Diversifying your Extension Business w/ Towanna Dunn

Let me guess. You are a hustling, bustling hairstylist behind the chair, working so hard to build a beautiful career for yourself, one that gives you time, freedom, and energy to spend with yourself, your family, and your friends. But, you feel like you're always working in your business, even when you're not behind the chair. My name is Hunter Donia, and I help you automate your systems and implement really beautiful strategies so you can grow your business without the overwhelm.

And this is the Modern Hairstylist podcast. Hello, friend. Welcome back to the Modern Hairstylist podcast. So today, I have one of my good friends on the pod with me, and we're gonna be talking about something that is very much out of my personal comfort zone, but I know a lot of the listeners, um, love having these types of conversations, and it will be very, very relevant for them.

Um, we are gonna be talking about extensions, and we're gonna be talking about expanding and diversifying your hair extension business, uh, if you already do them. And if maybe you're thinking about getting into in- extensions one day or you're looking into it, um, this is gonna be a really great episode for you too, because we're gonna be talking about, you know, some, uh, maybe good habits that you can start off with from the very beginning of your career, and maybe some bad habits that you wanna look out for before you get started, right? Um, but I have the perfect, most amazing, beautiful friend to come on here and chat about it with me. I have Ms.

Twana Dunn up in this building, up in this gig. What's up, Twana? How are you today? Hey there, Hunter.

How are you? I am well. Ah. Very well.

Yes! Welcome. I was so freaking excited that you reached out to me, um, about getting on here, dude, because I would've- I would've reached out to you and asked anyway. Um, so, I'm- I'm really, really hyped that, uh, you wanted to come on, and I really appreciate your time.

And I'm hyped to get into this, because I think that the way that you're teaching about extensions is really, really, really important. I think, like, the premise of what you got going on, um, is really unique, and it's- it- it- like- like I said, like, we're gonna be talking about expanding and diversifying, and I think that that's what a lot of this industry needs to do throughout the entire- all of our- all of our techniques, right? And extensions is 100% one of them, especially in this day and age. So, I'm really, really excited to get into that with you.

But before we do that, I would love to hear a little bit more about you, Twana. So, like, how- how did you get into the industry? How did you get into extensions specifically? And what do you have going on now in your business behind the chair?

Uh, first of all, Hunter, thank you so much for having me on your platform. Um, I love that you started this. Um, I love- I'm- just remember us all going HAM on Clubhouse, um, and I remember sitting- Yes. in the audience like, "He needs his own show."

Like, "He needs his own show." Aw. Like, "As much as we want to all get up there, I need him to, like, facilitate everything." So, I love- I love, um- ...

the work that you've done and how you've progressed, so thank you for having me. But, um, I started out- I went to hair school after s- after high school, um, and then I kind of took a five-year, uh, break and went into corporate America. I worked at State Farm Insurance for five years, which I think really helped me to go into the salon I went into, which was more of a corporate salon. I think that me going in as 19-year-old Twana out of hair school, I probably would have been fired.

Um, me learning the- a little bit more of a professional way of going about it and then going there was probably the perfect setup for me. Um, but I- that busi- that salon that I went to was a, um, kind of real high-end salon that also owned the distributorship, and the owner knew that I wanted to get into education. I said, "Look, I want to teach. I just don't know what."

And he had a new hair company that came in, and he said, "How about you teach for hair extensions?" Um, I then- them being a distributorship over the course of 12- 12 years that I worked for them, they probably changed hair companies three times, so I worked for three different hair companies through the distributorship, and I was trained by their companies, um, on how they want their educators to- to go about... Plus, having my own background in extensions, just growing up doing, you know, I mean, friends' hair and things of that nature, doing it in school, that's kind of what you did and how you learned to do the hair extensions. Um, one of the things that stood out with the methods I was learning, I was never a braider.

Um, I still, to this day, am not a braider. I do my own stuff, but it takes forever. It's not on my menu. So, the thing that stood out to me is that these were all techniques that didn't involve braiding, um, and I just ac- I just accelerated at them, and I was really good at them.

Uh, probably 2019, I- when we were starting to really get in- into virtual education, um, and around the time that the beaded s- microbeads and hand-tied wefts were getting popular, those companies weren't educating. They weren't even carrying that hair yet. So it was like, "You know what? This is a good time for me to try to create my own platform and my own brand of education."

And, also, one of the things that I learned from these companies, and this is just my personal opinion, I felt like you were- you had to go to a class for this, and you had to go to a class for keratin tip, and a class for tape, and a class for I-tips. When you went to a haircutting class, you would learn two, maybe three haircuts in that haircutting class, but for the extension class, they were just teaching you one. And a lot of the theory, I would say maybe 70 or 80% of the theory for me, was the same. So it was like, you're going in and you're telling people how to do a consultation, how to match hair, how to- you know what I mean?

What the maintenance time is for each one, but then it's- only difference is the technique. So I'm like, as stylists, and especially as me, I want to maximize my time. How can I make my classes different from these big name classes that are out here? I'm gonna make my classes multi-method.

