Only some people have a occupation that’s an entirely straight path; most’s embody a winding freeway of dabbling in a number of industries and deciding what’s truly correct for them—and to say that was the case for Dafina Smith is an understatement.
The powerhouse has achieved practically each half, from being a purchaser for Bloomingdale’s to working in precise property (the place she closed presents for high-end buyers like Beyoncé—certain, that Beyoncé). Now? She’s the CEO of her private hand-tied extension agency, Covet & Mane.
Alongside the easiest way, she’s had ups, downs, and many courses about know everytime you’re in an enterprise that’s really a match. She’s spilling all of them proper right here, along with the details of her anything-but-boring path to date. Need some occupation inspiration? Look no further than Dafina Smith.
Title: Dafina Smith, Founder/ CEO of Covet & Mane
Age: 42
Current Location: Westport, CT
Education: Georgetown Faculty
What was your first job and the best way did you land it?
My first job was the Junior Purchaser Teaching Program at Macy’s after I used to be 13. I found about it from a posting at my highschool and I was obsessive concerning the idea we would advise patrons on developments, and plan vogue reveals and in-store events at Macy’s at The Mall of America, which throughout the early ’90s was peak mall custom. I interviewed and wanted to obtain a chunk permit to be allowed to work. I was the youngest specific individual on this system and I favored that job so much.
You’re a Georgetown alumnus—at any time when you’ve got been at school, what have been your occupation plans? Did these change?
As soon as I used to be at school I had ambitions to work inside politics. I believed I is likely to be part of the Worldwide Service and finally transform an envoy or work all through the State Division. I interned for the RFK Memorial and was a part of Americorps all through college and it truly shaped my love of social justice.
As soon as I studied abroad on the Faculty of Cape Metropolis in South Africa, one factor regarding the society and which have being so intense and so visceral as a result of it was in a transition from Publish-Apartheid to Representational Democracy was exhausting for me. I noticed that I did not want to work together in that occupation pathway. I received right here once more from my junior yr abroad and decided that I wanted to each be a purchaser or work as a paralegal at a White Shoe Regulation Company. I ended up with a job in Bloomingdale’s Purchaser Teaching program.
I’ll be honest, my early occupation was solely a typical episode principal as a lot as a quarter-life catastrophe.
From being a purchaser at Bloomingdales to working in realty and shutting presents for the likes of Beyonce, you’ve had pretty the occupation journey! Take us via the early ranges of your occupation and the best way you ended up the place you are at current.
I’ll be honest, my early occupation was solely a typical episode principal as a lot as a quarter-life catastrophe. I had merely turned 21, moved to NYC in 2000 and I was navigating a number of sudden responsibility. I noticed week one among my expert occupation that I was not decrease from a corporate-world material. I most well-liked the work; I did not similar to the people nor the custom, significantly all through the vogue enterprise. I knew I had heaps to be taught and so I approached my occupation with a approach of humble curiosity. I tried to remain it out as long as I’ll at Bloomingdales on account of it truly taught me each half I exploit at current to run a worthwhile enterprise. There aren’t a number of roles that give youthful individuals who so much autonomy and training, and for that, I’m so grateful.
I left Bloomingdales and transitioned to precise property after watching Sidewalks of New York the place the character was an precise property agent in NYC, and it merely hit me that it was the proper occupation to satisfy my love of working with people and voyeuristic curiosity. I received right here alive in precise property. I was the best producer in my Chelsea office and it led me to work with some truly good artists, similar to John Mayer and Broadway producers. Lastly, these connections led me to the music enterprise.
I noticed week one among my expert occupation that I was not decrease from a corporate-world material. I most well-liked the work; I did not similar to the people nor the custom, significantly all through the vogue enterprise.
