Today we’d like to introduce you to Lily Girma.
Lily, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My present was never one that I imagined my future self to have as a child. Being an Ethiopian that migrated to America, my parents had always expected myself to be a doctor or lawyer. My dreams were never praised upon passion, they were more so made to be one that would keep me financially stable in my parent’s eyes, yet I knew God had other plans for me. As time progressed, I realized that I had a growing passion for creativity and was called to the beauty industry. During this time, I unintentionally found my true self and learned to overcome the pressure from my community and parents. It was a period of mental growth and hardships, yet I faced my fears and acted upon my dreams.
In 2005, I opened my first space of Lily International Salon on Clairmont Road. Despite how young I was and the limited access I had to resources, I was able to tackle my financial challenges and taught myself how to work hard and stay dedicated. The vision of opening a creative space for myself and other talented individuals empowered me and kept me pushing. I am now blessed with a great team, space, and clients. In my eyes, every person who breathes in the salon is considered family, and I am grateful for everyone in our little community!
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?
Managing a salon has been a great road of success, but with many barriers and hardships. To reach success, one must build dedication and learn how to assimilate to new circumstances. No business is perfect, and with that knowledge, my team and I focus on how to handle the barriers thrown at us rather than stressing over them. As both a business owner and hairstylist, I have had a constant issue with learning how to expand our image. To elaborate, our generation has switched over to technology for many things, such as promoting and brand marketing. Back when I started, most businesses focused on expanding their image through local advertisements. Furthermore, it tends to be hard to maintain an online presence to promote and engage with clients while focusing on our services and managing the salon.
Please tell us about Lily International Salon.
Our salon welcomes all hair textures and we focus on helping women navigate through their hair journey. We specialize in helping our clients maintain their healthy hair as well as achieving it. My goal as a business owner and stylist is to create a safe space for women to get the assistance they need with certain services, as some other salons may not be able to provide and create a community for themselves with others that have hair textures similar to theirs. In regards to what I am most proud of, I believe that our staff and myself are well practiced with a great use of technique and we strive to offer the best customer service.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite childhood memories came from living in Debre Zeyit, Ethiopia. Every day that I went out, I found myself enjoying the new day and what my atmosphere really had to offer me. My most memorable childhood memory was having the privilege to spend quality time with my grandmother as she taught me how to make my first cultural dishes and Buna (Ethiopian coffee). Contrast from America, our youth was not so hooked on technology, so I was surrounded by a lot of community engagement and spent my time enjoying the small things in life with my loved ones.
Contact Info:
- Address: 3979 Buford Hwy NE
Atlanta, GA 30345 - Website: https://www.lilyinternationalsalon.com/
- Phone: 4043150218
- Email: lilyinternationalsalon@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/lilyinternational?igshid=b8x3efulvsjt
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