Lakia Diggs of The Kia Xperience: Five Things Anyone Can Do To Have Fabulous Hair

As a part of our series about “Five Things Anyone Can Do To Have Fabulous Hair”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Lakia Diggs.

Lakia Diggs, Senior Cosmetologist and Celebrity Hairstylist, is based in the Greater Baltimore area and known globally. While she’s not in her salon or freelancing, she gives back to philanthropic organizations and spends time assisting and advising aspiring stylists. Lakia can be found at Thekiaxperience.com

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

Hairstyling was therapy for me. I grew up in very harsh and unfortunate circumstances. Finding an excuse to get out of the house, I found solace in doing the hair of my friends and their family members. Through that, I got to have fun, experience other people and their ways of living, and being safe. And I liked having extra change in my pocket. My own money. I was 11 years old.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

My most interesting story was finding out that 2 of my clients were involved with the same man. After the tension died down, the conversed and spoke peacefully and resolved the issue. It taught me the true power of womanhood; being able to put aside emotions, communicate, and fellowship. That scenario was extremely important to me and my growth

Are you able to identify a “tipping point” in your career when you started to see success? Did you start doing anything different? Are there takeaways or lessons that others can learn from that?

I went through a really hard 2016. I had enough of being stagnant in my career. I knew I deserved more. I knew where I wanted to be. So I decided to let go of some personal baggage, and dedicate 100% of myself into polishing my business. Taking the time to learn more financial literacy and marketing strategies wsre the important parts. I learned that I was more talented than having some mediocre booking system. I knew I was better than always having phone photography. I made serious changes. And I had to make sure how I represented myself reflects and attracts the ideal client.

In your experience what were the most effective ways for your business to generate leads and sales? Can you share a story or give an example?

Being intentional with my marketing was the most important parts. Knowing who my idea client was and focusing on what her lifestyle looks like helped me to be more specific with my marketing direction. Adding a touch of my personality helped a lot! I have done hair for over 20 years but people didn’t really know me as a person. And the public buys from brands they love, people they like, food that looks yummy, etc. So, being intentional, being relatable, and being approachable were the keys for me.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person to whom you are grateful who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Whew! So many people. My daughter will be 18 in a matter of days. She’s patient with me. She’s understanding. And she knows that mommy is making sacrifices and building all of what I’m doing for her. I have supportive friends and family now. I didn’t always have it. But I believe that the support I have came at the right time. My clients are amazing! They check on me and are genuinely loving and appreciative of my efforts. I couldn’t have made it if it weren’t for those people. I am blessed.

Can you share a story with us about the most humorous mistake you made when you were first starting? What lesson or take-away did you learn from that?

Worst mistake is styling a client of a coworker. Now, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It was the scenario that made it bad. The client inquired with me about a service that I provided and that the other stylist didn’t provide. She made an appointment. When she wanted me to become her general stylist (her not being forthcoming) by asking for other services here and there; claiming that the other stylist wasn’t available when she inquired. So yea, everyone kinda clashed together in the salon one day. The other stylist was upset with me. I eventually left because it became extremely uncomfortable and she didn’t want to talk to have someone resolution.

You have been blessed with great success in a career path that many have attempted, but eventually gave up on. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path but know that their dreams might be dashed?

Your dreams will work as long as you keep your integrity and character in tact. Always remain teachable. Keep learning. Give back when and where you can. And seek mentorship/help if you need it. Ask questions. The only stupid question is the one you don’t ask. And as cliche as it sounds, always remember why you started. That passion, being reminded of it, will reset you.

Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Can you please share “Five Things Anyone Can Do To Have Fabulous Hair”. Please share a story or an example, for each.

1. Keep it clean! Don’t be dirty! Shampoo and condition your hair. Don’t go to a stylist who requires you to come with your hair “washed”. It’s gross.
2. Do some research, but don’t enroll in YouTube University. -that means that it’s ok to research on the internet. The internet is a gift. But remember, YouTubers are mostly speaking from experiences of their own hair type. Not from a professional standpoint.
3. If you’re gonna follow a youtubers advice, find one who has a similar hair texture/type as yours. You’re more likely to learn something.
4. Buy retail from a professional stylist or salon!- don’t risk purchasing products from amazon/Marshall’s/etc, where there’s no guarantee of it being legit, decent shelf life, or not being tampered with. Stylists and salons purchase right from brand distributors.
5. Learn your face shape, hair type, and skin undertones. It will help you with ideas and better decision making with your looks!

Can you share 3 ideas that anyone can use “to feel beautiful”? (Please share a story or example for each.)

Mirror work. Take a moment after washing your face in the morning. And remind yourself of who you are. Highlight what you love about yourself. Get cocky with it! It’s ok. Your bathroom is a safe space for that. Do the things that make you feel amazing! Whether it be a hot bubble bath, a “mental health day”, or shopping for skin care. Whatever that looks like to you, do that!

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

Bringing back free recreation centers and safe havens for the children of the inner city. For myself, those organizations saved my life and kept me out of the streets. Most kids don’t have wholesome and safe activities to do in their spare time. And their idle time creates harm. If we can keep the kids busy who don’t have access to privileges, it would make a great difference. They will be busy, stimulated, and even find their purpose

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

Early is on-time. On time is late. And lateness is unexceptionable. You can apply that to anything: school, work, social settings, entrepreneurship, whatever! It’s helped me keep a returning clientele for 25 years

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world with whom you’d like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this. :-)

Jay Z. Hands down. His story of the streets, morphing into the hood rich persona, then the incomparable business man is a real journey. I’d love to take in some of the gems he has

How can our readers follow you online?

My Instagram is @thekiaxperience

Facebook: The Kia Xperience, LLC

Website: thekiaxperience.com

Thank you so much for this. This was very inspirational, and we wish you only continued success!

About the Interviewer: Jilea Hemmings is a staunch believer in the power of entrepreneurship. A successful career revamping Fortune 500 companies was not enough for her entrepreneurial spirit, so Jilea began focusing her passion in startups. She has successfully built 6 startups to date. Her passion for entrepreneurship continues to flourish with the development of Stretchy Hair Care, focusing on relieving the pain associated with detangling and styling natural black hair. For far too long, people with tender heads have suffered in pain. Until now.