Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Janay Stubbs. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Janay with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
From a young age, I was always encouraged to start a business and to be independent. My dad use to be a Regional Manager for a candy company and would always get tons of free candy. So much, we were sick of it… So, he decided to encourage entrepreneurship and to sell the candy to classmates for a few extra bucks during elementary school all the way through high school. That really sparked my interest in having my own business and really molded my work ethic to be what it is today.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I offer Raw Cambodian Hair Extensions and Custom Glueless Lace Wigs that focuses more on a luxury experience for customers rather than just hair in a package. We all want to feel beautiful from the inside out, and having high quality hair is just the icing on the cake to feeling top tier as all women should.
I vet every hair extension and every wig that comes through my office. From selecting grade, texture, color, and perfecting my wig making skills, I really put a lot of my focus and energy into making sure my target audience knows they are getting nothing but the best from my company – Cambodian Hair Freak.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The first quality that you have to have especially in the hair industry is to be optimistic! Majority of people do not see, understand, or even care about the vision that you have. Being optimistic allows you push through those barriers even when there are no believers. You see the vision and only you can start making it come to reality.
The second quality that you need, which I personally pride myself on, is to be resourceful. With the age of technology and the internet, you get bombarded with information that it’s hard to decipher exactly what you need or what you need to be doing with your business especially in its infancy. Being able to have a sense of resourcefulness and sifting through information to find what I need to succeed, is crucial.
The third most important quality would be to have excellent social & customer skills. I don’t see my customers as the traditional “customer”… They are literally a part of my little tribe of Raw Hair lovers going on this journey with me to experience the best hair on the market. I share my advice and my tips/tricks… I hear their stories of their struggles with their hair whether it be from post-partum hair falling out, alopecia, to a just doing a big chop. We formulate a plan on whats the best method and the best hair to get them back feeling as beautiful as they are on the inside.
Without connecting with my customers in this way, it would be extremely difficult to build your business for the long haul.
Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
Feeling overwhelmed in this industry is so common. There are so many hair companies that you feel like you are competing with all the time… and trying to stand out amongst them all seems impossible. Not to mention getting “imposter syndrome” when you want to try something new, but don’t know exactly how to execute it. When I feel stuck, I love taking time off social media and away from anything that’s giving me anxiety.
I love falling back in love with why I do hair and why I started offering hair extensions in the first place.
Get back to being creative & being an optimist.
Sometimes, social media can be a lot nowadays… but taking a step back and going back to the original concept always sparks new ideas for the company and for me as a person.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cambodianhairfreak.com
- Instagram: @CambodianHairFreak
- Facebook: @CambodianHairFreak