So my classes have always been y- where you can customize them and do- we want to do at least two or more methods in there so you can get more bang for your buck.Um, and that's kinda how I grew my business. And, like, I think it was October of 2020, I went into my own suite, um, which is the Twana Dunn Hair Suite and Educational Center. And I wanted to make that, um, like, that's on my door, educational center, because we were coming out of COVID and everything...

We wanna do one-on-one classes when they're in person now, so I wanted to make sure I had that available for people that wanted to do classes, um, and they would be one or two-on-one for the most part. So, that's where I am right now. Ah, so freaking cool. I l- okay, so I love that you, like, took so much of your own experience and you also took, like, what you were seeing with these classes and you were like, hold up, wait, like, I can fill this gap.

Mm-hmm. Like, I can fill this gap. Like, I'm seeing this, like, common pattern and theme with all of these extension brands and classes and all of these things and, like, I, I know how to do all of these different methods, but, eh, so how can I make this different and better for people? And that's exactly what you've done, and I think that is so brilliant and so helpful.

So, I just want to applaud you for doing that, because the en- the extension specialists 100% need this type of education. And, really good point that it's like, you know, if you, if you work with a brand or method or whatever, um, that, you know, half of the classes are the same, is the same shit. It's like the consultation, evaluating the hair or whatever it may be, and then the second half is the actual technique. And it's like, we could be filling this time- Yeah.

a- and using it more efficiently so that way you're actually taking more information home with you and you will ha- you'll have a more diversified toolbox, toolkit, physically and mentally, so you can serve your clients better. Would you agree with me? Absolutely, and I love that you used the word, um, extension specialist, which I really feel like has just been completely watered down over the past couple years. Um, and I think that there's, there's levels to everything.

You know what I mean? You can be a generalist, um, which I started out as a generalist, which I think is great t- because you should be able to know everything as somebody comes into your chair. But I didn't start out and say, do one method and say, "I'm this hair extension expert." At that time, I was a hair extension technician, and then I went to be a hair extension educator, which made me a hair extension e- um, uh, specialist, and now I consider myself to be a hair extension expert.

And I feel like I had to kind of separate myself, because I'm seeing everybody put that they're a hair extension expert- ... on their bio, and they do one technique, or they only do straight hair. And it's like, how are you, and what happens to that girl that's really curly and really fine and can't wear wefts and should be using keratin tips because they can be customized really small, um, how do you, how do you service that person? So if she has to go somewhere else, we have to be directing them somewhere else, there's not one person that can come in my salon with a texture or a color that I can't match.

Now, should you- And that is an expert. Now, should you have it? That's a different thing, and that's also an expert. Everybody that comes in my salon, just because you say that you want the, the pink hair, as you know, everybody can't get pink hair.

Just because you want four rows of whatever, you can't get that, you know what I mean? Not unless you are, not unless you want your hair to fall out, and I'm very real with my clients and I let them know about what you're, what you want and what the damage that can do, um, as opposed to just being like, "Book this with me now, and in seven months." I'm like, "Oh, I don't know why your hair is balding. I know why your hair is balding.

I put hair in your hair that was too heavy." So, as an extension expert, you should be able to service any single unicorn that walks into your s- um, salon. As an extension, um, as well as educate, an extension specialist, I think that you should definitely be offering multi-methods, even if you don't have a diverse clientele, that clientele, so your clientele still sees a little bit of frizzy, a little bit of straight, a little bit of, you know what I mean? Fine, a little bit thicker, so you still need to know more than one method to be classified as a specialist.

Otherwise, you're an extension technician, you're a stylist that offers extensions, and that is fine. I'm a stylist that offers color. I'm not a color specialist. There's nothing, there's no shade on that, you know what I mean?

It's okay to not be a specialist and just offer that, but let's be clear on the differentiation of what's what. Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes. And if you're gonna be, like, advertising that you are the go-to person for something, then, you know, you better be the go-to person for everybody.

Exactly. Yeah. Right? Like, like, I mean, I, I've always, I've always identified as, like, a low-maintenance color specialist- Mm-hmm.

right? So, like, balayage, and, and even, and not just balayage. That's why I say low-maintenance instead of balayage. It's like, I can give you low-maintenance color no matter what kind of color you're getting.

And, you know, I'm able to do that on every single texture, every single person, for every single situation. So, it should be, whenever we're specializing, whenever we're niching down, whatever you wanna call it, you, you, you need to take that into consideration. Like, you can't call, like, a heart, a, a heart surgeon knows how to fix all types of hearts or, like, all types of diseases with hearts and all those types of situations. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Right? Not just, like- Exactly. one heart disease. Exactly.

You know? So, yeah. So, I think that that is a really, really good point, and I think that what you're doing is, I mean, instead of somebody having to go to get, like, a million different classes from a million different people, you have one go-to resource who knows all of these things, that you can get all of these things from. So I think that's really smart.

