’t believe in texting clients. A lot of times texts can be misconstrued or misinterpreted because we’re dealing with people who are dealing with the same issues and challenges that we’re dealing with in life. I would much rather verbally communicate with that person or via email (people tend to be a bit more respectful and tactful in emails).
I pride myself on one on one time with a client by that I mean one may be under the dryer while one is in my chair that way it’s more of an intimate experience. I specialize in healthy happy hair! Yes, trending styles and beauty procedures are great for services and for revenue; however, there is nothing like healthy happy hair coming out of the scalp! I also specialize in educating my clients on maintaining their hair at home. I’m not one of those stylists who says “oh well if you tell them too much they won’t come back “ but no that actually curates a rapport between client and stylist. That keeps them coming back because there’s a trust factor that is built by communicating and educating with the client. I also specialize in color. I am absolutely obsessed with dimensional color- it’s everything to me. I love providing services with virgin extensions which can also be colored. I also endulge in providing microlink extension services. Sew in installation services and custom units are my favorites as well. I also do Relaxers and great precision cutting.
I believe one of the elements that set me apart from other industry professionals is that I listen to the client and try to understand their daily practices in their lifestyles. This is to ensure that I’m not just offering them a Style or a cut or an extension service that’s conducive for only one event or one day of the week. It has to “go and grow” with them as life changes and as their schedule progresses. I think I am most proud of my company because it’s a double minority-owned small business and even though we may not be the biggest company or have the biggest marketing team or have the biggest staff we do our best with what we have and we have maintained through 8 years of life, social & economic occurrences and we are still standing-more vibrant, tenacious,& stronger than ever before.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I believe the qualities and characteristics that are most important and essential to my success thus far are morality, communication, compassion and patience. Majority of my clientele are women, which means if a woman trust you with her hair and her makeup then there is some serious trust involved in that working relationship. If a woman likes her hair and or her makeup, she is absolutely ready to conquer any and everything in her world. I take a huge honor and being trusted with my client’s hair and makeup. Also, communication is imperative to any rapport we have with anyone in our lives. That is where the importance of a thorough consultation is vital to any client’s stylist rapport in the salon.
I know a lot of times we live in a society where everything is microwave ready “ I just want it done now” society. No, we have to have a consultation so I can know your likes , your dislikes , what you want versus what you need. All of this is very vital in coming up with a plan of action for each clients’ hair and beauty needs. We live in a time of history where we are getting clients from all different types of walk of lives. People have been through all kinds of challenges and hurdles in life. With all that being said it is imperative that we as beauty industry professionals exercise a little more patience and a little more compassion. because you get what you give in this realm of life. With all that being said, it is absolutely necessary for us to exercise our right to be kind and compassionate and patient. I promise the return on that investment is priceless.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.go2mesalon.com
- Phone: 678-674-0909
- Email: contact@go2mesalon.com
- Instagram: me_salon
- Facebook: cici cotton
Image Credit:
Hair/Make up artistry: Cici Cotton; Photographer: Michael Carson; Photographer: Cici Cotton; Creative Director: Dreeck Breon
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