WEBVTT - Courtney Adeleye: Making A Million Dollar Business With $500 0:00:00.240 --> 0:00:03.159 What's up his way up at Angela Yee and Stacy 0:00:03.200 --> 0:00:05.920 Tissdaily's here with me today on a Wealth Wednesday with 0:00:06.000 --> 0:00:06.880 an amazing guest. 0:00:07.000 --> 0:00:09.920 We do have an amazing guest. Happy Wealth Wednesday's everybody, 0:00:10.000 --> 0:00:14.280 and we're actually kicking off our Entrepreneur Spotlight series every 0:00:14.280 --> 0:00:17.079 Wednesday during Black Business Month. We are going to be 0:00:17.160 --> 0:00:23.000 celebrating and lifting up iconic entrepreneurs and who else could 0:00:23.040 --> 0:00:27.720 you possibly possibly kick that off with except for Courtney Etai, 0:00:28.360 --> 0:00:30.480 Thank you and thank you so much for being here. 0:00:30.560 --> 0:00:34.159 Courtney is the now the founder and CEO of Watching 0:00:34.240 --> 0:00:36.600 See Beauty, but you might know her from the main 0:00:36.760 --> 0:00:41.000 choice Woo, which she founded in twenty thirteen. Twenty thirteen, 0:00:41.320 --> 0:00:42.240 five hundred dollars? 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:45.840 Okay, how a hundred that happen? Oh? Five hundred dollars 0:00:45.840 --> 0:00:49.680 in a vision? You know, you know, I'm really big 0:00:49.760 --> 0:00:53.400 on you know, grow as you go. I don't think 0:00:53.440 --> 0:00:55.680 you always have to start big. So when people hear 0:00:55.960 --> 0:00:58.200 she started with five hundred dollars, how and you turned 0:00:58.240 --> 0:01:01.040 into one hundred million dollars in sales, I don't think 0:01:01.040 --> 0:01:03.000 you have to start big. I think you should start 0:01:03.000 --> 0:01:05.280 where you are, and I think you have the ability 0:01:05.319 --> 0:01:07.560 to scale. So with me, I'm like, okay, give me 0:01:07.600 --> 0:01:10.319 some bottles, give me a few ingredients, give me a label, 0:01:10.440 --> 0:01:12.199 and let's get this business cracking. 0:01:12.360 --> 0:01:14.680 What made you even decide that this was something you 0:01:14.720 --> 0:01:17.040 wanted to do. There's always that why I want. 0:01:17.200 --> 0:01:19.800 Yeah, you know, I'm from Detroit. You know, they like 0:01:19.840 --> 0:01:23.600 to call it the hair capital. It is, so I've 0:01:23.640 --> 0:01:26.480 always been into hair. You know, My background is science 0:01:26.560 --> 0:01:30.480 is nursing. But long story short, put a bad color 0:01:30.480 --> 0:01:32.560 on my hair and I had I was forced to 0:01:32.600 --> 0:01:33.800 start taking care of my hair. 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:37.920 Listen who that I would need to dye my hair 0:01:37.959 --> 0:01:39.600 blind and I was like, I'm not doing that again. 0:01:39.720 --> 0:01:42.600 You know. I quickly learned that I've did it before. 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:44.520 I was like, I don't think I can do that again. 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:48.600 Yeah, you know, I say relaxers and you know, color 0:01:48.720 --> 0:01:51.320 don't mix. And I think I learned the hard way 0:01:51.440 --> 0:01:53.760 or should I say the good way? You know, because 0:01:53.760 --> 0:01:56.760 it definitely was a segue into you know, this really experimenting, 0:01:57.040 --> 0:01:57.760 experimenting with. 0:01:57.760 --> 0:02:00.480 Hair before we jump into the business. In a back 0:02:00.560 --> 0:02:03.720 up a little bit, your story is just amazing. You 0:02:03.760 --> 0:02:06.760 were homeless at some points in your life, and I 0:02:06.800 --> 0:02:08.560 know you had two sisters, and you grew up with 0:02:08.560 --> 0:02:09.760 a single mother in Detroit. 