So, so, so let me ask you this, right? So, let's say that somebody has invested, like, a lot of money, a lot of time into this one method already, and they really love it, they really love the method, they really love th- th- love the brand, and they have a good, successful business with it already, right? How would you suggest that they start to go about diversifying and learning a little bit of things that are different and, and, uh, stepping out of their comfort zone, et cetera, et cetera? I think they need to look at the clientele they have and see who they can't service.

You know what I mean? You have clients that are coming in that want certain things that you can't...... offer it to them because it might not be the proper technique for them. Um, or you're doing them a disservice because you're offering it to them and there's something better out there for their lifestyle, for their type of ...

You know what I mean? For their budget, whatever that may be. So us as stylists need to... Anytime I have somebody come in for a consultation, they say ...

Most people are like, "I want this extension." I say, "That's fine." And then I explain all the extensions I do. And when I do it, sometimes it can be overwhelming for them, um, but it also is like, "Oh, I didn't realize that.

Oh, I didn't think about that." You know what I mean? Um, people's timing is different. Everybody doesn't wanna come in every six weeks to have their beads moved up.

You know what I mean? Maybe somebody, um, wants to just come in every six months. I have a ton of clients that are keratinized that are looking at people that are like, "Why are they doing this weft thing?" "Everybody doing this weft thing."

I say, "Well, it's, it's, it's a, it's a combination of, um, something being new, um, uh, the f- the up factor is huge as far as how it goes up in the bun." I mean, I think that... I honestly think the pandemic and bun goals helped micro beads and hand tied expand, 'cause everybody's sitting in front of their Zoom. Right.

Nobody gives a shit about it hanging down here. They just want up in a bun. They want it to be like a crown. So the way it goes- Right.

up and down works really well. But, um, for the most part, I, I try to explain to my, everybody what's out there. And I also think it's important to pay attention to the clients that you're doing and see if it's time to take a break. I'm a huge advocate.

My clients get so mad at me, um, because I force them to take a break, but at the end of the day, the point of extensions is not to go, have to wear them or have to go into a wig. The point is for you to have the hair extensions or the length for as long as you want. Most people are growing out a haircut. Most people are trying to see what their hair can do.

They just wanna take a break from the heat. So there's a lot of different reasons why people use them, and sometimes they're for a reason or a season. I have clients that have been wearing them for 10 years, and then I have clients that have been, uh, wore them for six months and was like, "This is not my speed, oh, this is not, not me." But as, as professionals, it's our job to let them know what's out there, let them know why we think this is gonna benefit your lifestyle going off of what you told me and direct them, push them in that direction.

Um, can we make everybody get the method that we kno- that we suggest? No, but I won't do a method if I say, "That's bad for you." I personally won't, and I don't have a problem with you going to the next person, but what you won't do in six years is say, "My hair is bald and thin because Tawana kept doing that." No, I didn't.

Right. Absolutely. I... You know what I love about this too and about how you carry yourself behind a chair is, like, it's so obvious that because you're so non-biased in the way that you are, um, educated and, and, um, like, you're not obsessively committed to this one brand because it's, it's the one brand that you do.

Can I just say you gave such a relief. You know what I'm saying? That is such a relief. Like, I've had people say, "Oh, I'm certified by so-and-so, but I really wanna try this."

And I'm like, "Do they have a guillotine to your neck? Why can't you?" Like, did you ... go to a class that said, "When I'm certified, I can only do this"?

Or do you not wanna spend the extra $100 for the swatch from the other company? You know, every, not- ... one company on this planet offers a product for every body that comes in. Not one.

So you have to have multiple just because Betty's 7N is different than Maxine's 7N. And the one that the company that you have is a warm 7N, and Betty is an ash 7N, and now you have to color it. Why do that? Just order from a different company.

So, um, it's cute to have... Just know that when you put a, when you put... Unless you're working for the company, unless you're an educator and working for the company- Right. when you just put a brand name in your bio, you are working for them for free.

And the only people that pay attention to that are hair stylists. Clients don't care. Right. Right, and I think that that's something that I just talk about a little bit, uh, a lot, and, and recently too, about how we as hairstylists get really wrapped up in our own bubbles and our own worlds.

And when it comes to marketing and when we come back d- down to earth, right, and we get out of this, like, crazy social media bubble that we- Mm-hmm. live in, like, we have to remember, like, who we are speaking to with our social media channels. And, like, who we are, like, marketing to and where they're living right now and, like, how, how they think about the things that we put out there, right? And so when you do say, like, "I am a blank brand, uh, extensions specialist," when I'm a blank brand color, uh, like, specialist, it's like, girl, nobody knows who those brands are.

Like, but clients aren't out here, like, going and buying that sh- that shit from the store. Like, tho- those brands aren't advertising to the public. Like, they're not advertising to non-professionals, hopefully, you'd hope. So therefore, those non-professionals have no idea who the hell they are anyways.

If you told your client, if you put on your, you could put on your bio, "I'm a Pravana specialist," or, "I'm a Splatt spress- specialist," they're looking- ... at your work. And if your work- Yeah. looks the same...

Splatt is great and it doesn't run out. Like, it doesn't rinse out. Like, that shit's like cement. So if you can work with Splatt and make it look like Pravana, your client can care less.

