How Danielle Holmes is helping black students at Bradley achieve their hair goals

It can be hard to find affordable black hairstylists in Peoria, Danielle is trying to make it easy.

Danielle Holmes, creator of BeautyByDanny

Hair has always been a symbol of black pride and with hundreds of different styles to choose from, it can be hard to find people in predominantly white spaces who know how to work with textured hair, and when students find places that can, they have to spend upwards of $300 to get their hair done. This Bradley student is hoping to change that. 

Danielle Holmes is a first-year french and psychology student at Bradley and the owner of BeautyByDanny- an appointment-based makeup and hairstyling company. In the past few months, her business has skyrocketed, with a plethora of Bradley students fighting to get an appointment. Danielle was happy to sit down and talk about her new business 

How do you feel about the price of hair care for black people? 

Black hair care products are overpriced because they know that black people are going to try to support black people and if they claim that you’re not supporting them, then you’re not for black businesses growing and flourishing in the community but I feel like the price of black hair care products for black people, even if it’s not made by black people, white people overprice it because they know most black people need hair care products to keep our hair managed so they take advantage of that.

Has it been hard to balance your business with school and other activities? 

It hasn’t really been easy, but it hasn’t been the most difficult challenge. Balancing business with school activities is pretty simple when you get a rhythm to it, but I feel like school really gives me the opportunity to branch out and get more customers and new connections and to be able to get my business out there. I feel like it gives me a wider variety. 

You’re from Chicago, how did the culture there impact how you do hair? 

The culture in Chicago is a bit different than the culture in Peoria. Most people in Chicago want the same hairstyles, so it honestly gave me more time to just repetitively do the same style on people, and if anybody did want to try a new style or anything like that it gave me the time to branch out and work on my craft and be able to learn something new. It’s a lot more diverse in Chicago like the type of people who want their hair done compared to Peoria so the culture there doesn’t impact me, but it changes where you go. Culture is more about variety and difference, whereas in Chicago I feel like a lot of people try to look the same. 

Who inspired you to start doing hair? 

I inspired myself. I like to learn different things, I like to try different things. I started doing hair when I was 5 because I didn’t like the feeling of other people doing my hair for me, and it gave me this weird feeling so I started doing my hair. I wasn’t that good at first, but eventually, I got better, and honestly, Youtube and Google were my best friends when it came to doing hair because it showed me everything I needed. I feel like everyone should inspire themselves to do at least one new thing and get good at it. 

Getting your hair done is a long and strenuous process, and for salons operating in predominantly white spaces, it can be hard to provide services at an affordable cost for students. 

Black hair will always be a symbol of pride and power for the community, but Danielle wants everyone to know that you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars in order to feel connected to the culture. And one day everyone will, but until then Danielle is doing what she can to change the lives of black students at Bradley, one braid at a time. 

For more information about BeautyByDanny feel free to reach out via email. Her email is DanielleHolmes2018@gmail.com