0:02:09.840 --> 0:02:10.560 Mm hm. 0:02:10.600 --> 0:02:13.639 And as I was reading your backstory, I was wondering 0:02:13.720 --> 0:02:17.600 if starting this hair care business was because you wanted 0:02:17.639 --> 0:02:19.680 to start a business or you wanted to change your life. 0:02:20.200 --> 0:02:22.880 You know, I think sometimes, you know, not all the time, 0:02:23.000 --> 0:02:26.359 but I think entrepreneurship is something that a lot of 0:02:26.360 --> 0:02:28.720 people are born with. And I think what it looks 0:02:28.760 --> 0:02:31.080 like on the outside, sometimes we're saying, like, look at 0:02:31.120 --> 0:02:33.359 this person, like they're doing something else, and they're doing 0:02:33.400 --> 0:02:36.680 something else, and but they're doing something right, right, So 0:02:36.720 --> 0:02:40.120 we look at those dream chasers and we look at 0:02:40.120 --> 0:02:42.320 some time from a negative perspective, but those are the 0:02:42.320 --> 0:02:45.400 ones who actually changed the world with their vision. So 0:02:45.480 --> 0:02:48.400 for me, it was always something I felt like, you know, 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:51.240 even going into nursing, I've always felt like there was 0:02:51.240 --> 0:02:53.919 something else that I was meant to do. I felt 0:02:53.919 --> 0:02:57.720 like it was a stepping stone. But yeah, definitely, going 0:02:57.760 --> 0:03:01.880 through you know, being homeless, you know, life was purposeful. 0:03:02.280 --> 0:03:04.240 You know. I didn't think it was fair to just 0:03:04.400 --> 0:03:07.200 operate on a you know, just on a self thing. 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:09.720 Like I said before, I think we were here to serve, 0:03:10.200 --> 0:03:12.760 you know, And I think when you do that every day, 0:03:13.120 --> 0:03:14.359 everything else just aligns. 0:03:15.560 --> 0:03:17.720 The Troy is definitely I want to say, that's a 0:03:17.760 --> 0:03:21.600 city that breeds entrepreneurship too, for whatever reason. 0:03:21.520 --> 0:03:24.280 Because of the hustler you know, you know, and it's 0:03:24.320 --> 0:03:26.880 you know, and we use that term, you know, hustling, 0:03:26.919 --> 0:03:30.200 but it's the truth. Entrepreneurship is a hustle. Can you 0:03:30.240 --> 0:03:33.360 get up every day and do the unthinkable? Can you 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:36.240 do it without getting paid? Can you hustle your way 0:03:36.280 --> 0:03:38.880 through it? And I think when we look at Detroit, 0:03:39.000 --> 0:03:42.040 you know, you have those individuals, like life wasn't in 0:03:42.080 --> 0:03:45.240 your favor being a single mom. I was actually known 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:48.680 as the best dressed in high school and I was homeless. Wow, 0:03:49.000 --> 0:03:51.520 you know what I mean. So it's like you don't 0:03:51.560 --> 0:03:54.400 have to show up. You know what you're going through, 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.160 so you have to have that purpose, you know. And 0:03:57.200 --> 0:03:59.160 for me, like you know, my mom told me not 0:03:59.200 --> 0:04:01.120 too longer. She was like, oh, you know, I'm sorry, 0:04:01.320 --> 0:04:03.360 And I said, well, don't apologize, I said, because I 0:04:03.400 --> 0:04:05.080 know for a fact I wouldn't be who I am 0:04:05.120 --> 0:04:07.240 today if I didn't go through those things. 0:04:07.400 --> 0:04:09.120 How did that even happen? You know? 0:04:09.280 --> 0:04:12.160 Because I think I've heard people just look down on that. 0:04:12.280 --> 0:04:15.600 But there's such extenuating circumstances and as we all know, 0:04:15.640 --> 0:04:17.080 that could happen to anyone. 