Inspiring Conversations with Joyce Makanda of JSlaysUnits

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joyce Makanda.

Hi Joyce, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My journey into the beauty industry was completely unexpected. I never dreamed of becoming a hairstylist. When I was around 11, I was actually baking and selling baked goods with my childhood best friend. Then, in high school, age 16 I got my first sew in. Around that same time, I started experimenting with hair after purchasing bundles from AliExpress. I wondered if I could make a wig myself, so I bought a Styrofoam head, a wig cap, some glue, and taught myself how to make wigs through trial and error and YouTube tutorials. My first wigs were very simple U-part wigs, but eventually I started making faux loc wigs and wigs for classmates, charging around $50.

When I went to college at the University of Toledo, I continued doing hair on the side, primarily faux locs, while traveling back and forth between Columbus and Toledo. In 2019, during my freshman year at the University of Toledo, I decided to officially turn my passion into a business and created JSlaysUnits. I remember being in my dorm room in Parks Tower, on the 16th floor, just scrambling and trying to figure out what starting a business even looked like. I didn’t have a business plan or a team behind me—I had an idea, a love for creating wigs, and the feeling that I needed to take it seriously. I made my own flyer, put together a price list, and started taking clients. That little dorm-room idea became the foundation for what JSlaysUnits is today. By the summer of 2020, during COVID, my business had grown tremendously. I even obtained my LLC that summer, despite barely understanding what an LLC was at the time. I was simply following this entrepreneurial instinct that I couldn’t ignore.

That growth eventually came with burnout. In 2021, I stepped away from doing hair almost completely and focused on finishing college. I graduated from the University of Toledo in December 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration and a minor in Business. Although I had stepped away from the beauty industry, I never truly stopped thinking about it.

During those years away from making wigs, I spent a lot of time researching and trying to understand what the next version of my business could look like. I was working in healthcare, taking business, accounting, and statistics courses, and learning firsthand how healthcare organizations operated. I also interned with an insurance company in regulatory compliance, where I had the opportunity to learn more about insurance policies, compliance, and how to navigate complex healthcare systems. My mentor during that experience was a healthcare attorney who was incredibly generous with his knowledge. He welcomed my questions, challenged me to think differently, and gave me a perspective on healthcare and policy that I didn’t have before. That experience broadened my understanding of the healthcare system in ways that eventually became extremely valuable to my business.

At the same time, I was heavily researching cranial prostheses and trying to understand how hair loss services could intersect with healthcare and insurance. When I first began researching the field, there was very little information available. I remember calling the State of Ohio and reaching out to different healthcare boards trying to understand regulations, insurance processes, and what this type of business could look like. I also visited healthcare facilities to learn how they handled insurance and patient services. A lot of what I learned came through research, conversations, and trial and error because there wasn’t really a roadmap available to me.

Looking back, that period was incredibly important because I was unknowingly preparing myself for the business I would eventually build. My education in healthcare administration and business, my experience working in healthcare, my internship in insurance compliance, and all of the independent research I was doing around cranial prostheses eventually came together. I was essentially building the foundation for something that didn’t really have a clear roadmap yet.

That period of research and exploration eventually led me to become a Certified Cranial Prosthesis Specialist in 2023, which completely changed the way I viewed my business. I realized that hair could be so much more than beauty—it could intersect with healthcare and help people regain confidence during some of the most difficult seasons of their lives.

In 2024, I relaunched my business with a new website and began focusing more on cranial prostheses. I also wanted to use my business as a way to give back, so in October 2024, I organized a breast cancer wig giveaway and partnered with Dr. Wanzer, an educator who also volunteers her time providing wigs to cancer patients and survivors in New York. Interestingly, no one initially entered the giveaway, but Dr. Wanzer connected me with someone she believed would be the perfect recipient: Wednesday, a breast cancer warrior.

Wednesday became the recipient of the 2024 Breast Cancer Wig Giveaway. I drove five hours from Columbus to Buffalo, New York, to personally deliver her wig. I was also able to visit her during her treatment, do her hair, and collaborate with a photographer to create a professional photo shoot celebrating her strength and beauty. That experience reminded me that my work could be about so much more than creating beautiful wigs—it could be about showing up for people during some of the most difficult seasons of their lives. A year later, in 2025, Wednesday featured me and JSlaysUnits in a breast cancer magazine. That was an incredibly full-circle moment and one of the accomplishments I am most grateful for as a business owner.

In 2025, I made the decision to leave my healthcare job and fully commit to JSlaysUnits, but the decision was much more than a career move—it was a moment of faith. At the time, I was working at a fertility clinic in the front office, where I handled insurance verification. One day, while verifying a patient’s insurance coverage, I noticed that their benefits included coverage for a cranial prosthesis. I remember looking at it and immediately feeling the Holy Spirit speak to me: “Your job here is done. It’s time for you to go.” I will never forget that moment. I literally got chills throughout my body because it felt like confirmation of everything I had been researching and building toward for years. Shortly afterward, I resigned from my position and committed to JSlaysUnits full time.

