 And welcome to this week's edition of Business in Hawaii. I'm Deila Nyonygida, and we're broadcasting live from the ThinkTech studios in downtown Honolulu. If you want to tune in live, we are at www.thinktechhawaii.com. You may also subscribe to our programs and get on our mailing list at that site as well. The theme of Business in Hawaii is to share with you stories of local businesses by local people. Our guests share with us their story, their journey with us, and how they were able to build successes in Hawaii's business environment. In the ThinkTech studio today is Beauty Goddess and boss lady herself, Elizabeth Uehara. Liz is the owner of the original Beauty Goddess studio. Liz, thank you for joining us today. Thanks, Deila. I'm super excited to have you. Me too. Tell me about Beauty Goddess Studio. What is that? So Beauty Goddess Studio is, it's a place where you can get your lashes done. We do lash lifting for the natural lashes. We also do facials. We do waxing. We do lash tinting. Basically we work from like the chest up. So anything to enhance this part of you, which helps you to feel brighter, happier, cheerier, whatever. So tell me about the name. How did the name come about? Beauty Goddess actually came from being in the beauty industry and then my background of growing up in Hawaii. So I wanted to incorporate the Goddess Pele and some strength of women and that character, as well as the beauty part of it. Not that it's like strength and beauty, I guess, for women to feel good about themselves and then it's more powerful that way. My original logo was a goddess and then we morphed it into an eye. Fantastic. Fantastic. Now, I know that you have a very interesting story behind how you finally got to Beauty Goddess Studio here in Hawaii, in Kamuki, Hawaii, and in Kailua. But I think our viewers would love to hear your journey because for a lot of entrepreneurs like yourself, it's having a vision and then how do you make that happen? And so I'd love for you to share with us your journey way back in the beginning. I mean, a lot of people go to school and get degrees, but that's not what they end up doing. Yes, yes. And perhaps it's because their passion turns into something else or whatnot. Tell me about your beginning. How did you know this was your niche? So when I, well, I'll start like way back when I was in high school. I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do and my mom was always encouraging me to continue my education and I think that I didn't really know like college-wise was the thing for me, but I loved fashion and makeup and hair and I was already cutting my friend's hair and we were always going thrift store shopping and so it was recommended to me that I go into beauty school. So I signed up for Honolulu Community College in their cosmetology program and that's where I got my degree in cosmetology. It was in AS back then and it was very affordable. And then it was from there where we were listening to music and learning about trends in fashion and Hawaii also was a little behind on something. So we were always looking for what's happening on the mainland, what's happening in Europe, what's happening in Asia, the Asian countries or whatever. So I just kept, I'm always looking for the next thing. What's more interesting? What are they doing with this and that and eventually I started as a hairdresser cutting hair for my friends and then moving to LA, I decided to start doing hair there. LA was a whole new experience because that was really where I worked my job, my first like real job in the industry that I had gotten my degree in and it was it was crazy and exciting but tons of stories with that too. I learned a lot about myself. That's another show. Yeah, that is another show. I was 19 and so as time goes on, you start to learn about yourself and come into yourself. So I think after that I had, I had come back to Hawaii and then I moved to Canada and then I met my future spouse and so we, I got married and moved down to Seattle, Washington and in Seattle was where I really developed the whole concept of having my own business. I realized that I really don't want to work for anybody and I felt like I can do it myself and I'm better and or whatever like I can really see more than what was right in front of me. There was some future glimmer in that and it was, I was doing makeup and hair. I was doing bridal work. I was doing photo shoots, you know, fashion photography, hair and makeup for that. I was working as a hairdresser in a salon as well but I also started having kids so I had small children and I had to be able to balance career, kids, household, life, right? As women we juggle many hats and juggle many balls. So I think that that was where I started to figure out I needed to work smarter and become more self-sustaining as opposed to working for an employer. And then I had a vision. I was just like, okay, you know, women want to feel better, feel good about themselves. We should all be supporting each other. Women in business. I had a lot of great women mentors that helped support me and I felt that I wanted to give that back. I wanted my kids to be proud of me and value who I was as a mom as well as an entrepreneur. I never considered myself an entrepreneur but I definitely had that mindset and I started looking into what can I do to make something out of what I'm passionate about. Back then those little baby steps, tons of research. The internet was like in its infancy stages I guess but I had a computer now, right? Like I can type on a computer and search things. It's like amazing. Kids, anyway, it's really funny. Just never know, right? Like it's so easily available, now you can do it on a phone. But back then it was like we got a computer, I can go on the internet, I can see what's out there in the world, what