Meet Celene Bowman of Lele Did My Hair in Henry County

Today we’d like to introduce you to Celene Bowman.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
“I want to be my own boss”. That was always the answer to the question “what do you want to be when you grow up”? I give credit to my dad for my entrepreneurial spirit because he taught me what it meant to hustle and get what’s yours from a young age, as he too- is an entrepreneur who runs a small, yet successful, long running lawn care business along with a successful YouTube Channel (BermudaGrass Central) in which he provides lawn tips for both the professional and homeowner. I wanted to have the financial freedom and flexibility that can come from being an entrepreneur by doing something that I genuinely enjoyed doing without it feeling like a “job”.

Everyone who knows me refers to me as the “natural hair guru” as I am about all things natural when it comes to my afro-textured hair. After having a perm for two years, and transitioning from permed hair to natural hair, I realized that I didn’t have any knowledge of how to actually care for my natural hair. This is when I was introduced to box braids. I was fourteen years old when I first started braiding my own hair, which soon transformed into my family and friends allowing me to practice on their heads. Eventually I was braiding hair for a small fee while I was still in high school. I didn’t start tapping more into my skills as a braider in college until I reached my junior year. My clientele and reputation as a braider in my college town quickly grew and soon enough, I was known as “Lele that does hair” around campus. I went hard for my remaining time in college. I’ve held a few summer job positions such as working at Zaxby’s, Footlocker, and a summer camp, and I found that none of these jobs allowed me to have the income, creativity, nor flexibility that braiding allowed me to have.

As I entered college, I wasn’t quite sure of my passion in life; but as I finished college, I realized that I enjoyed braiding so much because I was in love with the transformation and the process behind the transformation. I absolutely love being able to play an active role in making my clients realize their true beauty as we all naturally feel better when we feel as though we look good, and one way to look good is to get done up and get your hair done! I stand by one of my motto’s: You gotta look good to feel good!

After graduating in May and moving back home to Henry County (shout out to class of 2020!), I was nervous about the future of my business initially because I was unsure of the direction it would take in the midst of an international pandemic; however, once I took precautionary measures and got back to doing what I loved after a couple of months off, my clientele base in and around the Atlanta area quickly began to grow! I am excited to keep growing my business and I am eager to see what the future holds for me here in Atlanta where there is enough room for EVERYONE to grow, succeed, and eat.

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?
The road to growing my business and reaching the success that I desire has not always been easy. I am confident that I speak on the behalf of other small business owners and entrepreneurs when I say that. I already knew that with success comes “haters” and doubt on behalf of others and myself. The ultimate first obstacle to overcome is the initial hump of just getting yourself out there. I am my own social media manager, inventory keeper, marketing manager, and customer service representative all at one time each and every day so it can be overwhelming at times; however, keeping my eye on the bigger prize and accomplishing my goals with my business keeps me afloat. I don’t view my business as an unachievable task that cannot be accomplished. I view it as an art. I get to wake up almost every day and make beautiful designs and patterns in someone’s head! How cool is that?

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Lele Did My Hair – what should we know?
I am a braider in the Metro Atlanta area. I specialize in styling afro-textured hair by adding extensions to create beautiful braided protective styles that are designed protect the hair so that it can rest and grow with proper care and maintenance. As a company, I am most proud of my overall growth. I will be releasing a protective hair-wear line in mid-September that will include hand-sewn bonnets, scarves, scrunchies, and more!
What sets me apart from others is my dedication to providing an amazing service all around to my clients along with wanting them to have an overall healthy journey hair journey while they’re rocking their protective style. I want my clients to walk out of their appointments having learned something new about the overall health of their hair. My goal is to not only provide my clients with top notch service; but also ensure that they are aware of their true beauty through ensuring they know that the style I installed does not cover up or mask their beauty, it just helps it shine even more.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
-Always be willing to be a student. You should always be teachable.
– Have faith in yourself.
– Manifest/ PRAY.

I believe that these are the most important characteristics to my success. As an up and coming entrepreneur, I am learning something new every single day. Not a day goes by in which I don’t learn something new that I can’t apply to my next day in order to reach even more success and growth. A HUGE part of running a business on your own is having faith in yourself. If nobody believes in you, YOU should the most. I strongly believe that faith without work is dead. Your manifestations and prayers should always be followed up with actions.

Contact Info:

• Email: leledidmyhair@gmail.com

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