Updated: September 27, 2024 08:08 AM
Akilia Darrell at the Hamilton Marketplace where her Hair Am I line of hair care products is sold. (Photo by Jesse Moniz Hardy)
After social distancing due to the pandemic, salon owner Akilia Darrell saw many Black clients ditch chemical curling irons in favor of natural hair growth.
But the change is not without its challenges for the owners of Hair Am I, located at 38 Union Street in Hamilton.
“Caring for natural hair requires a lot of hair oil and moisturizer,” she said. “Suddenly we were paying staggering amounts of money to import natural hair care products. It was difficult to get the right products at the right price.”
To cut costs, she developed her own Hair Am I hair care range. She had the product manufactured in China and shipped to Bermuda.
Akilia Darrell hopes to someday sell her Hair Am I hair care line internationally (Photo by Jesse Moniz Hardy)
Initially, it was only sold at her salon.
“Afterwards, everyone said they wish they could buy their products somewhere other than at a company,” she said. “I thought I’d take it to a few stores.”
It wasn’t easy.
“It took a lot of emails,” Darrell said. “It was a lot of knocking on doors and checking in with people. Our production has to reach a certain level, and the product has to look a certain way.”
Her efforts paid off last year when the Phoenix store agreed to carry her products. My manager then contacted me to say that my daughter was using Hair I Am products and that he wanted to sell them at his store in Warwick.
From then on, sales skyrocketed.
“The marketplace came on board,” she says. “It was like a domino effect. Once people saw it working, they thought why not take it and make money with it.”
Darrell currently sells 13 hair care products in 15 stores across the island.
“Our top three best sellers are definitely Edge Control, Braid Gel, which is sold for braids and ponytails, and our Growth Oil, because so many people experience hair loss due to pregnancy, stress, or just genetics. Because I do.”
Things were going so well that she downsized her salon to focus on sales.
“It was a difficult decision to make after running a salon for 13 years,” she said. “Before, we did hairdressing, makeup, and nails. Now we just focus on hair. We still work on hair, all natural and chemically treated, with extensions and nails.” We also do braiding in the store.
She uses her own lines only at Hair Am I so her clients can experience them.
Darrell finds it more relaxing.
“Managing talent is very difficult and the economy is changing,” she says. “Many people have left the island, lost their jobs or are taking care of their own hair instead of going to a salon.”
Eventually, we hope to expand the Hair Am I line beyond Bermuda. The next step is to set up your commercial website.
She said: “We get a lot of messages from people in Canada and the UK, and it’s clear that without a website you can’t do financial transactions.”
One of her challenges is funding.
“‘Hair Am I’ has become quite popular,” she says. “Even when it comes in, it sells out quickly. To really meet demand and take small businesses to the next level, we need investors.”