She can care less. You know what I mean? And I am not promoting that as a professional. I'm just using it as an example.

Um, but I have found for the same- Sure. thing. Here's the thing too, and this is something, this is something that I've run across with people. I have people always calling me and they're like, "Well, I have the hair already."

can you put it in? You know how many stylists tell them no, because you have to buy the hair from them? What are you doing? Do you make every person buy shampoo?

That makes no sense. So saying that the client has to bring... My whole thing is this, if you bring the hair to me, great. You're responsible for it.

I've had clients... I had a client who brought me hair and she was very adamant on an ombre color that none of my clients came in. And it would be a point of me, um, dying as she... She probably wanted the color that I wanted and it was curly.

And I'm like, "If you're looking for unicorn hair, she found unicorn hair." This stuff knotted constantly. Knotted constantly. And it was like...

And she bought it in i- um, I-tips and she bought it in wefts, same brand and it was like... So this is the hair I offer and you probably would have it to reuse for a year but, you know, are you more adamant about the color? So I'm fine with clients bringing hair in to me because what I will not use is you... do is use used hair.

No. You gotta bring it to me right out of a pack but if you want to go get the hair yourself, that's fine. Nine times out of 10, in six months people are like, "You know, this hair really feels like..." And I'm like, "Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm." Crap, right? It feels like crap. Yeah.

Do you have them, uh, do you have them sign anything? Um, you know what? I have not had anyone sign anything in my salon. And I...

Being a... the Virgo that I am, I am extreme good character of judgment. I have also- Right. turned clients down.

I've had clients- Right. in for a consultation and after the consultation, um, uh, they maybe needed someti- time to think about it and when they went to book I said, "Hmm, I don't really think this is gonna be a good fit." Because I saw the problem coming, I don't recommend that. I would say have them sign something.

Um, here's the thing. I have an online consent form. Like, the first thing that- Mm-hmm. you do is fill out an online consent form.

That giving- Right. me all of your information, how do you describe your hair, how do you... you know, what are you one? Are you experiencing any medical issues?

Are you taking any medicine, prescription? All of that I get into. I think it takes... makes it a lot less awkward if you have it in a paper form and you're asking people about...

And I try to say, peop- Um, the reason why I ask about medical and I think it's really important is because people's hair shed differently as they're going through different things. Are you pregnant? Were you pregnant in the last year? Have you had chemo?

Have you had any type of blood work, um, or blood issues, or, um, in, in your, in the last year that has shown shedding? Because if you've been shedding excessively and I'm putting weight on your hair, what is that doing? Maybe you need to come... You had a baby six months ago?

Why don't you come back to me in six months after you get all of that medicine out of your... you know what I mean, all of the prenatals out of your f- system. Everybody has a baby and their ha- their bangs are shedding. That's not just your bangs, you're shedding everywhere, you're shedding in the back too.

So, let's not put excessive weight on it. So there's reasons to put it... That can get awkward in person. So I have a pre-consultation- Yeah.

form for hair extension clients to come in and fill out, which, um, I believe that... I mean, it was them sent to me via their email, so that's kind of like a signed form. It's just describing- Absolutely. your hair in your words.

So, in six months- Yes. if there's an issue and you're like, "My..." you know what I mean, "This is happening, that is happening," and I go back and be like, "Oh, well you said... you never said that you were on a medication that had you thinning for the last five years.

You never said that." You know what I mean? So, 'cause I, I might not have recommended wefts, I might have said, "Let's go with a keratin 'cause it's a lighter tip." So, all of those things, what you tell me is gonna determine what I'm doing for...

what, what I'm recommending to you. Right. And you brought, you brought it up again, so it's like, yeah, so I, I absolutely, in my programs and all the things, I, I coach to having these, like, pre-digital consultation forms and I have them sign policies and sign all of these things. But, but like you said, like, y- there is a space for you to share medical- Yeah.

situations that may need to be shared. And, but y- but with that though, you just brought it up. You just said, "Well, I would have maybe offered a different extension method." And it's like, there you go.

Yeah. Like, you need... Like, like, you are gonna have these situations where people have different things going on. And, and the thing is is like you may have a client that w- the one method that you do, it's been working on them great for a year.

Then they have a baby and then it's like, do you have som- what else is in your toolbox? Like, what else can you do? Exactly. What are the options, right?

Exactly. And so that's why you teach- Mm-hmm. what you teach. Um, so I, I, I think that it's just super important for so many different reasons.

And, um, also for the business end of it as well, to be able to offer different solutions. I mean- Would you agree? absolutely. Um, you ha- again, you have cli- everybody can't do everything, everybody doesn't need a full head of hair.

Some people just need a couple of pieces. You know, maybe this need... there are certain methods that you can do right on top that will, you know what I mean, fall in here, but it can't be done for everybody. There's gotta be...

you have to know what that person is lacking, um, what that person is, uh, goals are. I like to tell people, remember everybody, um, a couple years ago, everybody wanted that lob. You know? And everybody grew out their hair- Yes.

but it was this hair in here that would not get down to here, those hairs in here. Mm-hmm. Um, so I was using tape a lot of those times. Um, and the reason why I liked to use the tape is because you were angling right in here.

