Q & A with Kavita Ramlogan

“I am definitely not a hairstylist by profession.” says Kavita of her foray into business. “I would say it somewhat ‘just happened’.” Her beginnings came when she started experimenting on her own hair, then on friends who she says loved her work. A few years ago, she was approached by the STYD founder, Rene Maraj, to take over the business. At the time, Kavita was casually doing part-time hairstyling with friend and business partner, Valene Maharaj and jumped at the opportunity to put her experience to the test and take over the reigns. “Since then, it all just happened and what a journey it has been.”

She credits STYD’s success with her partnerships with talented women and brands – she says her team is diverse and each member offers unique services. A niche STYD is filling is the fact that “numerous clients love the concept of us coming to them.” She sees the business’ selling point as saving clients the hassle and time of going to a location and instead bringing a full set up to their homes or places of convenience.

Today, Kavita speaks with WMN about the world of aesthetics, her role as a businesswoman, her all-star team that allows STYD to provide full-service packages, and the reasons she sees the work they do as fulfilling.

Q What services does “Straight to Your Door” offer?

With such a talented team we do quite a lot: Bridal styling, blow drying, updos, cuts, colouring, makeup, eyelash extensions. The list continues.

Q Why do you think such services are most relevant in 2016?

A huge area that has grown recently is bridal styling: there has been A LOT of weddings happening recently so trust me, we have been busy. Brides, in these times, are happy to have convenience and ease on their big day. They love having a “glam team” show up at their relevant venue and we certainly go above and beyond to ensure their big day goes as flawlessly as possible.

Q Please tell us about your partnerships with other artists?

Valene is one of the main reasons I started doing hairstyling for clients, she was actually my very first client. A former Miss World TT and quite a talented makeup artist, I certainly enjoyed partnering with her on this business venture in 2011. Two years ago I realized how much the business was growing, it certainly was not enough with one stylist. Liz-Ann is a trained professional from Pivot Point Academy. She has lots of experience in the hair industry and is certainly very unique in her talent. Her own business, Liz-Ann Hair Designs, is also growing but she certainly adds a lot of value to STYD. She brought diversity to the business in offering haircuts and very original colouring. We also have, newly on board, Shenelle who is quite a skilled makeup artist and very known in the industry as well.

Q Can you describe your passion for hairstyling?

I love hair. I was never into makeup so hair became my “go-to” for a glam look. We all love our individual talents and it certainly is fulfilling and rewarding; according to Steve Jobs, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.”

Q How is your work personally fulfilling?

I think I speak for the team when I say we love seeing our clients happy. I don’t think there is any better feeling than making a woman feel beautiful, especially on her wedding day. We have made some excellent relationships in this business and in many cases, clients have become friends.

Q What “Straight to Your Door” promise can your clients always count on?

We stand by our Vision and Mission. Our vision is to be well known in the beauty industry as a provider of expert, reliable, convenient and affordable hair styling and make up services.

Our Mission Statement reads: “Straight to Your Door (STYD) is dedicated to providing a memorable experience for each client through exceptional service and technical excellence in one convenient location, your own home. We will go the extra mile to accomplish this mission with passion, expert advice, quality products and the utmost professionalism. Through forward thinking and continuous learning, our team is committed in unifying our skills and techniques that provide the 4 C’s of service to our clients; “Convenience, Consistency, Comfort, Confidence…

Q ” How do you incorporate facets of yourself in your work?

One thing we each bring with us is our personality and love of what we do. We relate to our clients on a personal level to truly understand what they need. We give advice based on our understanding of hair and makeup and we love that our clients trust our recommendations. And we certainly make any appointment fun and enjoyable; we are all quite bubbly.

Q Your business has expanded a lot since its inception; do you have plans for further expansions? We are always considering what more can we do, what new service can we bring? Valene has recently introduced eyelash extensions and Liz-Ann her Keratin Complex specials. As we continue to evolve, we would be sure to let our clients know of what next to expect.

Q Are there any challenges you face as a businesswoman?

I certainly think challenges come with the territory of business ownership. There’s no such thing as “vacation”. It’s all about timing. We really need to manage our time well. I work at this business part-time which means my weekends for relaxing are usually instead spent with clients, but once you love what you do, you sacri_ ce the time. Valene is a new mom and also knows how important time is. Liz-Ann and Shenelle can also attest to the fact that, when you have a client on a particular day, you have to put yourself aside and know that your client comes _ rst, despite how you are feeling. But we love doing this for a reason, and seeing our clients happy makes the challenges worth it.

Q Any words of encouragement to others who are hoping to take their love of aesthetic services into the realm of entrepreneurship?

It’s certainly not an easy industry as more and more it gets saturated with new talent, but, once you love what you do and you _ nd your niche, work hard at it every single day. It’s the only way you would truly develop to where you want to be. More importantly than anything in this day and age, customer service will be a winning proposition.

Q Last words or thoughts?

I would certainly like to express my gratitude, on behalf of the team, to all our clients who believe in us and our abilities to be there when they need us. We will continue to bring joy with our house-call services and we do look forward to meeting more wonderful clients moving forward.