How the ‘return to office’ push gave an Atlanta makeup artist her big break
When COVID measures kept many people at home in 2020 during the depths of the pandemic, entrepreneur Kristine Reed founded Mobile Beauty Bar ATL for clients who wanted the salon experience to come to them.
Reed has since grown the business from a team of one doing makeup to a staff of 12 who offer hair care, nail care, barbering services, facials and massage.
She says her clientele has largely always been busy professionals who need beauty services at home for special events.
But the return to office push created a new type of corporate customer.
As companies try to lure workers into offices with perks, Reed struck a partnership in 2024 to offer salon services at Google’s offices in Midtown.
“With the pandemic and corporations wanting to fulfill their lease agreements, now they want people to come back into the office,” Reed said. “What a way to boost employee morale to say, ‘Oh, we have a salon at our office.’ It’s part of the tour. People come and see it.”
The office salon includes a pedicure chair, manicure table, two stations for hairstyling and a shampoo area where Reed and her team take care of Google employees between meetings.
Reed shared her insights from two decades in the beauty industry, advice she said she wished she had as a new entrepreneur and how she networks in Atlanta.
Edited for length and clarity.
What’s been the biggest lesson for you as you’ve grown the business?
Don’t take things personally and always be open to learn and grow. Don’t cap yourself. I’m always a sponge. I’m always putting myself in accelerators. I’m always learning from other entrepreneurs — even people that have maybe a spa or something in my space, or something that I can take on and make it my own thing. I’m never not learning.
Is there a mentorship program you’ve been part of that you would recommend to other entrepreneurs?
I did Black in Business with Goldman Sachs, and then they invited me to come back to do their national program. You always get a business adviser and people that just directly pour into you for an hour a week. I’ve won pitch competitions, and I’ve won services like where I’ve had a business adviser for eight weeks. Things of that nature, where people can just give you different ideas of how you can grow and scale your business and strategize. The Black in Business program that I did, I learned about putting together an action plan … so you get to see your growth, versus it always being in your head.
Are there places you’ve found in Atlanta that are key for networking in your business?
I’m a part of the Atlanta Black Chambers. I have my federal certifications and my certification for the state of Georgia. I’m always putting myself in rooms that I’ve never been in; it creates more visibility.
This year the Atlanta Black Chambers has a Black Beauty Industry Initiative. Being in that space is definitely going to help me, being in the beauty industry. They have a Women’s League, which is amazing. And when you become a part of one (Black Chamber) you have access to all of them. So in any city, any state, it opens up so many doors.
Being at Google has really opened up a lot of doors for me, too. Presidents of ERGs (employee resource groups) reach out to me. I’ve taught at Google. They’ve paid me to have my supplies there and my cards there. So Google has definitely put me in those spaces that I always wanted to thrive in.
Anything you wish you knew before you got started?
Probably having a strategy. You don’t really learn that. I didn’t know how to strategize. When I did the first Goldman Sachs program … I hadn’t got the gist of really understanding my target audience and how to talk to my target audience. I didn’t even know how to decline clients, because you can’t accept everybody. So having boundaries, tapping into my wellness as a CEO makes me a better leader and better example for my team. Learning how to be mellow when you’re really frustrated.
Do you have any big goals in the near future or several years down the road that you’re working toward?
I’m actually working on another partnership, with an employee benefits consulting firm. I’ve been asked to put together a proposal in the nonprofit space, when it comes to senior citizens and things of that nature.
We all have big goals, right? For me, I want to see Mobile Beauty Bar bring in at least a million dollars in revenue, and then I’ll feel like I’ve gotten somewhere. But then I can’t forget the small steps to get to where I want to go. You know, getting into Google — that’s really pretty major.
We constantly are growing, and I get to see the growth when I pull the numbers every year. I get to see those small coins going into that success bucket. It doesn’t have to be a major amount, but, a $10,000 increase or $20,000 increase in a year is pretty big for a small business. You always have to count those, or you’ll never feel like you’re successful.
You got to count the small wins, because the small ones get you to the big wins.
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