are other people doing. I was taking what I knew as a hairstylist, as a makeup artist and how can I find those little, that right niche where can I fit myself into that. And then my father got sick and we brought him back and I really, I wanted to be able to care for him and take care of him. So I kind of put some things on the back burner for a little bit. But I always knew that I was going to do something more. And so during those years where I was caring for my dad and caring for the kids, the little bubbles bubbling in the back, ideas are forming and I really was like, okay, I'm going to do something with this because once this is taken care of, you know, there's got to be something for me as well. So that was the beginning of the journey that we were going to come back here. My father passed and it was the catalyst for the next phase of my life. And I wanted to bring my kids home. So I said, okay, let's move back to Hawaii. And I, being from Hawaii, you have a huge support system here, which is, even after we hadn't been here for 10 years, it's amazing how that still exists. And then, of course, Internet and telephones and things like that, you know, cell phones, not telephones, but... Back in our day, telephones. Yeah, I know. Geez, it's so funny. But... Chords connected to the wall. I remember that. I just, it's really crazy how much technology aids you in business now and how much faster it makes things happen. You know, I've been in business here in Hawaii for 12 years, and after that, it was 10 years in Seattle, and then I'm trying to jump into a new island, I mean, a whole new place, and then start all over again. It was hard. But now, I mean, it's just crazy how you're like, okay, it can happen like this now. Anyway, so when we were planning, my dad had passed and we decided to do my father's service in Hawaii, and I got to reconnect with people at that point, and I really decided that I really, really wanted my kids to grow up in Hawaii. It's a special place. It has... There's nowhere else in the world that you can grow up like this, and it's still in many ways where it's a big city, but at the same time, we're a small island and a small community of people, and I wanted my kids to feel that. It was really important, and I think it's also what made me who I am. So we made the transition to come back, and you got a down size, got rid of all our stuff. And just thinking small, we're going to live in a box. I think we started off in a one bedroom apartment when we moved back here, and I was fortunate enough to have friends who had an apartment building that we could move into and start from there, but you just don't realize how much your friends in your community are going to help you until you ask. So I think that was where I started looking in Hawaii, okay, what am I going to do next? How am I going to take this education that I have as a licensed cosmetologist? I was licensed in Hawaii. I was licensed in LA. I was licensed in Washington, and take that and do something with it. I know I can do hair. I know I can do makeup, and I know I can build clients. So I did what I knew. I started with doing hair and makeup for weddings. I went and looked out for all the people that were doing hair and makeup. So I asked them, you know, do you need a stylist? Do you need employees? Do you need someone to work for you? And I started as a freelance artist first. And that way I could kind of pick and choose when I wanted to work, and I could still go pick up the kids from school, and I could still be at PTA meetings and things like that. It allowed me the flexibility I needed with my children. And I had created the name Beauty Goddess when I was in Seattle. So Pele and the Goddess kind of came into a little bit smaller focus. And it was really about empowering women. And so when I would do hair and makeup, it's like taking you and making you who you are just slightly enhanced. So you know, it's not like I'm going to make you to somebody else, but who you are. And I really value that in us as women. So you know, it's now. I think that it's an amazing story, particularly because we do have a lot of residents, people who are born and raised in Hawaii, who venture off to the mainland to see what's out there and what it's about and want to come home and make a go of something. And then of course, that there's a sacrifice to come back because the cost of living is high and those things and then the cost of startup. So we're going to go to a quick break, but when we come back, I'd really like for you to share with your audience about the struggle, you know, because that obviously has made you who you are and the success that you are today. And then we'll talk about that success and how you morphed into this goddess because it's really amazing. So we are going to take that short break. This is Business in Hawaii and we'll see you back here shortly. When I was growing up, I was among the one in six American kids who struggled with hunger and hungry mornings make tired days, grumpy days, kind of days. But with the power of breakfast, the kids in your neighborhood can think big and be more. We're not hungry for breakfast. We're hungry for more, more ideas, more dreams, more fun. When kids aren't hungry for breakfast, they can be hungry for more. Go to hungeris.org and lend your time or your voice to make breakfast happen for kids in your neighborhood. Aloha. I want to invite all of you to talk story with John Wahee every other Monday here at Think Tech, Hawaii. And we have special guests like Professor Colin Moore from the University of Hawaii, who joins us from time to time to talk about the political happenings in this state. Please join us every other Monday. Aloha. Welcome back. This is Business in Hawaii. Joining us today is Elizabeth Uehara, beauty