I found myself working for Outkast Administration Agency in Los Angeles and it was such a gratifying time in my life. My boss Micheal Williams empowered me to find my pursuits and be taught heaps regarding the film and TV enchancment course of together with music. Outkast authorized skilled Darrell Miller and I labored collectively on numerous TV enchancment presents and he impressed me to make use of to laws school and take into consideration a occupation as an leisure authorized skilled. I attended USC Regulation School, labored at VH1 as a enterprise and licensed affairs intern, and realized there that I actually hated laws and ran once more to precise property, the place I was able to work with shut associates and celebrities similar to Beyoncé.
Should you occur to catch the drift, my occupation was very serendipitous and by no means always great intentional. I was youthful and curious nonetheless very humble. I fed my curiosity and sought to work in areas that had custom and would educate me heaps. I really feel it’s additional widespread to hunt out founders which have a melange of experiences that they weave collectively to hold alive a mannequin.
In 2008, you opened Sunny’s Hair & Wigs, a boutique in Atlanta. What made you resolve to get into the sweetness enterprise?
My dad and mother owned the Magnificence Present in Minneapolis and in Mesa, AZ. They very so much approached that enterprise as a mom-and-pop magnificence present and I may even see the potential that the enterprise had.
It began as a aspect enterprise. I would take money from precise property presents I was closing and I used it to design and code a web-based web site that purchased a curated assortment of hair extensions and wigs that I believed would translate properly to a web-based consumer. As soon as I left Bloomingdales, I was merely starting to see the nascent threat of e-commerce. I was selling precise property by day and fulfilling orders by evening time.
As soon as I left Bloomingdales, I was merely starting to see the nascent threat of e-commerce. I was selling precise property by day and fulfilling orders by evening time.
Then the Good Recession received right here alongside and sucker-punched the true property in Southern California. Precise property received right here to a stand-still, nonetheless the on-line orders for hair extensions saved coming in and our prime market was Atlanta, GA. I actually contemplate that the Good Recession accelerated one factor that was already beginning to shift in me.
I took a go to to Mexico with my mother and he or she and I’ve been on the seaside sometime merely discussing this subsequent fork in my occupation, and this imaginative and prescient of a flagship experiential hair extension boutique was born on the seaside that day.
I wanted to hold my experiential retail experience along with my talents from precise property and music enterprise to an enterprise that I felt was not however elevated. I really feel the sweetness enterprise is such a visceral and emotional enterprise as a result of emotions we unlock as soon as we allow a woman to look on the pores and skin how she wishes to actually really feel on the inside.
Your latest enterprise is Covet & Mane, a corporation that sells hand-tied extensions. How did you resolve to start your particular person agency? Why extensions?
It truly began with a imaginative and prescient. I wanted to create the Chanel of hair extensions, and I observed the transformational vitality of hand-tied hair extensions when powered with being throughout the arms of a well-trained artisan. I moreover observed a number of factors throughout the distribution model of hair extensions and lack of standardization in cosmetology school led to a very uneven experience for the consumer.
I truly come alive as a difficulty solver and innovator, so after I encounter fixed points in an enterprise, it’s the final phrase different. So I felt truly motivated to create a line that innovated a product that had been spherical for a really very long time, and likewise change and elevate the distribution model so that the consumer might perception; if anyone has entry to Covet & Mane, anyone has truly vetted their hairstylist or salon, and that this stylist is actually a licensed extension specialist.
I moreover suppose that whereas I like sooner than and after makeover. As I acquired older and significantly dwelling in New York Metropolis, I believed there wished to be a dialog spherical enhancements vs extensions. I’m a 42-year-old mom of twins who loves a lob, nonetheless I misplaced a number of hair on account of hormonal modifications, and I like that hand-tied is obtainable to me as refined enhancement merely as so much because it’s to anyone who wishes 28” hair.
I really feel the sweetness enterprise is such a visceral and emotional enterprise as a result of emotions we unlock as soon as we allow a woman to look on the pores and skin how she wishes to actually really feel on the inside.
After you decided you’ve got been going to start Covet & Mane, what have been the first steps you took? What have been the biggest challenges?
