Today we’d like to introduce you to Jami Pease.
Hi Jami, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My story starts when I was in middle school. I had no idea what to do with my curls and was bullied to the point of tears daily. I hated my curly hair and tried to contain it as much as possible. Not only did I not know what to do with my hair but there wasn’t a hairdresser out there that could help me figure out what to do or even give me a decent hair cut. I got my hair cut about once a year, at most, and it was always a horrible experience. I eventually accepted my curls but I still didn’t love them.
Fast forward to 2011 when I was about 30, my mom called me and told me that she’d found a curly hair specialist in my area. I was extremely skeptical but she told me she’d pay for the cut and pay to have it fixed if they screwed it up. Ok, what did I have to lose? I went in for my cut, terrified and explained my story to the stylist and told her I’d have to keep my eyes closed so I wouldn’t’ be nervous. She understood and made me feel at ease. She cut my hair and while she was styling it, gave me a lesson on how to properly care for and style my hair at home. When she was done she turned me around to look in the mirror and I cried tears of joy. My curls looked amazing and at that moment I fell in love with them.
A few years later I was laid off from my job as a corporate trainer and knew I needed to stay away from the corporate world. It just wasn’t for me. I decided then that I wanted to go to cosmetology school and do for others what had been done for me. I went to my stylist and told her my plan and that I needed to work for her once I finished school. She agreed and I started my journey as a curly hair specialist. When that salon closed in December 2016, I decided to rent a suite and run my own business. I started Positively Curly in January 2017 and the rest is history.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I wouldn’t say my road has been crazy hard but it has definitely had it’s share of speedbumps. It takes a while to grow a strong steady client base and even longer when you have a very specific niche market like mine. Not long after I opened my business, my then husband and I were trying to get pregnant. We struggled with fertility and loss for a few years and it took a tole on my mental health and in turn, my business. I finally got pregnant in June 2019. Yay! My daughter was born in February 2020 and one month later, COVID lockdown started. Her dad and I chose caution so I stayed home to take care of her. I went back to work full time when my daughter was about 18 months old but I’d lost several clients to other people and some chose not to come back to me because I continued my mask policies for several months after the state lifted theirs. It took quite some time to rebuild my client base but in time it happened. I’m now a single mom trying build my business further while still trying to make sure I have quality time with my daughter.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Positively Curly is my business and I specialize in cutting and styling naturally curly/wavy/coiled hair. If it bends I can work with it. I don’t do a lot of color. There are color specialists for that. My main goal is to give my clients what was given to me when I got my first proper curly cut; a cut that makes them feel good and the confidence to take care of it, style it, and wear it with pride. Curls are a horse of a different color and my goal is to help people embrace and rock the chaos that is our curls.
A New Client Cut with me is a two hour appointment that comes with a thorough consultation, a shampoo and style, a moisture treatment if necessary, and a full lesson on how to properly care for and style their curls at home and why ingredients matter with curly hair. I want to make sure my clients know how to care for their hair because what they do at home on a regular basis is way more important than what I do during a cut every few weeks/months.
I think what sets me apart from other stylists, or even curl specialists, is that I have all of the horror stories and fully understand what it’s like to hate your hair and not have any idea that it could be different. I truly want to help people love their curls. I intentionally keep my prices lower than other curl specialists because I want the average person to be able to afford me.
I absolutely love my job. I get to help people feel confident in their hair. Our curls are our crown, it’s a part of who we are and how people know us. I get to be a part of some of the most important parts of people’s lives, good and bad, and they trust me to be a part of it. I’ve met some of the best people I know and I’ve made some of the best friends of my life because of my job. My daughter who, yes has my curly hair, will grow up with the knowledge and love for her hair that I didn’t and I got to be the one to give her her first haircut. It’s truly an honor to get to do what I do.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Passion. I am very passionate about what I do. People say it’s just hair but it’s not just hair. A good haircut literally changed my life and set me on my career path.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://vagaro.com/positivelycurly
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/positivelycurly
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/positivelycurly