But I let people know after six months, at about six months, you're gonna lose your angle or have to get new hair. Why? 'Cause your hair is moving down. So you gotta lose...

you have to either cut your hair back up so that you can keep that same hair 'cause the extension's not gonna get longer, but that's a n- that was a nice way to grow it out while, you know what I mean, they were doing- Yes. whatever they do. So I feel, I just feel like you have to... it's, again, cutting your nose off to spite your face to not service anybody.

If I went into a, uh, someone and I asked for hair extensions and they offered me, um, any type of beaded sew-in, I would be bald in six months. Um-... me and I can't use it. You know what I mean?

So even with the, my, my, my dreadlocks, I do them myself. I redo my dreads every two weeks. Most people are wearing them for five or six. Why?

'Cause my hair is thin and the second I feel any weight, I have to move it back up to my root, you know? So you need to be mindful of the weight you're putting on someone's hair and what method is best for them. And it also might come down to it, like, well, the method that's best for you is really expensive. It's one, everything chunky at one time.

Here's another thing that I wanna get into as far as people looking at the price of keratin tips and individuals as opposed to wefts. You take a month, six months of, um, coming in and out of the salon for maintenance or wefts and that one appointment of keratin tips, you're paying more for wefts. You're paying more for wefts. You're paying every six weeks for them to come in and take out, so you're not buying new hair, come in and take out, come in and take out.

And what's the most valuable thing? Your time. Your time. Yes.

You know how you came into me how many times? So is it easier to take an $1100 or $1200 bill and break it down into $300, $300, $300 �... Sure. But if you do that, it's almost like financing a car.

At the end of six months, you're really paying $1200, where you could have just paid that $1100- Right. up front and I'll see you in six months. So that is- Yes. We have to change our mind and explain things to clients that they don't think about.

I'm all about time. I don't wanna come in here every six weeks, you know? So this other method, there's another reason why you're benefiting from it, you know? So maybe you come back to me in two months after you have that $1100 as opposed to just going into it right now.

I've had people do that too, you know what I mean? Get your... Maybe it's time to reevaluate when you can do it because the method you thought you were gonna be doing is not the method you're going to be doing, but you still wanna do it, you know? So explaining all that during a consultation really helps the client to say, "Yes, I wanna do it."

And I would probably say 95, 90% of the clients that come in for a consultation book with me, even with them having to wait five or six weeks to get it put in. Badass. Dude, because, because it's so badass that you can, you can offer all of those things and that you're so knowledgeable about what is best for each person, uh, as far as, like, price, time, maintenance, for e-... but, and it's, like, you can fit anybody's, anybody's boxes and needs.

Yeah. Like, that's, it's just so, so awesome. I'm obsessed with that. Um, I did...

So we talked a lot about, like, you know, like, what, like, somebody has maybe like finer hair, somebody has thicker hair, somebody needs this type of maintenance, somebody needs that type of maintenance and, like, how different methods would work well for each of those different situations, right? What about texture? So like, what about like, you know, um, instead of smooth hair, curly hair, uh, wavy hair and, and all of that? 'Cause I feel like all I freaking see, uh, when it comes to especially, like, hand-tied and wefts nowadays with like the trend coming around is, uh, smoother hair or just like, you know, your barrel curls and all of those good things.

But I mean, like, curly and wavy hair extensions have been around forever. I just feel like, I just feel like, you know, with these newer methods or maybe just sticking to one method, that kind of gets- Yeah. lost and it's harder to implement into your toolkit. Would you agree with me?

So can we talk a little bit about that? Absolutely. Um, I will actually say that textured hair extensions have not been readily available forever. You know, the people that you saw- Mm-hmm.

that had really good textured extensions were like celebrities, you know? Um, they're really- Mm-hmm. just getting to the masses, I would say, over the past five years as far as, um, having everything from all the way down to a 4C. I don't even know that freaking chart anymore because I wasn't in school when I did it.

I swear I don't know that chart. And when I did learn the chart, um, it got expanded and I was like, "Screw it, I'm not even a curling specialist if I'm gonna care." But, um, everyone... Natural hair has been blowing up over the past 10 years.

So I would say with the natural hair, everybody doesn't wanna put the heat on as much, everybody kinda wants to get up and go, especially after being locked in the house for a year and a half. And then people that have been blowing their hair out for years got a chance to really see their natural texture and be like, "Holy crap, this isn't too bad, but it's a little bit shorter than I want." I think that the demand- Right. is in front of, um, the companies.

You have a lot of companies, these big name companies out here that are not offering textured hair, um, and here's the reason why. Most hair extensions, especially when you get into color, most hair extensions are processed. They're, they've been processed. Right.

So you, um... To all textured hair, there is no region on the planet where women that have curly hair are donating it for extensions. This is straight hair that is permed and manipulated in some type of way. So you're already- Right.

getting the hair with one texture, one chemical process to it. So bringing that into lighter extensions where you're going into the level seven and up or level six and up, now that's two, um, two things that you've done to that hair which lessens the quality. So I think a lot of these hair companies out here are s- trying to figure out how they can bring you textured hair that is still high quality, that doesn't lose its bounce. Right.

