We were lucky to catch up with Idonteá Richardson recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Idonteá, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
Let’s be transparent, entrepreneurship builds and expands characteristics that help you reach different levels of growth and success. You learn to optimize your resilience, confidence, passions, and work ethic to combat imposter syndrome. I have learned to be effective and successful when I am the only one in the room who looks like me by knowing I always have something to contribute. Having this confidence within myself and knowing the knowledge and ideas I obtain is worth sharing. I have also learned to read the room by being observant. I always move as a student and not often as the teacher because there is always much more to learn than there is to teach. Knowing when to speak and when to listen has gotten me far in successful rooms and I am honored to have learned that at an early age from my mother.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Hammered Nails was founded in 2017 to give women an alternative to going to the nail salon and to bring awareness to the importance of nail health. Providing the community with the information that there is a healthier substitute to going to nail salons. Many nail salon customers are not aware of the harsh chemicals they are exposed to when entering a nail salon. These severe and unsafe compounds include but are not limited to toluene, formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate, and methyl methacrylate. These compounds are damaging and can cause issues within the neurological and reproductive systems over time. Causing customers to experience headaches, dizziness, asthma, and eye irritation. However, shopping with Hammered Nails will eliminate the hassle of fill-ins, long lines, making an appointment, contact with unclean tools, damaged nails, and exposure to harsh chemicals.
Although going to the nail salon has become a necessity for women, it does not have to be their only option. Hammered Nails presents a press-on manicure boutique, which caters to the needs of women online. This service is designed for women who are always on the go! But, still loves the satisfaction of having that manicured look. Whether you are a cancer survivor, mother, student, model, actress, influencer, makeup artist, business owner or just working towards your daily career goals, Hammered Nails has you covered. Our online manicure boutique provides you with the service to purchase hand-painted, sculpted, and designed nails. We also give you the option to create your own customized manicure sets within minutes. Giving customers access to various nail trends. Here at Hammered Nails, you are your own nail boss. You have the leisure of being in control. Say goodbye to the nail salon and hello to at-home manicures with our $10 Tuesday deal, Grab N Go sets, Made To Order sets, and Custom Order Requests. One of my goals is to create a space where beauty is undefined but felt through creativity; a contraption of encapsulated beauty, pandemonium, and empowerment.
Hammered Nails now offer in-person nail workshops! This is a great team bonding/ individual exercise where you can explore your creativity through nail art while exploring STEAM. If your company is interested feel free to book a consultation on our website: www.hammerednails.net
Nail health is very important to our mission. Therefore, be sure to check out our nourishing cuticle oils. Hammered Nails formulated cuticle oils are packed with essential fatty acids, vitamins, and antioxidants to deeply hydrate and restore the health of your cuticles. Currently, we have original, mango, coconut, peppermint, and our newest edition, hemp.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The three areas that have been impactful in my journey are legal skills, creative skills, and organization skills. These three skills have been impactful to my journey because with: 1. Legal skills I have learned the importance of creating the proper legal structure, how to use and protect my intellectual property, mitigate legal risk, and draft contracts.
2. Creative skills I have learned the importance of knowing there are no limits to creating art. Be as expressive as you want to be, be as free as you want to be, be as quirky as you want to be. But, best of all be yourself when creating your art.
3. Organization skills I have learned that things are easier to manage when you are organized. Create a coding system for yourself and your business. Whether that is with highlighters, labels, or an Excel spreadsheet.
For entering entrepreneurs early in their journey wanting to improve their skill sets I would suggest being patient with your journey and finding a mentor if you can. A mentor is an entrepreneur’s best tool. Having someone willing to share their mistakes with you, so you can avoid them, can save you years of trial and error. However, if you cannot find a mentor, I would suggest taking training courses that interest you and using those learned skills and apply them to your business.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
I think it is better to focus on becoming well-rounded by investing in areas needed for improvement. When you focus on areas you need improvement on, you discover a different part of yourself. This allows you to tap into being patient with yourself by constantly practicing the skill you want to get better at.
Personally, something that was not my strongest suit at the beginning of becoming an entrepreneur would have been gaining confidence in my brand. I had to become comfortable with selling press on nails because I knew I was tapping into a market that was surrounded by a lot of misinformation and myths. One is that press-on nails are cheap and flimsy, they don’t last long, and they pop off quickly. All in all, I had to gain the proper confidence within myself and my brand to dispel these myths by creating quality products and standing behind the products I created. I made an avowal to myself that before selling my product I would first, focus on building a community that informed nail wearers about press on nails. By first educating customers on how to properly apply the nails and how substantial the application process is in dispelling current press on nail myths.
The best thing that I taught myself during this time was that everyone may not like your product and that is okay. However, those who do, create a community with those customers because they liked your product and connected with your mission.
Things that I did to improve my confidence were scheduling elevator pitches with a company called C3 located in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I worked on my sales pitch and created business affirmations that I spoke aloud frequently for one year until I became overly confident in my business. Gaining confidence within your brand is an unspoken truth, not too many people touch on this topic but, it is worth noting because one word from the wrong mouth can deter you from your why and you have to be prepared for that. You have to be prepared to keep going and pursuing your business dreams no matter what. You have to learn to push through and that includes if you have zero clients or a thousand clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hammerednails.net
- Instagram: Hammered.Nails
- Facebook: Hammered
- Twitter: HammeredNails
Image Credits
Image Credits: Idonteá Richardson Image Credits: Hammered Nails