0:04:17.240 --> 0:04:19.320 That's right. And you know the crazy thing is, and 0:04:19.320 --> 0:04:21.400 I'm glad you said that because we think of the 0:04:21.440 --> 0:04:24.440 typical when we think of homelessness. But my mom, knowing 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:27.000 that we were from Detroit, she had our girls, she 0:04:27.279 --> 0:04:29.560 was like, I just don't want you guys living in 0:04:29.640 --> 0:04:31.920 neighborhoods where you're going to get pregnant. You're going to 0:04:32.000 --> 0:04:34.839 end up as a statistic. So she always lived above 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:37.600 her means, so she was in places that we really 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:39.880 couldn't afford. And it was like, okay, the opposite of 0:04:39.920 --> 0:04:42.560 that is we're like in our car. So what she 0:04:42.760 --> 0:04:44.800 was trying to do, like I told her, I said, 0:04:44.839 --> 0:04:47.920 you actually achieved it. I said, because a lot of times, 0:04:48.120 --> 0:04:49.840 you know, and I hate to sound cliche, people like, oh, 0:04:50.000 --> 0:04:51.839 you know you're from Detroit, you a hustler, Like what 0:04:51.960 --> 0:04:53.800 side of town are you from? And I'm like, we're 0:04:53.800 --> 0:04:58.279 shooting decided Walmart somewhere outside, sleeping in the car, you know. 0:04:58.400 --> 0:05:01.040 But what she tried to achieve I told her, I said, 0:05:01.080 --> 0:05:04.160 you accomplished it. You know, I have the mindset that 0:05:04.240 --> 0:05:07.719 you wanted me to have. You know, the circumstances wasn't ideal. 0:05:08.200 --> 0:05:11.080 But that's why I grind every day. That's why I'm 0:05:11.120 --> 0:05:13.040 trying to make sure that my kids don't go through 0:05:13.080 --> 0:05:14.480 the same thing. You know. 0:05:14.640 --> 0:05:17.760 And sometimes as kids too, we adapt so easily to things. 0:05:18.279 --> 0:05:20.920 And did it feel normal to you or when did 0:05:20.960 --> 0:05:22.559 you realize that it wasn't? 0:05:23.400 --> 0:05:25.479 You know, I'm the youngest side of my sisters, so 0:05:25.600 --> 0:05:28.440 I think for them it probably affected them from a 0:05:28.480 --> 0:05:30.760 negative perspective a lot more than it did for me. 0:05:31.360 --> 0:05:32.960 You know, as a kid, you know, you have to 0:05:33.320 --> 0:05:35.280 your sisters are right there, your mom is right there. 0:05:35.279 --> 0:05:41.320 For me, it's like I'm good, you know, getting older, yeah, exactly. 0:05:41.400 --> 0:05:43.320 So when I got a little older, it's like okay, 0:05:43.400 --> 0:05:45.039 Like she's like, well, I would have to go to 0:05:45.160 --> 0:05:47.440 like the gas station and wash up in the morning. 0:05:49.400 --> 0:05:51.599 I remember at one time it was a four year straight, 0:05:52.240 --> 0:05:55.320 a four years straight, and it was like every day, 0:05:55.480 --> 0:05:58.360 like we would have to go somewhere, you know, get 0:05:58.440 --> 0:06:00.359 up in the morning, you know, get our clothes, go 0:06:00.440 --> 0:06:04.120 in the bathroom, wash up, getting ready for school. And 0:06:04.120 --> 0:06:05.320 that's so I told me, I've been on my own 0:06:05.320 --> 0:06:07.839 since I was fifteen years old, and it wasn't ideal. 0:06:07.880 --> 0:06:09.720 It wasn't like, oh, she's a bad kid. Like, no, 0:06:09.760 --> 0:06:12.599 we didn't have stability. But at the same time, I 0:06:12.720 --> 0:06:15.000 knew I wanted more in life. I knew what she 0:06:15.200 --> 0:06:17.559 was trying to do, so I never held it against 0:06:17.600 --> 0:06:19.800 her at all. I'm like, I see what you what 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:21.080 you were trying to do, and I get it. 0:06:21.160 --> 0:06:23.640 And you did go to college, right, okay, and that's 0:06:23.680 --> 0:06:26.480 when you said, Okay, what were your goals then when 0:06:26.520 --> 0:06:27.720 you were going to school. 0:06:27.520 --> 0:06:30.080 You know, my goals was. I felt like I kept 0:06:30.080 --> 0:06:32.720 getting mixed out, like I would get like nice jobs, 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:34.880 you know, before I had a degree, and they're like, okay, Courtney, 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:36.760 well you don't have a degree, so we can't give 0:06:36.800 --> 0:06:38.720 you more money. And I'm like, well, shoot, that's a 0:06:38.760 --> 0:06:41.159 problem because I'm again, I'm a hustler. I'm always looking 0:06:41.160 --> 0:06:43.080 for that next level. And I'm like