Shortly after leaving my job, I began cosmetology school, which initially terrified me because I wondered how I would balance school, clients, and growing a business. Instead, cosmetology school became a blessing in disguise. It pushed me to become more disciplined, sharpen my skills, and take my career as a beauty professional even more seriously.
Today, JSlaysUnits has grown into something I never could have imagined when I was that teenager gluing tracks onto a wig cap in my room. What started as a girl experimenting with hair has evolved into a business that combines beauty, healthcare, entrepreneurship, and service. I’m incredibly grateful for every stage of the journey—the growth, the setbacks, the burnout, the rebuilding, and the opportunities that came from all of it. I truly believe God was guiding me toward something I couldn’t see for myself yet.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, it definitely has not been a smooth road. One of the biggest struggles I faced early on was learning how to balance being a student with running a growing business. When JSlaysUnits began taking off, especially during COVID, I was still in college and trying to figure out how to manage the demands of school, clients, and a business that was growing faster than I expected. Eventually, I experienced significant burnout and stepped away from doing hair for a few years.

That time away was difficult because I felt like I had walked away from something I had built, but it also gave me time to grow personally and figure out what I actually wanted. When I returned to the industry, I approached the business completely differently. I became a Certified Cranial Prosthesis Specialist, relaunched JSlaysUnits, and began thinking beyond simply making wigs. I wanted to create something that connected beauty, healthcare, and helping people feel like themselves again.

Another major challenge has been learning to grow a business while continuing to grow myself. I’ve had to learn about pricing, finances, marketing, operations, client relationships, and entrepreneurship through experience. There have been seasons where I’ve questioned whether I was doing the right thing, especially when I was balancing a healthcare career, cosmetology school, and my business.

Looking back, though, I don’t see those difficult seasons as failures. The burnout forced me to slow down, the setbacks forced me to become more intentional, and every restart taught me something new. The road hasn’t been smooth, but I think the challenges are a huge part of what shaped JSlaysUnits into what it is today.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
JSlaysUnits is a beauty and hair company specializing in custom wigs, cranial prostheses, wig services, sew-ins, and extensions. What started as me teaching myself how to make wigs as a teenager has grown into a brand centered around craftsmanship, customization, and helping people feel confident in their hair.

One of the things that sets JSlaysUnits apart is the range of people and needs we serve. I work with clients who simply want to feel beautiful and express themselves through their hair, but I also specialize in cranial prostheses for individuals experiencing hair loss. Becoming a Certified Cranial Prosthesis Specialist allowed me to combine my background in healthcare with my passion for beauty and create something that goes beyond aesthetics. For someone experiencing hair loss, a wig can be much more than an accessory—it can be part of helping them feel like themselves again.

I’m also very intentional about customization. Whether I’m creating a custom unit, providing a sew-in, or working with someone experiencing hair loss, I don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach. I want every client to feel like their service was created specifically for them.

I’m probably most proud of how much the brand has evolved. JSlaysUnits started with me making $50 wigs as a teenager with a Styrofoam head, a wig cap, and some glue. Today, it has grown into a business that combines my creativity, my education in healthcare administration and business, my cosmetology training, and my desire to serve people in a meaningful way.

Ultimately, I want people to know that JSlaysUnits is about more than hair. It’s about craftsmanship, confidence, and creating an experience where people feel seen. Whether someone is coming to me for a new look, a custom wig, or a cranial prosthesis during a difficult chapter of their life, I want them to leave feeling like the best version of themselves.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
There are several ways people can work with and support JSlaysUnits. Clients can book me for custom wigs, cranial prostheses, sew-ins, extensions, wig services, and consultations. I also love collaborating with other beauty professionals, businesses, healthcare professionals and organizations whose work aligns with what I’m building, particularly when we can create something that benefits the community.

I’m especially interested in building relationships with healthcare providers, cancer centers, organizations supporting individuals experiencing hair loss, and other professionals who believe beauty and healthcare can work together. I would love to continue expanding the reach of cranial prostheses and making people more aware that there are options available to them when experiencing hair loss.

People can also support JSlaysUnits simply by sharing my work, referring someone who could benefit from my services, following the brand, or telling someone about what I do. As a small business owner, those things genuinely make a difference.

For me, collaboration is about more than exposure. I want to build relationships with people and organizations that believe in the same things I do—quality, service, confidence, creativity, and making a meaningful impact.

Pricing:

• Sew ins $160-250+
• Sew in + bundle packages $500-700+
• Cosmetic wigs $300-800+
• Medical wigs $900-2000+

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jslaysunitss.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jslaysunits?igsi=MXFtbHUwNjh1eGR3Zg==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1JgjmV5WRm/?mibextid=wwXIfr