goddess, actually the beauty goddess and boss lady of Beauty Goddess Studio here in Hawaii. When we left to commercial, we were talking about that transition, how you went and you started your family out in Seattle, but you really felt that your pull was back to Hawaii, even down to a spiritual sense, how Pele and what she stands for really embraced your vision for where you wanted to go. But there was a lot of sacrifice in that. Yes. I had to move kids, two of them. They were, my daughter was in first grade and my son wasn't even in kindergarten yet. We were adding to figure out preschool, which preschool, the cost of preschool here, oh my goodness. Right. You need a second job, too. Yeah. I think I, twice I had to continue to do hair in order to pay the bills, but I'd always, I guess I've always had that mindset that there's something I can do and make it not a job, that it's going to be fun and I'm going to enjoy it. So I knew I could do hair. I knew I could do makeup. And so I went and found those nooks and crannies of what I can actually actually make money at. And, you know, on my husband at the time, he had to work and he did all of his support system. He found a job here to be able to do that and be able to provide us with health insurance and, you know, and a roof over our head. And we started really small. The kids didn't know any difference, thank goodness, but I also needed to be there for them when they got out of school. We had to, we shared a car when we first moved back. Yeah, that was exciting in itself, anyway. You know, the first car we buy here, of course, is a mini van, but we shared it. I'd take him to work or, you know, we'd figure that out. And then we would, then I'd have to go pick up the kids or drop them off or whatever. We really kept a really tight budget so that we could manage all these things. And I had the flexibility to be able to work freelance and make money when I could and not work when I had to, when I had to do something for the kids. And I also felt it was really important for me to get to know my community. So I wanted to be there at school to get to know the other parents, and that's also where I found my network. You start talking to the parents, your kids are friends with each other, and then you start talking to the parents and then, oh, what do you do? Oh, what do you do, right? And that's, oh, well, a little check mark in my head. Oh, that person works in marketing. Okay, just remember that. Oh, these guys are in theater. I might need that sometime. You know, pest control guy or whatever. You know, you start, it's not, because here in Hawaii, it's about networking with your community, right? So that was where I really started to figure out how I was going to be able to do business. But it was sort of on the, on the back burner in my head. But that's always how I thought, like, I'm going to do stuff with my kids so I can be there for them. And then this is my community that I'm going to be building around me. So as that progressed and I was realizing, okay, now it's time for me to get more, you know, we're being able to, the kids are getting older. I could do a little more stuff. I was trying to find that niche. So I was using my wedding hair and makeup business and my girlfriend was in Japan and she was telling me about this service that you get your lashes curled, it's your natural lashes, but it like makes your eyes look bigger. Because in Japan, you know, everybody wants big eyes. They want to look like little dolls. And I'm going, are you kidding me? Who does that? Who perms their eyelashes? That's like crazy. And, but I was doing hair and makeup for weddings and most brides are pretty natural. They want a more soft look. And I thought, you know, all right, you know, send me some product. Let me see what, let me see what I can do with this. And so at first I was practicing on myself, which is really funny when you're trying to like put something on one eye and then like try to look on the other side. And so I needed to say it was kind of an interesting experiment just working on myself. But I figured it out. And that's kind of my thought process too is I like to to work on it myself. I like to touch it and feel it and figure it out myself. Of course, before I go and experiment on anyone else, even my kids, I want to, I'll do it on myself first. So anyway, as I was learning about it, I started doing more research on this whole lash lifting thing. And there wasn't really anyone in Hawaii that was doing it. I it was it was available in some small salons, but you know, it wasn't like promoted. Everybody was just starting to do lash extensions, which are like, you know, the individual lashes they glue onto your own lashes and they're really big and, you know, a little more maintenance. So I I decided to go to a couple of salons this to try it out on how they do it. Let me go see what they do and then I'll come back and check it out. So I'd go and get service done. I'm like, they just put it on. They'd walk away and I'm like, my eyes burning. No, where are you people? And then I would come back or I they would take everything off and I'm like, OK, I get it. I get it. Like your eyes look bigger. But, you know, the curl would be curled back or it just wouldn't look right or my lashes didn't look as long as I would have liked them to. And my mentality has always been, I can do it better. I can do it better. So I went with it and I my girlfriend, I I tried to do more research. She was trying to give me like the name of the product that they could get in Japan. And I'm like, OK, I got to find something. Somebody's got to have it. Could not find it anywhere. All the product they had available in the beauty supply stores here and what was available on the main line. Nothing worked like the product that I got from Japan. So