Young entrepreneur has big plans for business

FOR 18-year-old Sarah Ann Brathwaite, dreaming big and having a vision for the future are what keep her motivated to achieve her goals.

But for now, she knows it will take years of hard work and dedication to make her dreams come true of owning her own businesses.

This young lady is set on having her own salon, which she will have in her mother’s yard and as soon as she gets a loan, she will start the construction process; this building will be her main branch and she will expand to the three counties in Guyana and Bartica.

Brathwaite is a hairdresser and beautician attached to the Caribbean Sassy Beauty Lounge located in the new Vendor’s Arcade opposite Republic Bank, Lane One, on Water Street, Georgetown.

She knows she has to work with people before she can get her own business and she plans to get a solid job in the public sector to save for her project.

Braithwaite comes from a single-parent home and she knows all too well the value of things, especially money.

Growing up it was ingrained in her at a young age by her mother that she should become independent to make her dreams become a reality.

“With my mom alone working to provide for us it was hard and money was an issue, but she tried her best to put food on the table and we never went hungry,” she said.

Being familiar with her mother’s plight of being a single parent, she was motivated to make the most of her school-age years.

She went to Crane Primary School and in Grade Six, she realised that she has a remarkable skill after some practice that she can do hair and began plaiting the young boys’ hair in the village and would be paid for the services.

She later went on to Vreed-en-Hoop Secondary School and after her peers and teachers learnt of her talent in doing hair, they commended her after she did several hairstyles for them.

However, after being showered with praises for being so talented, she was encouraged to develop her skills set and she was advised to enrol at the Carnegie School of Home Economics.

At that time, money was tight and she had no choice but to start working; she gained employment at a Beauty Store and soon realised that she had to upgrade her skills to become marketable, rather than being stuck in a store.

“My relatives came together and got me the money to enrol and an aunt, who resides overseas, send in the equipment and after a year I got a distinction in cosmetology and body massage,” she said.

She specialises in braiding, facials, pedicures, and make-ups.
Her first dream of becoming a cosmetologist materialised eight years ago, after she graduated from the Carnegie School of Home Economics.

“My creativity and passion for braiding have allowed me to build a clientele over the years. I am inspired by them, many of whom have expressed satisfaction for a job well done; and so I am motivated to succeed,” she said.

Braithwaite also plans to open a hair store in Guyana and to travel to Trinidad and Tobago to enrol there for beauty courses, which will take some time.

However, she is not deterred by this and will go all out to ensure that her dreams are realised and has set a target where, by age 25, she must be on her way to success.

Braithwaite is the last of three siblings and is proud of her mother’s small business,that is, making and selling homemade coconut biscuits.

“The compliments received have been the driving factor towards enhancing my skills and enriching my creativity in customer satisfaction, alongside the best results for their memories. I am self-motivated and I go beyond the limits to please my clients,” she said.

Braithwaite stated that her love and passion for her business is a result of her clients’ significant support.

She garners motivation from her clients’ overwhelming support and because they would travel long distances just to have the first experience of what Unique Braids by Sarah has to offer.
“It is evident that satisfied customers have been spreading the news, hence, the growth of my clientele. I thank god for my talent, and the privilege to be of service to said clients, because a woman’s hair is her beauty,” she said.