The Tribune

The decision to lock, or “loc”, your hair or not can be intimidating, but “lotician” Leah Macara has helped many of her clients start the journey with as little stress as possible.

“I would honestly say, it’s a process, and it takes patience, and it also takes about six to eight months for your hair to fully loc. The process may seem long but, in the end,, you’ll love your results,” she told Tribune Woman.

Leah knows all about patience yielding good results.

The 18-year-old took a leap of faith and started her new business in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was a daunting task, but the challenge only fuelled her drive to succeed. In addition to travelling on her own to Nassau from her hometown in Eleuthera, she is now running her own hairstyling business.

Starting out as a salon apprentice, Leah quickly ascended to the role of stylist with a specialty for dreadlocks. From starter locs to loc retwists, and countless other styles, Leah has already made a name for itself with her work, garnering the budding ‘loctician’ a growing list of local clients.

Over the past few months, Leah launched her at-home services amidst concerns surrounding the global pandemic and crowded hair salons.

Like scores of other young entrepreneurs, Leah has found a way to adapt to the new normal and has put in place a number of relevant protocols to ensure the safety of herself and her clients.

“Honestly, working from home for me is great,” said Leah. “The area that I am in is safe and gated, my clients feel comfortable being there, which is most important to me.”

Loc’d by Leah clients are encouraged to cancel their appointments if they or someone in their household is feeling unwell and are required to wear a mask as they receive their services. They are also required to sanitise before entering and are also subject to temperature checks. Leah has also implemented a strict scheduling plan, which she says allows her to maintain social distancing amongst her customers.

As the 18-year-old continues to work to develop her skills and grow her business, she said she is really just doing what she loves. Her love for styling hair is matched only by her passion for helping other people feel confident in themselves.

“Making my clients happy and seeing a smile on their face makes my day,” she said. “I enjoy talking to clients while styling their hair, and I learn new things every day from them and about my new home.”

While Leah currently enjoys the freedom her at-home services afford her, her long-term goal is to open her own salon when the time is right.

In the meantime, her clients are raving about her services.

Leah’s tenacity to survive on her own and to flourish as an entrepreneur led her to enter Barefoot Marketing’s social media giveaway last month, which she won over quite a few entries. This gave her a month’s free social media management, logo work, advertising help, and more.

“Right now I am enjoying working home, and my clients love it too. I look forward to doing so until I can open up my own salon in the future,” the teen said.