Meet Tiffanie Whitt

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tiffanie Whitt.

Hi Tiffanie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Growing up in a household on a tight budget with seven children meant that trips to the salon didn’t make the list of necessary expenses. So, once we were old enough, my siblings and I would cut each other’s hair. I can still remember the first time I gave someone a haircut. It was on my youngest brother, he was a toddler and I was around 14. It was definitely not a good haircut, but he was a toddler so he didn’t care and I learned a lot about what NOT to do… (I’m sorry, and thank you for your service, Brantley)! I didn’t know what I was doing then, but I could see shapes in haircuts and I would just try to recreate the shapes that I imagined. I’m still a very visual haircutter to this day.

Fast forward to my early 20’s, coming out of rough teenage years as well as a long-term toxic relationship, I found myself a single mother of three. Yes, you read that correctly, three children. Retail and serving jobs weren’t giving me what I needed to support my children and also had no fulfillment or future for me. I remember one night in particular when helping my store manager runs her nightly reports, we start sharing our dreams for the future with each other. It was a turning point for me when she looked at me and said “You are destined for greatness” and it sparked something in me that helped me believe that this wasn’t what my future needed to look like.

Not much longer after that, I signed up for cosmetology school hoping to just make enough money to pay my own rent without having to rely on anybody else for help. I signed up for the night program so I could work during the day and go to school at night. It was extremely long days for a year and a half, but when you want something bad enough you push through and make it work. No excuses. When I graduated, I was hired at one of the top luxury salons in Raleigh. Finding a good associate program with high levels of education early in my career was very important to me and that’s exactly what I got. I was able to grow a clientele quickly and was able to travel, network, and learn so much. I stayed with this salon for the majority of my career until a deep desire to want something more and different settled in.

I was approached during this time with several opportunities to leave and do something different. Hello, Universe! I’m listening! I decided to go out on my own and opened a four-chair suite with three of my best friends. It was one of the most terrifying yet empowering things I’ve ever done! I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the business side of hairdressing. The suite was full of learning and growth for me. I knew from the first day in the suite, that it was a stepping stone. I felt that my life experiences had given me a unique perspective to create something new and needed in our local salon industry.

Three years later, on May 26th, 2020 (when salons were permitted to open post covid shutdowns) my business partner and great friend Erin Booker and I opened the doors to Reverie Hair Company. A twelve-chair commission-based salon that focuses on bringing work-life balance and joy back to hairdressing. We blend the ease of a commission-based salon with the flexibility of booth or suite rental in a supportive, personal development-focused, team environment. We currently have fifteen staff and offer both hair and esthetic services. The definition of Reverie is a state of being pleasantly lost in one’s thoughts; a daydream. And that’s quite literally what Reverie Hair Co is.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road, but I suspect a common character trait amongst all of these interviews is resilience. I’m not really sure where to start with the struggles. I had tried to open several salons before Reverie Hair Co. My first attempt was to buy an established salon that was for sale. During the process, someone else got the funding faster. It went from something at my fingertips to gone in a second. I had gone from opening the salon myself, to bringing on a business partner, then a change in business partners.

I had to rewrite my business plan. We had several locations fall through for various reasons. We had funding fall through for various reasons. In November 2019, the stars finally aligned. I got an email on Thanksgiving Day that our funding was approved. Erin and I were in final lease negotiations on a location and we had found a contractor to work with. In 2018, I had written on a piece of paper “salon in 2019”. On December 30th, 2019, I received the key to what is now Reverie Hair Co.

Everything was full speed ahead. We were scheduled to open Reverie in April 2020, but then covid hit. Salons were shut down for nearly three months. I would say covid was and is still is our biggest struggle. We finally opened for business on May 26th, 2020 during a pandemic. There was no guidance for us on how to proceed forward, but I think in a lot of ways our lack of experience was a silver lining. We didn’t have a method of leadership established pre-pandemic.

So we pivoted and adjusted when we needed to with no preconceived notions of how things “should” be done. After a devastating period of time for hairdressers being without income for several months, it has been our priority to create an environment that clients and staff feel comfortable to return to and keeping our staff bringing home a paycheck to their families. I’m proud to say that Reverie has continued to grow and thrive despite the pandemic. I believe all struggles happen for a reason and I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Reverie Hair Co is a full-service salon offering a variety of beauty-enhancing services. We have specialists that cover haircutting from pixies to chic bobs to long beachy layers with waves. We have colorists that can deliver your perfect, blended balayage or knock out some killer vivid colors! Our estheticians are skin gurus that can guide you to perfect, glowing skin in no time. We also offer full body and facial waxing, eyelash extensions, hair extensions, eyebrow lamination, lash tinting, makeup, special event updos, and styling. We offer high-quality, luxury product lines including Oribe, Mr. Smith, and Image skincare.

I’m most proud of our team. These women are dedicated to their craft and it shows every day.

What sets us apart at Reverie Hair Co for guests is our luxury experience with a down-to-earth vibe. No pretension here, come as you are! What sets us apart from team members is our willingness to let them create their work schedules around their life. We are also personal development focused and help coach our staff to achieve their goals both personal and professional.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
I once watched a documentary on men that had escaped prison. One man in particular, who escaped prison twice said “The people that are obsessed with escaping prison, are the ones who actually do it.”

I couldn’t help but notice the similarities from this man’s statement to starting a business.

So, my advice is to be passionate. Be so obsessed with what you’re doing and why you’re doing it that the struggles that will inevitably happen won’t stop you. Remember that like our friend in prison, you have time. So be patient with the process.

Contact Info:

• Email: Reveriehairco@gmail.com
• Website: Www.Reveriehairco.com
• Instagram: Reveriehairco

Image Credits:
Jen Bauldree Photography & Olivia Booker.