Jasmine Crown opened Crowned Beauty Collective with two chairs and a loan she describes as “optimistic”. Six years later she runs a full floor, a product line and an education program that books out months ahead. She spoke to us about growth, pricing and the parts of ownership nobody warns you about.
You started behind the chair. When did you start thinking like an owner?
Later than I should have. I was fully booked and still broke, which is the clearest sign that your pricing is wrong. I sat down and worked out what an hour of my time actually cost me once I included product, rent, cards and the hours I spent on admin. The number was nothing like what I was charging.
What changed after that?
I raised my prices and I lost about a fifth of my book. Everyone told me that would happen and it still felt terrible. But the clients who stayed were the ones who valued the work, and within four months I was earning more while working two fewer days.
You moved into education fairly early.
Because I kept getting the same questions. Stylists would message me about a technique and we would end up talking about their business for an hour. The technique was never the real problem. So I built a class that teaches both, and that has become a genuine part of the business rather than a side project.
What was the hardest part of scaling?
Hiring. I am good at doing hair and I was not good at managing people, and those are completely unrelated skills. My first two hires did not work out and both times it was my fault, because I had not written down what I actually expected. Once I documented the standard, hiring got dramatically easier.
What would you tell someone opening their first suite?
Know your numbers before you know your colour scheme. Everybody wants to talk about the aesthetic. Very few people want to talk about their cost per service, and that is the number that decides whether you are still open in three years.
What are you building next?
A second location, and an apprenticeship that pays properly from day one. I was not paid well when I was learning and I am not interested in repeating that.