Like many businesses, Boho Locs was born out of necessity. Its owner, Lulu Pierre, wanted a protective hairstyle that took minimal time to install and maintain. And after perfecting her own version of faux locs, she quickly realised that many other women were also searching for the very same thing. Thus, her brand hit the ground running – and it wasn’t long before the orders came flooding in. However, the journey leading up to the launch came with many trials and errors as well as a bungled salon appointment.
Salon visit gone wrong
It all started with a Brazilian blow-dry, the miracle keratin treatment design to semipermanently smooth hair. And that’s exactly what it did for Pierre the first time around: “It made my hair manageable and more versatile,” she says. “I could easily wear it in an Afro or even straight.” However, as with all hair treatments, the effects faded over time and she was back in the salon chair with a few inches of regrowth. But her second treatment didn’t go according to plan. “I asked for my roots to be treated with the Brazilian blow-dry, but I was told that it was not possible and that I had to have all of my hair treated again. When my appointment was over, I knew instantly that it was a mistake. My Afro was now half its original thickness and it was so limp. I nearly cried.” There’s no doubt that many women will relate to that instant feeling of regret after a salon visit, whether it was the result of a bleach that burned your ends or a cut that was far too short. Dealing with a less-than-perfect hairstyle for some might mean cutting it off and starting again. But Pierre was determined to keep her hair: “I had to grow it out, but I also wanted to protect it. I knew that I liked locs because my mum and sisters have them, but I wasn’t ready to commit. That’s when I started using faux locs.”
Boho Locs comes to life
Pierre knew what she wanted from a hairstyle, but realised that she would have to use her knowledge and ingenuity to create her perfect faux locs from scratch. Posting photos of her hair on her Instagram page, she started receiving messages from other women who wanted to replicate her hairstyle and began producing orders by hand. She immediately sold out and continued to do so as awareness of her business increased on both sides of the pond.
Boho Locs was born and Pierre used Instagram to announce sales and restocks, document the growth of the brand, re-post photos of happy customers and publish tutorials. With previous experience of creating how-to videos, the business owner knew that this popular medium was essential in helping to develop customer rapport: “In terms of being in front of the camera and producing tutorials, I’m really passionate about hair, so talking about it comes really easily,” she says. “When it comes to the product, I think it’s really important for customers to get the most out of their investment and our exclusive Boho Locs tutorials can help them to do that.”
Today Boho Locs has become an international success and Pierre no longer has the capacity to make all the faux locs from scratch herself: “We use a contract manufacturer who makes them by hand according to our specifications,” she says. The brand’s creator now spends her time managing a team at her London office: “Throughout the day, I’ll be guiding the team or meeting with external agencies to talk branding, buying, acquisitions or data analysis. At the moment, I’m in the process of on-boarding two new people, which is exciting!”
Successful hair entrepreneurs
Though self-made, Pierre is not without her inspirations. She has a poster of entrepreneur Madam C. J. Walker, America’s first black female millionaire, in her office. And in terms of contemporary icons, Pierre looks up to Gwen Jimmere, CEO of Naturalicious: “She agreed to mentor me when I launched Boho Locs and gave me lots of valuable information”.
It’s no surprise that Pierre counts two successful black hair entrepreneurs as having an influence on her career. Her website states, ‘We believe that more international hair brands that sell to black women need to be owned by black women’. When asked to expand, she adds: “I think that the market is now big enough for black women to grow businesses to rival those that pre-exist.” We couldn’t agree more!
Follow @itslulupierre on Instagram and visit Boho Locs website here.