with shoot, if 0:06:43.120 --> 0:06:44.320 you say I got to go to school, then I 0:06:44.320 --> 0:06:46.840 got to go to school. Went back, got my you know, 0:06:47.080 --> 0:06:49.520 LPN license, and I went back and got my ron license, 0:06:49.560 --> 0:06:51.279 and I went back and got my bachelor's and I 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:53.280 was on my way to get my master's and to 0:06:53.400 --> 0:06:57.720 this haircare came into play, you know. But you know, 0:06:57.720 --> 0:07:01.560 for me, it's if there's another level to hit, then 0:07:01.600 --> 0:07:02.240 I'm gonna hit it. 0:07:02.360 --> 0:07:03.800 Yeah, you know I like that too. 0:07:03.839 --> 0:07:05.719 I'm all about like when I'm trying to get to 0:07:05.760 --> 0:07:09.120 a certain place, if there's a certain certification or education. 0:07:09.279 --> 0:07:10.960 I think we need to be more about that. 0:07:11.120 --> 0:07:14.560 Yes, a lot of times people do things and they're 0:07:14.560 --> 0:07:16.600 not trying to be ambitious enough to take it to 0:07:16.680 --> 0:07:17.200 the next. 0:07:17.040 --> 0:07:19.720 Level, right exactly. You just got to put that time 0:07:19.760 --> 0:07:20.400 in for sure. 0:07:20.560 --> 0:07:23.560 So talk to us about how the main choice started. 0:07:24.040 --> 0:07:26.960 Yes, like I said, put a bad color in my 0:07:27.080 --> 0:07:29.680 hair started, and I was known as the girl with 0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:31.800 like the perfect hair, so I had to really I 0:07:31.800 --> 0:07:32.080 had a. 0:07:32.080 --> 0:07:35.120 Relax By the way I'm looking at her hair, it's perfect. 0:07:36.080 --> 0:07:39.080 Different way now, So I had a relax My mom 0:07:39.120 --> 0:07:40.440 put a relax from my hair and I was ten 0:07:40.520 --> 0:07:42.840 years old, so that's the only thing that I knew 0:07:42.960 --> 0:07:45.440 was like bone straight hair, that's it. So when I 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:47.960 put the color in my hair and my hair started 0:07:48.040 --> 0:07:50.400 just breaking off, that was my first time going without 0:07:50.400 --> 0:07:53.320 a relaxer for like some weeks. But as my hair 0:07:53.360 --> 0:07:56.480 started growing in, I'm like this hair don't look too bad, 0:07:56.760 --> 0:08:00.160 you know, because I've never really said that yet. I 0:08:00.200 --> 0:08:02.000 was like, well, man, what would that look like if 0:08:02.000 --> 0:08:03.960 I just kind of kept going. So this was like 0:08:04.080 --> 0:08:06.800 before the whole natural movement, Like I literally just had 0:08:06.800 --> 0:08:10.520 to lay off of you know, chemicals, and it started 0:08:10.560 --> 0:08:12.880 there and I'm like, as it started to grow out, 0:08:12.920 --> 0:08:14.800 I'm like, with shoot, now I can't get a cone 0:08:14.840 --> 0:08:17.200 through it. So one thing led to another. Then that's 0:08:17.200 --> 0:08:19.880 when I just started mixing up products. I felt as 0:08:19.920 --> 0:08:22.040 if you know, I went on on YouTube and I 0:08:22.120 --> 0:08:24.520 was using it as a journal, like by no means 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:26.080 was I trying to use it to like, Okay, I 0:08:26.160 --> 0:08:26.400 want to. 0:08:26.360 --> 0:08:27.480 Start a beuings scientists. 0:08:27.720 --> 0:08:30.680 Yeah, like no, I became a mad scientist. But I'm 0:08:30.720 --> 0:08:32.600 just like, let me just document it. I don't even 0:08:32.679 --> 0:08:34.920 I'm like, let me just document this as like a 0:08:35.040 --> 0:08:37.960 visual journey, you know. And I did, and my hair 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:41.199 was like here chin length, and it just started growing 0:08:41.280 --> 0:08:43.760 like over the years, and people like, wait a minute, 0:08:43.800 --> 0:08:45.720 now I've been finally before a minute, like what are 0:08:45.760 --> 0:08:48.560 you using? And again I had no idea that I 0:08:48.600 --> 0:08:50.240 was going to start a haircare brand, but I was 0:08:50.360 --> 0:08:53.320 very passionate about the things that I was learning doing 0:08:53.360 --> 0:08:55.480 this journey, like I'm mixing this stuff and I'm like, Wow, 0:08:55.559 --> 0:08:58.800 this thing worked. I'm like, does anybody else go through this? Yeah? 