$10,000 Loan Helps Joliet Loctician Open Her First Salon
May 30, 2024
NORTHERN ILLINOIS COMMUNITY VENTURES (NICV)
Joliet-native Breanna Holman's first step in her path to owning a salon was at Southern Illinois University when a classmate asked if she could do his locs. Breanna had done hair all of her life, but locs — also commonly known as dreadlocks or dreads — wasn’t a style she had experience doing. Breanna wasn’t deterred: She watched tutorials on YouTube, bought the necessary supplies, and gave it a try. “When I did that person’s hair, he absolutely loved it,” she remembers. “He told everybody that I did his hair and my clientele just took off from there.”
Since this defining moment, Breanna began the journey to becoming a full-time loctician. She moved back to Joliet, took classes with a stylist she knew who was adept at locs, and eventually started working at her salon. But starting a business was always in the back of her mind. In 2021, she started Ava’s Locs (named after her daughter) and gradually built her business from a salon suite. Breanna points out that most big cities have locticians, but in smaller cities like Joliet, there often isn’t a place to have locs done professionally. “Joliet is my roots, so it was important to me to open a business in the location that I’m from.” The business grew so quickly that by 2023, Breanna knew Ava’s Locs would need its own space.
This past March, Breanna opened her first brick-and-mortar salon with the support of a loan from Northern Illinois Community Ventures (NICV) partner Allies for Community Business (A4CB). “This is mine,” she thought while walking in the finished space for the first time prior to the grand opening. “I’ve seen it through.”
For a business owner early in their journey (particularly minority and women entrepreneurs), there are obstacles to securing loans to sustain, expand, or start their business. Breanna notes that larger banks usually look for businesses that are “more established.” Northern Illinois Community Initiatives began the NICV program in recognition of these exact types of challenges, partnering with institutions like Allies for Community Business to meet business owners where they are. “They were able to see my vision and see what I needed to grow.” Breanna was able to secure a space for Ava’s Locs and acquire the tools needed to operate a salon and accommodate more stylists and clients. With six salon chairs, she hopes to continue building her experience in hiring and training stylists.
As for what’s on the horizon? “I definitely want to expand the business,” Breanna says, sharing her vision for at least one or two more salons as part of her five-year plan. Now that the first brick-and-mortar location is open, the anxiety has given way to excitement. “I know for sure now it can be done.” In the meantime, Joliet residents now have a salon where they can have their locs done professionally. Breanna’s most reliable client, though, will always be her daughter Ava. “I started her locs and I’m always doing cute little styles for her.” Breanna hopes each style reminds her daughter that Ava’s Locs belongs to her, too.
To learn more about Northern Illinois Community Initiatives and our partnership with Allies for Community Business, visit nici-il.org/nicv.