You know? 'Cause, you know, if you have a client that's a level two and you gave her a perm and made her a level eight, she doesn't feel like how she did when she was level two. It's the exact same thing with the extensions. Um, and, uh, a lot of it is trial and error as far as you having to try out certain, um, extensions.

What I've learned over the past three years or so is that I am lear- every day I'm learning new things with textured extensions. Yes, I have been teaching t- extension application for 15 years on straight hair. On straight hair. Right.

These are... At the end of the day, these are integration systems. So there's something that you're taking and integrating into your hair. It's a little bit different than a weave where you're, um, making that blank palette of braids, getting rid of that human hair and just putting all in one texture.

You're taking human texture and putting in a different texture in. So there are certain things you have to do to, to manipulate it to blend it in and get it to really look- Right. natural. Um, also something that you need to realize with textured hair, because it's permed, most people with textured hair have three or four different curl patterns....

in their hair. You know, it's never one ringlet pattern. Yes. The extensions are one ringlet pattern, so you've gotta use product, um, to manipulate that curl to kind of blend it in at that blend spot, um, and I've even gone so far as to maybe use two different textures.

Like, maybe I'll use an Italian wave and a deep wave on the girl that's got, um, you know, different textured hair. So again, I think that it's a lot of trial and error. As a ha- as an extension expert with this new product of texture hair, I had to play with it and make some mistakes. You know what I mean?

Right. And I was able to kind of put all of that into what I created so that people don't have to do that. You know what I mean? But it is a trial and error thing, and it's about, I think, the companies needs to, are trying to figure out how they offer you the same quality product straight/curly if that product is now chemically processed twice.

Right. That totally makes sense. That totally... Well, and I love that you said, you know, it's kind of like, eh, what you've created is like an integration system, like, because, you know, you are so, uh, well versed in these different methods, you know how to take a little bit of this, take a little bit of that, to make this, this thing that maybe we're all learning together- Mm-hmm.

that's a little bit newer to us, to make it work, right? Yeah. Versus if you're just, if you're just versed in one method, one way of doing it, then you're gonna have a lot of a harder time trying to integrate this, like this textured hair into this one method that you only know how to do. But now, we're in this day and age where, I mean, hair is just getting curlier and curlier.

Curlier and curlier. Like, it's not gonna go away, and it's a- Mm-hmm. Right? It's just g- i- it's not gonna go away anytime soon, and it's, it's just gonna keep on going and going and going.

So if you maybe don't have the knowledge and education that you need to be able to adapt to what the hell is going on in human, in human beings' lives and in, and in their genetics and in their, in their hair and, and their trends and what they wanna do and how, how we're wearing our hairs nowadays, then that might be an issue for you down the line, right? Yep. One other thing with texture that I've learned, um, and I've learned it the hard way, is that you have to order more... You have to order more hair.

When you wear your hair straight, it's at one density. When you wear it curly, it's at another density. It's the same with your hair extensions. So if you've been telling your client, you've been doing your client's hair and she's been straight for years and she's only been getting two or three packs, now you need fo- three or four.

Now you need four or five, and now you need two. Because I'm probably not going to, especially when it comes with, to the, um, sew-ins, I'm probably not gonna use two packs. One pack ain't enough. And y- if you wanna see, the separation is there, and there's not much I can do if there's not enough hair, you know what I mean?

So I've had that happen before when I was first started doing texture, where I would finish, I'd put every piece in, I'd style it and I'm like, "I see a shelf." I knew that. I knew I deserved to have another pack. And she's gotta come back in two weeks.

So that would be a suggestion from me. And what I tell people, you know, 'cause these hair, these packs of hair aren't cheap, you know, so you're, you're telling, "Well, it's, it's $200 a pack and you need two packs." They're like, "Ugh." You know what I mean?

Here's the thing. I'm not using those two packs, so when you need to re-up, you'll only be buying one pack again. So just reassure them that nine times out of ten, you've got, you're gonna have some hair left over, so the next time it's time to get new hair in six months or a year, you won't have to buy the two packs again. It's always that initial appointment that's a lot.

You know, after, after that, it's really the maintenance and the reapplication that you're paying for, but order extra hair. Have your client order extra hair when it comes to any type of texture, because you've just, you might need that little extra piece. You might need 10 extra pieces. Um, yeah.

Hm. That would probably be something that I had to learn the hard way. Thank you so much for sharing that nugget. I think that's fricking awesome.

Um, so before we wrap this up and we tell people where they want to, uh, wh- where they can go and get this amazing education that, that is well, well needed, uh, I wanna, I wanna also just, like, give you a shout-out, because I think it's super, super important. I mean, throughout this entire time, everything kind of led back to your consultation. Like, we kept on talking about, "Well, in the consultation, this is what we explain to the person to make sure that they understand, like, you know, this might be a little bit more up front, but think about it, like, down the line, this is what it's gonna be." You talk to them about their medical condition and et cetera, et cetera, whatever it may be, and th- their hair texture, what method's gonna work for them.