my girlfriend moves to New York and she goes to get her lashes lifted in New York City. In New York City, how many agents are there? OK, there are a lot now. But this is, you know, 10 years ago. She's like, oh, my gosh, I met this girl. You know, she's from Japan. She she makes all these, you know, she brings in all these lash lifting products. All she does is lash lifts. Like, that's it. I can do this. She does that in New York City. How many girls do I have in front of me while I'm doing the moms and the brides and the sisters and my, you know, cousin or whatever? You know, I can do this. So I contacted her in New York. We did a training. She taught me her way. And then I was able to get my product from her directly, although she was getting it from Japan. So it went from Japan to New York to Hawaii. Then I was trying to figure out, you know, how many how many people can I do in a day? How many hours do I need? Where can I do this? So I just started looking in the newspaper for commercial retail space. I thought it was going to be so over my price range. But, you know, if you research and look things up, Craigslist or whatever, you're amazed at what's out there. I mean, you go and you check things out and you make sure what was this enough space. So my first official location was in Kapa Hulu. It was actually quite a large space for the amount of money I was paying at that time. And the owner of the building, it wasn't it was an actual person, not a company, which I thought was amazing. I had parking is a key. You need parking. You need space and electricity and water. Hopefully a bathroom. If you're lucky, you get a bathroom. But it was an older building in Kapa Hulu. The rent was like spot on. I was like, OK, I can afford this. So now what do I do? You know, like I have I've got this like little market of women that I can kind of hit up. But, you know, I've got to build this into something else. So I took what I knew, which was hair and makeup. So I did hair and makeup there. I still met my brides there. So that could keep and sustain my income. And then I brought in this new service. So I did my marketing. Well, I joined some women networking groups and women in business and networking groups. And I said, I need 20 volunteers because nobody's really done this, right? And I'm putting, you know, stuff on your eyelids and near your eyeballs, and everyone freaks out about that. I'm a freak about my eyeballs, but I'm like, it's going to be fine. Anyway, trust me, trust me. Yeah, so I sent out an I sent out an email and e-blast to this women's network community. And I said, I need 20 volunteers to try out these new products. And it's lash lifting. You're going to curl your natural lashes, but I need your feedback. And do you know how fast 20 women responded? Yeah, I was shocked. Those are gutsy women. They were like, I'm in, I'm in. You know, I remember checking my emails going, wow. It was like, bam, bam, bam. They were just responded really quickly. You don't think people are reading their emails. They are. But yeah, all these women like respond to I had more than 20. I actually had more than 20 because I was like, well, fine, I'll just take you. And that was where I started. That was the beginning and it was just it was the cutest thing. Everyone was so supportive. And then, you know, we're talking about, you know, we're all women in business or women in networking groups or whatever. And so you get to I've got 45 minutes to an hour. Well, their lashes are processing. And, you know, I'm talking to them, getting to know them. What do you do? How did you get here? You know, how who are you? Like, where, you know, your kids, things like that, whatever. I just learned about them. And it was kind of like a therapy session. And then they got these like really pretty eyelashes. And it was awesome. I'm like, I love this. This is so awesome. And I kept trying to sell it to the brides. I'm like, you guys want to do lash lifting? It's so it's so much easier. Less maintenance than the lash extensions. It's easier on you. And the girls are like already getting lash extensions. So I'm like, all right, that's not my market. My market is every day women, moms, women going to work, which is pretty much everyone, you know, every day people. So I just stuck with that. And it just started to snowball. And here you are. Yeah. And the goal is for me is I want my clients to leave my studio in a positive and better headspace. You know, like, I feel better. I feel good. I feel pretty. And that really is, that's really important to me. And so today, following your passion, hair, makeup, fashion led you to the Lash Studio. You are in Kaimuki and in Kailua, is that correct? Yes. And people, how can people find you? So, well, I'm on the internet. And your website is beauty goddess, b-e-a-u-t-i-g-o-d-d-e-s-s dot com. You can also email me at beauty goddess, b-e-a-u-t-i-g-o-d-d-e-s-s at gmail.com. We also have a phone number. I prefer text messages. We do not have a receptionist yet. We do not have a receptionist. We still manage everything. I still check the emails as well. But our phone number is 808-469-8066. Liz, I want to congratulate you on your success, allowing yourself to follow a passion, empowering women to feel great about themselves, and taking the time, the thoughtful time, to go through your journey and then share that with us. And I think for all those aspiring entrepreneurs, your story is amazing. So congratulations. We are out of time. But I want to thank Liz for joining us today. I want to thank the amazing production staff in the studio here. If you would like to be a guest on the Business in Hawaii show, email your information to shows at thinktechhawaii.com. Business in Hawaii airs every Thursday at 2 o'clock. And we look forward to seeing you here next week.