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:00.880 And did you know I heard it was to find 0:09:00.920 --> 0:09:03.720 products because, like you said, this was before the whole 0:09:03.840 --> 0:09:06.480 natural hair movement exactly, and so when you're going to 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:08.400 the store, you're using stuff that's not. 0:09:08.280 --> 0:09:10.080 Really exactly for us. 0:09:10.240 --> 0:09:12.800 It could drive your hair out. It's not really doing nothing, 0:09:12.880 --> 0:09:13.840 it's you know. 0:09:14.040 --> 0:09:17.440 So I just think because I remember myself being younger 0:09:17.480 --> 0:09:20.000 and having like this thick, curly hair and not having 0:09:20.080 --> 0:09:22.640 like products exactly that were good for me to use 0:09:22.640 --> 0:09:23.080 in my hair. 0:09:23.120 --> 0:09:24.520 And that's what my mom said. I was like, my 0:09:24.720 --> 0:09:26.800 she was like, well, if they had products like this 0:09:26.840 --> 0:09:28.360 when you was growing up, maybe I would to put 0:09:28.360 --> 0:09:32.800 a relax on your hair exactly. And I'm like, if 0:09:32.840 --> 0:09:34.520 I could make her believe, because I remember when I 0:09:34.520 --> 0:09:37.480 first got started, she was like, you're going natural and 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:40.440 she was just so against you, you know, so now 0:09:40.600 --> 0:09:41.480 she's like natural. 0:09:41.600 --> 0:09:43.680 I always wanted to relax it too when I was young. 0:09:43.840 --> 0:09:45.880 My mom was like no, I think I tried to 0:09:45.920 --> 0:09:47.800 do one and it didn't really do much to my 0:09:47.920 --> 0:09:48.520 hair either. 0:09:48.679 --> 0:09:50.480 They're terrible for your hair. I got one when I 0:09:50.480 --> 0:09:52.520 was younger because I was an athlete and just to 0:09:52.600 --> 0:09:54.840 keep it away from my parents and my mom's like, 0:09:54.920 --> 0:09:56.400 let me put this in your hair, but I haven't. 0:09:57.000 --> 0:10:00.600 And sometimes that's all we know. Like when I'm going exactly, 0:10:01.360 --> 0:10:05.959 it was just a day of life, so exactly exactly. 0:10:06.040 --> 0:10:07.760 And it's crazy because I look at my daughters and 0:10:07.800 --> 0:10:10.160 I'm like, dang, like they don't even know what it 0:10:10.200 --> 0:10:12.080 is to go through that, you know what I mean. 0:10:12.240 --> 0:10:14.560 So yeah, so when did you realize that this was 0:10:14.600 --> 0:10:16.080 going to be a real business. 0:10:16.400 --> 0:10:19.480 That's a funny question because it took me years to 0:10:19.640 --> 0:10:23.200 even say, like, you know what, I have a solid business, 0:10:23.240 --> 0:10:26.480 Like I just felt like I was creating something and 0:10:26.520 --> 0:10:28.960 I was trying to keep up. Like the first year 0:10:29.280 --> 0:10:31.320 I did like one hundred and eighty three thousand dollars 0:10:31.320 --> 0:10:34.000 in sales online. The year two, I did like two 0:10:34.000 --> 0:10:38.600 point five million online. It's just me at home, so 0:10:38.640 --> 0:10:41.760 I'm still not convinced that I have a business yet. 0:10:41.800 --> 0:10:44.640 I'm just like I'm keeping up. Year three, six point 0:10:44.679 --> 0:10:46.800 five million, I'm still at home. And what was that? 