It all really comes back to, down to that consultation, and I just wanna give you a shout-out, because it sounds l- to me like you do a really fricking good job at making sure it's very clear and super great expectations are set up, and that's what we all have to do for every single service moving forward, period. I just wanna say one thing to you. Yes. I know that you had, um, a couple weeks ago, you were really horning in on virtual consultations, and I'm sitting there while I'm watching you horn in on them, and I'm like, "But Hunter, everyone really can't do that."

"I would love to, but I can't take this and do, like, this on a computer." Right. So I was like- Right. "This is excellent."

I wish that I would, I would be saving a lot of time in the salon. I'm doing five consultations a week, 45 minutes. Right. They're booked 45 minutes, um, and that's why I have to charge for them, because I'm doing a lot of them and I am really thorough.

It's not a 15 minutes, let's pull their hair and stuff. So if I could be, I feel like if I could do consultations virtually at home, that would totally be a freaking part-time job for me. You know what I mean? Right.

Right. So I personally can do them at home, so I just wanted to say to you, I'm like, "Yeah." You know, I'm so glad that you said that, but, but h- but the thing is though, the, the flip side of that is though, you do have that pre-consult form, right? Next, yeah.

And so, so that is kind of- Yes. Right. So the, that's what I'm kind of talking about when I, when I talk about that. Like, yes, like, 100% you cannot do, especially with, like, extensions or color corrections, like, sometimes you really need to be able to see that shit in real, in real life, and, like, feel it in real life.

But how can you streamline that as much as possible? And that's what you've done with your pre-consult form. Yeah. So thank you so much for bringing that up, because I wanna make sure that we're super clear up in this gig.

Mm-hmm. Because I totally, I totally, I get it and agree. But you do have that pre-consult form, and that helps to hopefully streamline those five freaking consultations- Absolutely. that you have in a week.

Absolutely.Totally. All right, friends. Well, I wanna know and the people wanna know after listening to you spilling all of your amazing, beautiful tea, uh, where can they get education from you, Twana?

What do you have out right now that people can start to diversify th- and expand their extension business? Like, what do you have to offer, my friend, and where they- where can they find that stuff? Uh, thank you so much. Um, first of all, I have a- I've been doing, um, in-salon classes for a couple of years now clearly.

Um, I'm available to book if you are in the New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania area. Connecticut's a little bit far out for me, but I don't mind getting flewed out. You know, I'm open to new different things. Um, uh, I also have a, um- I've- over the pandemic, was able to take that class virtual, which has r- been a really good success for me.

So, I actually have Eventbrite dates coming out, I would say, within the next week. Um, I'm just finalizing some of my graphics and stuff. But I am offering a all-beads class. I feel like I've been getting a lot of- again, I'm always trying to do something different and I'm trying to listen to what clients are ask- or students- stylists are asking me.

And a lot of people are asking me about the sewing classes as far as beads, and then a lot of people are asking me about a I-tip class. So it's like, how about we do an all-beads class, which is, again, something that's not really out there, but it kinda hits the mark as far as you being able to, um, uh, service different people. Um, and then what I've worked on last year and I released on Black Friday, which is my baby, is the Universal Hair Extension Bible. Um, I thought about the fact that dur- over COVID, we- we saw or we talked about a lot, I think the thing that brought out when our industry is a lot of stuff that we weren't taught in hair school, that when we signed up for hair school, we thought, "Okay, I'm gonna learn this and I'm gonna learn that, I'm gonna learn this, I'm gonna learn that."

And one of those things was texture. We all learned that- we all got taught to make the hair straight. That was pretty much it. Um, we also probably had about two or three pages on hair extension, and certain hair extensions, it wasn't even everything, and certain hair extensions just got a paragraph.

So, I wrote this book with the cosmetology student in mind, as well as the stylist that wants to get into it, as well as the stylist that might have taken a break from it and needs a refresher from- because she's already spent money on the classes. So, this is, um, something that is a 50-page PDF. It's got, um, great graphics and behind-the-chair tips. I'm talking about things that can go wrong.

Um, I have, uh, photos in it that's showing each technique. In the book, there are six different techniques, all non-braided. There's keratin tip, I-tip, um, micro-loop, micro-bead, and, um, and mic loop and tape-in Um, all of these methods are s- things that are- we're seeing here in every texture right now and can really help to benefit any technici- any stylist. Uh, business, can help you build your business.

And it- I made sure I wanted to make it not super complicated. It's very general, the same way our- our cosmetology book was. You know what I mean? You weren't learning the Vidal Sassoon bob, but you were learning the bob and getting the basis of it.

So, it's very general as far as anyone... It's funny, uh, my editor, um- when my editor read it and I went over it with her, she said- she said, "Tawana, I have..." You know, 'cause she has a head full of hair. She's like, "I never even wore extensions and I can't believe how much I just learned."

