Today we’d like to introduce you to Niki Levengood.
Niki, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I have been in the salon industry for 20 years. In 2004 I started working at my first salon, was promoted to salon manager after a year, then went on to open my own loft. Tame Salon has grown so much through the years, and we now have our flagship location in Gahanna, Ohio, and a secondary location in Lone Tree, Colorado.
for the last few years, I’ve been preparing to launch three big additions to the Tame Brands family. These brands have all successfully launched, and include our full cosmetics line “Tame Cosmetics”, our clothing line “Tame Label”, our hair extension line “Untamed Extensions”, which is sold solely to licensed professionals, and our kids spa party bus “Blush by Tame”. These have all been in the works for a long time, with a lot of research going into finding great vendors.
My goal is to encompass all things that bring the inner beauty, style, and confidence out in everyone we influence. It’s also important that I provide a great atmosphere for my team to grow in, build successful careers, and that I offer other streams of income with affiliate links for promoting and selling the products within our brand. I want to build an empire supported by strong independent women who are loyal to our brand and the Tame “it’s a lifestyle” movement. Loyalty is taken for granted in these times, by business owners and by employees. If people learn to work together, build together, and share the wealth… Everyone wins!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t always been smooth-sailing. I’ve known since I was a teenager that I wanted to own my own salon. I always knew part of my path would be leading and inspiring people, as I’ve always had a natural ability to connect and empathize with women. I want to see people win… Especially the underdogs! I have had financial hardships being a young, single mother, trying to give my son a life that I never had growing up. There were two specific things that were especially difficult for me starting out. First, the amount of time I had to devote to building this empire, the time with my son flew by. He would be at the salon with me all day, every day, in the playroom. Those years are truly a blur at this point. Now, I have the luxury of spending all the time I could ever dream of with my sweet boy. The second thing that was hard for me, was the lack of loyalty from team members. I’ve always cared for my Team Tame girls like they’re my own. I want to see each of them win, and I do everything I can as an employer to give my team a positive, encouraging, work environment for them to strive in. It took me a long time to learn that business is business, and when people leave, it doesn’t mean I’ve failed as a salon owner- it just means it wasn’t the best fit for them, and that’s okay! It took me some time to separate my feelings from this part of business, because I truly love and care for everyone who joins our team.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
My company is Tame brands LLC, inclusive of my DBA’s “Tame Salons”, “Tame Cosmetics”, “Untamed Extensions”, “Tame Label”, and “Blush by Tame”. I am most known for my salon “Tame Salon” in Gahanna, Ohio. We specialize in hair color, blonding, hand-tied and fusion extensions, lash extensions, waxing, and skincare. Our salon environment is a culture set-apart from other salons. Teamwork is the way of life, and client interaction and satisfaction are most important! We want women to come and feel they’re in a room full of friends. A safe place to be themselves. To be silly, laugh, cry, do all of the things you do in a salon. We call it the judgment-free zone! All while receiving excellent service and bringing their inner beauty and confidence to the surface. It’s a lifestyle.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Be true to yourself. I think when a business owner can be true to who they are…. and that can change over time… you will attract the team members that are meant for your brand, you will attract the clients meant for you, and you will have inner peace knowing you living in your truth. Treat your team as you would want to be treated. Share the wealth, and give them the opportunity for growth.
It has worked very well for me, and as I grew and matured not only as a person but a business owner, I realized that was the best thing I could do.
Contact Info:
- Website: tamebrands.com
- Instagram: tamebyniki