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:48.000 Yeah? What was going on? 0:10:49.120 --> 0:10:54.160 It went right? It went from me being in like 0:10:54.320 --> 0:10:57.400 my office, to moving into the living room, to just 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:01.240 and to anybody that's coming coming by, like help me 0:11:01.280 --> 0:11:03.839 pack these orders, you know, and I'll never do it. 0:11:03.920 --> 0:11:07.040 I got some wine, please, you know. 0:11:07.160 --> 0:11:11.640 And it really wasn't until like year three that I'm like, Okay, 0:11:11.800 --> 0:11:14.720 I maybe I know something, you know what I mean, 0:11:14.760 --> 0:11:17.120 Like I still wouldn't say it, like I wouldn't say 0:11:17.160 --> 0:11:20.200 that I know what I'm doing, you know. So yeah, 0:11:20.240 --> 0:11:22.680 it was like until year three when I decided to say, okay, 0:11:23.000 --> 0:11:25.199 like maybe I should take this thing to retake I have. 0:11:25.240 --> 0:11:28.479 To ask how was all of this affecting your previously 0:11:28.559 --> 0:11:30.959 homeless family. I mean, you're homeless and all of a 0:11:30.960 --> 0:11:32.720 sudden you're making all this money. 0:11:32.440 --> 0:11:34.520 Was like, oh, we need a whole nother podcast for 0:11:34.600 --> 0:11:40.600 that conversation, because I would definitely say in business, you know, 0:11:40.640 --> 0:11:43.920 people ask me like, what was your number one issue, 0:11:45.080 --> 0:11:48.760 you know, during this journey, And it's never the business 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:51.120 piece that I'm thinking about now. I probably got some issues, 0:11:51.160 --> 0:11:55.560 for sure, but it's always the family dynamics that nobody 0:11:55.600 --> 0:12:00.679 prepares you for being the one in your family like 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:04.720 a lot, oh my gosh, like comes with a lot 0:12:04.760 --> 0:12:06.719 that I'm like a lot of people just don't talk 0:12:06.760 --> 0:12:09.080 about enough until you get with another entrepreneur, you're like, 0:12:09.080 --> 0:12:10.480 wait a minute, am I the only one that's going 0:12:10.600 --> 0:12:12.520 it's not at all and it's not fun. 0:12:12.640 --> 0:12:15.679 Remember you're we're here because you're an icon Black Business 0:12:15.720 --> 0:12:18.800 Month and a lot of entrepreneurs feel this, and I think, yeah, 0:12:18.800 --> 0:12:23.000 we're like first generation entrepreneurs trying to create second generation wealth. Yes, 0:12:23.400 --> 0:12:25.679 so what would you say to them? What did you do? 0:12:25.720 --> 0:12:26.719 How did you manage that? 0:12:26.920 --> 0:12:29.360 You know? You know, this time around, like with the 0:12:29.400 --> 0:12:32.880 new company, I'm trying to move a little different. Like 0:12:33.000 --> 0:12:35.280 you know, before I was like, okay, you know, cousin 0:12:35.360 --> 0:12:37.560 ray Way, you know, whoever, come home and get your job. 0:12:37.679 --> 0:12:39.760 You know. But then when it's you have to make 0:12:39.800 --> 0:12:42.800 those hard decisions like what do you do now? You know, 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:44.600 And if it was a stranger, you can make that 0:12:44.679 --> 0:12:46.959 decision a lot a lot quicker. But you know, I 0:12:47.000 --> 0:12:49.800 wouldn't say I'm just going to X X out because 0:12:49.800 --> 0:12:52.720 you do have people in your family who's willing to, 0:12:53.240 --> 0:12:55.760 you know, put the work in, and you know understand 0:12:55.760 --> 0:12:58.440 that this is a generational you know type of thing. 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:01.520 And I was very fortunate to have some individuals like that. 0:13:01.640 --> 0:13:04.440 You know, we have some mothers too as well. But 0:13:04.720 --> 0:13:07.679 you know, just even getting started. You know, my husband's 0:13:07.679 --> 0:13:10.720 a medical doctor, you know, having to retire him and 0:13:11.200 --> 0:13:13.560 you know him being in a business and helping pack 0:13:13.600 --> 0:13:15.680 and you know, a lot of dynamics change. You're not 0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:19.320 going to be a doctor, are exactly or you know, 0:13:19.400 --> 0:13:21.680 at the time, I traveled so much, so it's like 0:13:21.760 --> 0:13:24.679 now you have to be mommy, like you have to 0:13:24.760 --> 0:13:27.760 like bathe them and you have to like their hair like. 0:13:28.040 --> 0:13:31.200 So that was a transition nobody warned me about, you 0:13:31.240 --> 0:13:34.080 know what I mean, So so many things changed. Again. 