Inspiring Conversations with Imani Powell of Essence of Ebony

Today we’d like to introduce you to Imani Powell.

Alright, thank you for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us how you got started?
In September of 2017, I moved to the state of Utah for a Forensic job! Certainly was not my first choice after graduating college, but I went anyway. I grew up in a household of cosmetologists and spent most of my childhood at the salon learning all the tricks of Natural Hair. I learned about business very young, mainly because my parents told me I had to work to get anything I wanted. So I did. I sold pictures I drew, water bottles, and even made jewelry! Once I got to high school, I knew I wanted to stray away from hair since I had always been surrounded by it – so I graduated with a Forensic Science degree! One of the most challenging experiences but rewarding nonetheless! So I moved to Utah, worked in a few labs, and loved having the title Scientist! I didn’t tell anyone in Utah that I knew how to do hair because I wanted to start creating a new lane for myself that wasn’t attached to my upbringing. However, I forgot that I made an Instagram in college for hair – and soon after my friend found it, I was exposed! Lol, It started with just a few friends, then some friends of friends, then strangers all asking me to do their hair! All while still working in corporate! I never posted or shared, or advertised myself; people found me! At that point, I knew there was no way to avoid my name growing in Utah as someone skilled at Natural Hair, and I can say today that I’m grateful. I launched my business in June of 2020, named it Essence of Ebony, and started doing hair in a small studio. I quit my job unexpectedly in November of 2020 and was laser-focused on growing the business! I had to do a lot of self-reflection, mediation, and planning to figure out my life at this point. My clientele began to grow, money started to flow in, and I outgrew my small studio! I expanded to a large Luxury Salon Suite and now have two stylists and an intern at the Utah location! The Essence of Ebony was featured in magazines, the headline of a newspaper, on multiple news channels & features from other businesses! This was such a blessing, and I believe it all came because I manifested a certain type of life in a certain amount of time!

I believed that more than anything! Fast forward to today, I moved to Arizona – again, not a part of the plan! As I’ve been here, I knew that I wanted to offer something more educational to people in the beauty industry than hair styling alone. I wanted to help Beauty Professionals become the best versions of themselves by launching and scaling their businesses with Confidence! So I launched The Beauty Boss Bootcamp: An Intensive 60-Day Coaching Experience that helps Business Professionals establish & Scales their business with Confidence. In the short time, I’ve had this available, people have begun reaching out to me, expressing the need for this service. I was coaching while working in Utah and realized people Want convenience, but people Want & Need education about how to achieve proper convenience! I have always been social, and I have always explored every avenue that I was interested in! I know what it’s like to start a business with little money and just a few clients. I also know how to speak life into my future AND plan for the desired outcome! I have made many mistakes, and I have spent even more money and time on achieving my dreams. I want to help people SAVE time and money by efficiently achieving their dreams. The Essence of Ebony has expanded and welcomed The Beauty Boss Bootcamp, and I am excited to help people live their dreams and watch them blossom!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been a smooth road, according to the public. Internally, it has been like riding a bike up a mountain! It has felt impossible to reach my goals! One of the biggest struggles I felt was finding a way to effectively step away from hair styling, as I always knew that I was not supposed to be behind the chair long. Hair styling has always been something I’ve been skilled at, and I have enjoyed it, but it became difficult to define where I was meant to be. So I started writing and creating different roles. I realized that I wanted to coach people, but it took me months to figure it out. That time, that money spent, the help I needed – all of that was a challenge because I had always figured things out before, but this time, it held more weight because it was all I had. When you are JUST starting your business and trying to scale and leave your current role all within 1.5 years, you feel crazy. It is tough to do something like this with little capital and at the infancy stages of your business. But, it isn’t easy if you don’t believe it’s possible. So I had to shift my mindset and operate in the space of overflow and true purpose.

As you know, we’re big fans of Essence of Ebony. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
My name is Imani Powell, and I am the owner of Essence of Ebony. The Essence of Ebony is a Natural Hair Home for the African Diaspora. We have a Natural Hair Salon in Utah where we offer braids, locs, twists, coils, cornrows, children’s styles, crochets, and coaching. The Essence of Ebony has recently created a new branch specifically for Beauty Professionals called The Beauty Boss Bootcamp: An Intensive 60-Day Coaching Experience that helps Business Professionals launch & Scales their business with Confidence.

We specialize and are known for Natural Hair Styling. We focus on the health of the client’s natural hair before anything. We use Black Owned Products in our salon and give each guest a luxury experience by listening and catering to the needs of their hair.

Our salon not only caters to Black and Brown clientele, but we also offer educational coaching services, which is something most salons don’t provide. We want to ensure that our clients understand their hair, the products, the routine, the accessories, and the science of their hair so that they know exactly how to take care of themselves when they leave our space.

I chose the name Essence of Ebony because both names exemplify Blackness. I am most proud that we have stayed true to our vision of taking care of our people and educating those in need so they can also take care of them! I am excited to be able to cater to my community at a level that’s not the norm yet! Now that I am coaching others, I can offer the foundation I was taught and implement in my business to help others level up in their businesses and offer these exclusive services, and truly begin to change the communities we all serve.

I would love for the readers to know that Essence of Ebony & The Beauty Boss Bootcamp is here for YOU! The only focus is enhancing your best self, whether you are a client or a beauty professional. For those interested in being coached by me 1-on-1 about your hair, your children’s hair, or just having questions, you can book virtual coaching services with me!

If you are a beauty professional looking to launch your business but have tons of questions and don’t know where to start and how BEST to start, The Beauty Boss Bootcamp is for YOU! If you are already practicing as a Beauty professional but are ready to scale up and spend less physical time working, The Beauty Boss Bootcamp is definitely for you!

You can book a free 25-minute consultation with me if you have any questions or concerns! To book and learn more, visit www.eofebony.com.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some changes you expect to see over the next five to ten years?
The industry will dramatically shift due to the government removing the need for licensing in Barbering & Cosmetology. They have already begun in some states like California, but soon the entire country will take a hit, and people will be able to cut and color without needing a license. That is major and highly concerning! The CROWN Act was created in 2019 by Dove and the CROWN Coalition, in partnership with then State Senator Holly J. Mitchell of California, to ensure protection against discrimination based on race-based hairstyles by extending statutory protection to hair texture and protective styles such as braids, locs, twists, and knots in the workplace and public schools. We are still experiencing discrimination in the Black community when it comes to our hair in schools and the workplace, and we are hoping that with the passing of this act, we will start to see a difference in how people are treated based on their natural hair.

Black hair education is also beginning to rise, which is amazing and will continue since most schools refuse to implement it into their curriculum. In the next 10 years, there will be a solid standard for education for ALL types of hair.

Pricing:

• 25 Minute Virtual Consultation: Free
• 1-on-1 Coaching: $155/hr
• The Beauty Boss Bootcamp: $720

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.eofebony.com
• Instagram: @imani.cai & @eofebony
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eofebony/

Image Credits
Tabarri Hamilton