She's like, "This was really informative and I'm not even in the industry." So, she's like, "Somebody in the industry, I can definitely see them." And what I also wanted to keep in mind is that even with the virtual classes, we got ti- we don't have time. Like, everybody's gotta do things on their own time.

You know what I mean? So, it's like, with an e-book, it's right here, it's right on your phone. You need s- you know, you got a client that's coming in and is like, maybe you don't do her extensions, but she comes in and she's like, "Girl, two of my tape-ins fell out. Can you put them in for me?"

"Sure, girl, I'm gonna put them in for you, but let me run to the bathroom real quick." And then you run in the bathroom and you're like, "How did you put those tape... Okay, not too close to the root and then... "Okay, okay, because I haven't done a tape-in five years."

That's what it's for. You can't do that, um, when you take a virtual class. And I- I- when I took my classes, I always try to, like, do a little survey at the end where I'm like, "Well, why did you pick me? You know, I'm just this little Black girl, no name, from New Jersey that created an extension class, but there's all these big name classes out there.

Why did you pick my class?" And what I got the most is that a lot of my students already took hair extension classes. This wasn't their first one. The reason why they took theirs is because they left that class with questions.

They still felt like they didn't know anything and they were- not know anything, but they still had a lot of questions. They also felt like the class was really rushing to teach them because the main thing was to sell them hair. I have no dog in this fight. Mm.

You can go get hair from Sally's if you would like. You know what I mean? I can care less and that's what you probably should learn on. But you can buy, you know what I mean, uh, uh, you know, top line hair, you can go get it from Sally's, whatever you wanna do, but that shouldn't stop you from being able to expand your business and do extensions.

So, The Universal Hair Extension Bible, that link is on my bio at my Instagram. Um, and my Instagram is twanadunnhair. Um, it's also on my website. And then even at an- as an added bonus, I do have a home- a home hair extension maintenance form.

Um, this is something that I send out to my clients. A lot of clients are switching their methods. It's either they're first time clients or they're switching their methods. They might not know the regimen that they need to follow at home, how to shampoo, how to sleep, how to style to do the least amount of, um, maintenance and take care of them properly so you're not doing damage to your hair.

All of my new clients, um, within 24 to 48 hours of them leaving their house, sometimes 72 hours, um, they get that email to them. So, I made a k- a- a example of that for hairstylists that might wanna kind of- that's a great way for you to level up your business because most people are not sending their clients home with a, "How do you take care of this?" They just spent thousands of dollars on their hair.You know what I mean?

Right. So we should be sending them home, the same way you send them home with retail, and I'm sending them home with their shampoo and their extension brush and everything. I'm also emailing them a at-home maintenance of how to shampoo their hair. So all of ...

Both of those links- Mm-hmm. are on my bio, um, as well as the Eventbrite. Um, if for some reason, I actually think the Eventbrite tickets won't ... I mean, the Eventbrite tickets won't be on there until the end of the week.

But if someone wanted to book a one-on-one class or have me come to the salon, there is a link on my bio also for a VIP class that's for us doing it on our own schedule. Awesome, dude. Oh my gosh, that's freaking awesome. Uh, and we will make sure that every link and everything is including Twanna's Instagram and, and website, and all those things are in the description of this podcast episode, wherever you're listening to this.

So if you wanna k- get there quickly, easily, then we will leave it right there for you to go check out. And I highly encourage you to do so, because as you can tell from this amazing episode, Twanna knows her shit, and she has a lot of beautiful things to offer to you, my friend. So, Twanna, thank you so much for your time. My turn.

Thank you- I know that this is gonna be so valuable for so many people listening to this. You are freaking amazing. What you're doing is super inspirational to me, and I think that it's super unique, and I love that you're always looking to fill the gaps. Like how can I make this different?

How can I give people what they really need and what they're actually looking for without, like, a bias or, like, weird intention behind it. So I think that's badass. Thank you so much. So thank you so much.

And for you talking about being inspirational, I don't know if you remember, if it was ... It might have been January of last year, um, you had come out with something. I don't know if it was your, um, if it was your, um, Karen Chronicles. I ...

but that was at the time that I was teetering on should I make my class manual into an e-book? And I sent you a message. And I was like, "Hey." Yes.

"Just so you know, you know, I love what you're doing, and I think I'm gonna kind of do the same thing." Um, so you were inspiration to kind of push me. Sometimes you need to see that extra push. Um, so I- Yeah.

appreciate you expanding the way you have and giving of yourself the way you have, because you're extremely knowledgeable also, and I know that all of your listeners are just loving you and, um, really just soaking in this knowledge. So you have a great platform, and I have to actually ... I'm probably only one episode behind, in which case I'm gonna go listen to that when we're done. Thank you so much, Twanna.

So much love too. That means the world to me. So freaking cool. Um, we will definitely have to do this again- Yes.

my friend, and I look forward to chatting with you in the future. And if you are listening to this, make sure to go check out Twanna's resources. I hope that you enjoyed today's episode. We'll see you again in the next one.

So much love. Peace out, girl scout. Bye-bye.

End of transcript. © 2022 Hunter Donia LLC.