The 1st step was going to China to have in-person conversations with fully completely different manufacturing unit relationships and auditing and visiting the factories to be taught additional regarding the course of and making certain we’ve been aligned with ethical and upright enterprises. I truly moreover wanted to hold one factor to market that was going to deal with the issues that I believed hand-tied hair extensions had. It was so troublesome overcoming language limitations and explaining to our factories why we might have favored to change and innovate hand-tied hair. I invented the cut-point weft that allowed hand-tied hair extensions that often cannot be decrease.
The next downside was taking the leap of braveness to scale and really ramp up manufacturing and our purchase orders being a self-funded new enterprise.
What’s being a female enterprise proprietor throughout the magnificence enterprise like?
I’ve to say it’s a terrific enterprise to be a woman. It’s our playground and I’m so grateful that I’m on no account a pioneer on this enterprise. I like that the first self-made woman millionaire was from the sweetness enterprise: Madame C. J. Walker. At current it continues with good founders similar to Nancy Twine, Rihanna, Pat McGrath, Iman, and so forth.
What would you say to a unique woman in search of to start her private enterprise in 2021?
Don’t get caught up throughout the stuff that sucks your pleasure early on. You don’t need merchants, you don’t desire a ton of startup money, you don’t need an MBA; you need imaginative and prescient, creativity, actionable plans with deadlines, benchmarks. Don’t make investments an extreme quantity of in branding early on. You’ll want to discover what a mannequin is. Mannequin id doesn’t happen in a vacuum, it should be a dwelling and respiration product first after which you presumably can iterate and really sharpen the mannequin voice.
I moreover contemplate that it’s most interesting to put as so much effort and vitality into bringing a product to market that you just’re obsessive about, after which to set the value. Don’t get caught up in an extreme quantity of in what you need the value to be. It’s so much less complicated to hold to market a product the place you didn’t decrease corners on prime quality. Finally, it ought to really stop money on account of you will need to spend a lot much less on purchaser acquisition and drive product sales from referrals and phrase of mouth.
Don’t get caught up throughout the stuff that sucks your pleasure early on.
You’re moreover a mom to 2 twin boys. How has turning into a mom influenced your occupation?
It truly humbled me. It was such a jarring experience on account of I had a very robust being pregnant and my twins have been 10 weeks premature. It made me see that if a enterprise is over-dependent on you to run, then it’s not a enterprise; it’s a job. After having children, I do know my limitations and I say no far more, I eliminate inefficiencies and I delegate. I’ve an amazing workforce and if one thing have been to happen to me this agency is about up for achievement nonetheless nonetheless guided by my values and imaginative and prescient.
What occupation second are you most happy with up to now?
I was truly proud that we’ve been able to fund a 20K Scholarship with Fearless Magnificence in 2020. It truly was important to me that in a yr that broke my coronary coronary heart in so some ways wherein we might align with a set off that will tie me once more into advocating for social justice whereas nonetheless being a CEO.
What’s the proper suggestion you’ve ever acquired?
Of us spend an extreme period of time worrying about inserting locks on their doorways, and typically the bigger menace is these whom you invite in with open arms. It’s been a pleasing strategy of reminding me to take heed to the company you keep. I’ve taken it to coronary coronary heart and really have a treasure trove of great relationships inside my family and circle of associates, nonetheless most importantly, in my marriage. I married anyone who’s thoughtful, loving, and kind, and that has been my most interesting security system.
Should you occur to might give your 22-year-old self one piece of advice, what would not it’s?
You might need each half you will need to conquer the world merely as you are.
A celeb that left you starstruck? Prince
A few favorite Black-owned producers? Oui the Of us, Magnificence by Africa Miranda, Clare Paint, Briogeo.
Your go-to espresso order? Oat Milk Chai Tea Latte with a shot of espresso
Best e e book you’ve ever study? Man’s Look for Which suggests, Victor Frankl
Last current you binged? Bridgerton (twice)
Should you occur to might have lunch with any woman, who would not it’s and why? Dolly Parton. I like her grace, her wit, and her music. I actually really feel like we’d snicker, cry, and I already have the outfit that I would placed on deliberate. (It has rhinestones.)