0:13:34.200 --> 0:13:36.440 You know, we start these things, you know, this is 0:13:36.480 --> 0:13:40.840 our passion, but everything changes. When one thing changed, everything 0:13:40.920 --> 0:13:45.160 changes your personal relationship, your friends, your family, you know everything. 0:13:45.360 --> 0:13:47.920 So how did you learn how to run a business 0:13:48.280 --> 0:13:52.240 and even how to budget and just financial Yeah. 0:13:52.280 --> 0:13:55.560 You know, I thank God because I think that's a 0:13:55.640 --> 0:13:59.199 piece that definitely kind of came with me a little natural. 0:13:59.280 --> 0:14:01.840 So I am the one and even prior to you know, 0:14:01.960 --> 0:14:05.560 the business people look at as she's about her business, 0:14:05.640 --> 0:14:07.960 you know what I mean, like, you know, somebody got 0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:10.040 something that's gonna be Courtney, you know, But as a nurse, 0:14:10.080 --> 0:14:12.760 I hustled. You know, I did two hundred hours of 0:14:12.800 --> 0:14:15.079 pay period as a nurse. You know what I mean, 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:16.240 one hundred hours a week. 0:14:16.480 --> 0:14:16.760 Wow. 0:14:17.200 --> 0:14:19.880 So I'm not a stranger to hard work. And I 0:14:19.880 --> 0:14:23.040 think sometimes people look at entrepreneurship as you know, I 0:14:23.160 --> 0:14:25.280 want to work with myself so I don't have to work. Well, 0:14:25.320 --> 0:14:28.320 that's the furthest the truth, it is exactly. You know, 0:14:28.480 --> 0:14:30.680 like I said, I put in one hundred hours as 0:14:30.720 --> 0:14:32.760 a nurse, so to do the same thing for my 0:14:32.840 --> 0:14:35.560 own business, you know, it's just second nature. 0:14:36.120 --> 0:14:39.680 But you must. Entrepreneurs have to make decisions differently because 0:14:39.720 --> 0:14:42.560 the things you guys got a side hustle or you've 0:14:42.560 --> 0:14:45.680 got a business and a scaled business is a completely 0:14:45.720 --> 0:14:48.960 different way of making decisions. It is we would you 0:14:48.960 --> 0:14:50.320 what kind of tips would you give on that? 0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:53.520 I would definitely say, you know, because some people, you know, say, well, 0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:55.560 you know you got a side hustle, you have a business. 0:14:55.680 --> 0:14:58.400 I think ultimately it's it's it's still a business. I 0:14:58.520 --> 0:15:01.360 always also like to say, begin with the end in mind, 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:04.360 what does that look like in the future when things 0:15:04.600 --> 0:15:07.840 may change. So even today when I start something, I'm 0:15:07.840 --> 0:15:10.920 never looking at it as you know, this is where 0:15:10.960 --> 0:15:14.120 it stands right now. I can be mediocre because I'm small. 0:15:14.160 --> 0:15:16.720 I'm a small black business, so I can proceed accordingly. 0:15:17.040 --> 0:15:19.240 That's never been the case. Like to me, I look 0:15:19.240 --> 0:15:21.440 at that as a badge of honor, Like, Okay, if 0:15:21.480 --> 0:15:23.960 you know that I'm a black owned business, I don't 0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:26.080 want you to cut me some slack because my shipping 0:15:26.160 --> 0:15:28.640 is terrible. Like no, I think we should ship on time, 0:15:29.000 --> 0:15:30.480 you know what I mean? And I mentor a lot 0:15:30.560 --> 0:15:32.760 of people and sometimes I ask, all, you know, how 0:15:32.800 --> 0:15:34.480 often do you ship? Watch ship once a week? 0:15:34.840 --> 0:15:35.160 Why? 0:15:35.680 --> 0:15:38.720 You know what I mean? So again, I try my 0:15:38.840 --> 0:15:43.280 best to make sure that you know I'm operating business 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:44.240 the right way. 0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:47.600 When did you realize that you wanted to sell? Because 0:15:47.600 --> 0:15:49.880 that's a conversation too. Like you said, you're thinking about 0:15:49.880 --> 0:15:52.720 the endgame. But at the same time, people have bought 0:15:52.720 --> 0:15:55.840 into you as a brand, bought into your story, and 0:15:55.880 --> 0:15:58.520 you grew this brand into a one hundred million dollar business. 0:15:58.600 --> 0:16:02.160 Yes, yes, you know. The crazy thing is when I 0:16:02.320 --> 0:16:06.120 went to I would say, get an evaluation. That was 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:09.800 all I was going to do. I was not trying, yeah, 0:16:09.840 --> 0:16:12.440 to be honest, by me starting his business at home, 0:16:12.640 --> 0:16:16.560 by myself five hundred dollars, I'm like, am I even 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:18.560 doing it right? I mean, I know I have the sales, 0:16:18.680 --> 0:16:20.680 like obviously you know what I mean, But I'm like, 0:16:20.840 --> 0:16:24.120 I would love to know is it even profitable? Like 0:16:24.280 --> 0:16:27.560 is it you know? But now retrospect, looking back, it's 0:16:27.560 --> 0:16:30.200 almost like going window shopping. Like no one goes window shopping. 0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:33.600 You're gonna buy something. So for me going to these individuals, 0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:35.680 they look like, oh, she about to sell, But I 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:39.200 was only there to see what was the company worth? 0:16:39.320 --> 0:16:42.960 Like am I doing it right? So looking back, I'm like, duh, 0:16:43.280 --> 0:16:45.640 you know what I mean. You go to these guys, 0:16:45.640 --> 0:16:48.040 that's the first thing they're going to do. But it 0:16:48.120 --> 0:16:50.000 was an eye opener though, because I remember having a 0:16:50.000 --> 0:16:52.720 conversation with a bank when I first started, and the 0:16:52.760 --> 0:16:54.360 first thing he asked me was he said, what are 0:16:54.400 --> 0:16:56.840 you going to sell? I remember that day. I was 0:16:56.880 --> 0:16:59.600 so offended that he asked me that. I was like, 0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:01.400 why would you ask me that? Do I look like 0:17:01.440 --> 0:17:03.760 I'm about to sell? You know? But being in business 0:17:03.760 --> 0:17:07.840 for so long, that's the epitome of a business. Like 0:17:08.000 --> 0:17:11.320 you don't have to, but your business should be positioned 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:14.199 that it is sellable and at the time, you know, 0:17:14.480 --> 0:17:17.399 because we don't in our community get a chance to 0:17:18.119 --> 0:17:19.760 be in a position like that. We were in a 0:17:19.760 --> 0:17:21.800 lot of hats. We're the CEO, we the CFO, we 0:17:21.880 --> 0:17:24.840 do the marketer, we all of these things. So to 0:17:24.920 --> 0:17:28.679 be in a position where the company is profitable. And 0:17:28.720 --> 0:17:31.280 then at the end of the day, every company has 0:17:31.320 --> 0:17:35.480 a window. Every company has a window, and unfortunately, what 0:17:35.560 --> 0:17:39.160 a lot of people don't like to see is sometimes 0:17:39.200 --> 0:17:41.440 you will miss that window. And they said, well, all, 0:17:41.440 --> 0:17:43.439 look at this brand they have been you know, this 0:17:43.560 --> 0:17:46.520 is a black On haircare brand. They've been around forever. 0:17:47.119 --> 0:17:50.600 Look at their evaluation today though they missed their opportunity. 0:17:50.920 --> 0:17:54.520 And I see that even now like business has gone down, 0:17:54.600 --> 0:17:54.960 they do it. 0:17:55.119 --> 0:17:57.640 It's not even an opportunity to sell. And they didn't 0:17:57.640 --> 0:17:59.399