Starting Your Own Business

to wash it for a few days. I was like, you know now what I want my own business. And I had saved up some money from like reality shows that we were doing, and I had always helped my mom with her businesses like helping her start the genes and the perfume and the makeup line and her skincare, and I was the one moving everything forward. I was kind of like, Okay, now it's my time to invest in something. And I will be honest. It wasn't as successful as I would have liked. And I say this.

I've shared this quite a bit on the podcast, and I'm okay with saying that now. During that time, it was very difficult because it's my very first business and I wanted it to be successful, and I was like, I tried my very very best. But then I learned the beauty behind failure. And I think that that is

something that I want you guys to learn. If anything from this podcast, is that it's okay to fail, because failing also makes you grow, It makes you wiser, it makes you understand that it's okay to make mistakes, it's okay to fall on your face. It's all about how you get back up okay, and giving yourself that grace of saying, Okay, I fell on my face. It didn't work out, but at least you tried it. At least

you took the risk. At least you took that leap of faith to say I'm going to try this and I'm not going to let fear paralyze me from growing. Hopefully it is successful. Hopefully you have your blow you know, blow me dry. That name my mom helped me come up with. By the way, blow me dry, you know, you know, it's kind of like go listen thil like it had like a little double meaning there. But anyways, maybe yours will work out, and I hope it does.

But for me, I'm that type of person that not anymore. I was that learned things a hard way and I needed to go through that very tough lesson in order to appreciate everything that was to come later, you know. So anyways, I open the business because I love everything beauty. That's just been me since I can remember, since I was fourteen, I was like, oh my god. I was the girl that would just watch the girls on TV and like how they did their makeup, and I wanted

to know why their skin was so flawless. And I just loved anything and everything you know, beauty, the beauty industry, and so blow Me Dry was a way of like me just tapping into that industry and also not only just going into a place where you can get beautiful and feel beautiful, but I wanted you to leave with some knowledge. So there was always I've always been into quotes and phrases, and I had them all over the

walls and the restroom everywhere. So anywhere that you sat down to get your hair done or your makeup don because we also did makeup, there was a quote. Because that's always been so important to me. I always knew that I had a mission and anything that I was going to do, whether it be skincare, makeup, my blow dry bar, anything, there was always going to be a positive message, so that I always had very very clear. What I didn't have clear was that it was very important.

There's a saying in Spanish cal which means if you have a store, you have to If not, you need to sell it. The circumstances were so crazy for me. I opened up this blow dry bar, this beauty salon, and mind you, we didn't do color. It was like, no mess, no fuss, just plush. That was like our whole slogan, No mess, no fuss, no plush. It was just get in there, get your hair washed. You can, you know, get like a mask, a hair mess you can get your makeup done, but there wasn't any like

hair color and dyes and all that stuff. So anyways, oh, it's taking me back. This whole thing is taking me back. It was like so cute. It's a beautiful time in my life, but also a very hard time. So anyways, I opened it up in twenty twelve, and that's when I had just moved out of my mom's house and I was like, Okay, I'm gonna do this. I was doing it more now, if I'm really honest with myself, I was doing it more to make my mom proud, to show her I can do this. I don't necessarily

need your name. And I know that's going to sound really bad. I've explained it many times on the podcast, but I wanted Blow Me Dry to stand on its own and not necessarily put it in a Latin community because people were going to go because it was they knew I was my mom's daughter, and I really wanted it to just stand on its own, so for me, I didn't have my ducks. I guess in a row, I was doing it for not the right reasons. Yes, I wanted my own business. That was the right reason. Yes,

I love the beauty industry. That was a great, you know reason, But the foundation wasn't really because I truly, truly, like wanted to do this for the rest of my life. It was more of like, Okay, I have this option, I love this. But it was more, I think, to prove a point to my mom. And I think that's probably why it didn't work out. Because when I opened it, it took a while to open it. I spent a

lot of unnecessary money. Now I can look back and say, hey, I could have saved a lot more money on the fixtures.

telling me, You're like, why are you doing that? Why do you need permits? And I'm like, well, Mom, that's the legal that's the right way to do things. But she was a first to tell me like, no, you don't. You're fine. You don't need to get all these permits. It takes too long. It's very expensive. Mind you, that's something I'll leave in your hands.

me standing behind a chair doing services. And then that way I have my own income coming through, you know, not necessarily just relying on the other estheticians or because we also did facials at a facial room anyways, so that was another thing, you know that I was like, damn, I wish I I at least could have been wanted to do the services myself because that was going to make me more money. But anyway, so when I opened it, let's go back and kind of like jumping back and forth,

but hopefully it's all making sense. So when I opened it, it was twenty twelve. I had just moved out. I put my heart and soul into this place. It took a while to open it. Construction permits, all that stuff, it took a lot longer.

So I got that gratification for me. It was like, oh my gosh, she's happy, she's proud of me. Like everything she taught me, everything I learned in you know, jen Rivedra University or the Hard Knock of Life University, it all like you can see it, you know. And I got that satisfaction and that stamp of approval from my mom, and that made me feel really good. But then my mom and I have a fallout. I'm in like this deep depression. I couldn't go. I had to

hire someone. I was supposed to be the manager, the general manager, but I couldn't. I was just physically emotionally distraught. I was just in a really bad place, so I needed to hire someone. She was very expensive, and just think about it, I'm like, damn, it could have been very successful, but shit happen.

to say I have to let this go. As much as it hurts me, I have to let this go. We have to know when to walk away. And I didn't like it was my ego, that's all I could say. And I wanted to be there for my siblings and they needed me. I had to take them to school like I would stop by, but I couldn't be there. I couldn't tend to my business the way I should have. When Olivia left. Then I hired friends. So I hired

one of my friends, one of my best friend's. Her name is Julie, and she did an amazing job and she ran it for a while and then she was just like, Okay, I gotta go too. And then another friend of mine, Ellen, stepped in and she helped me and we were just always in red, you guys, and it was just it was crazy. So finally, after four years, I was like, I have to stop this.

I save more money, and I just knew. I was like, Okay, now I really have to get my shit together in order to find my way.

finish it. It's a whole other story years before. But this is what brings me to the businesses that I have now. And the very first business that I invested in a little bit after Blow Me Dry was my skincare and I had saved up a little bit of money, wasn't a lot, and I knew I love skincare. I've been using skincare since I was sixteen. This is something that I went to a Stetitian School for three for three months. Didn't finish the six months, but I did

three and I learned a lot. But I already knew that I loved skincare and this is something I can stand behind. And you know, in twenty twelve, social media we only had Twitter then, you know what I mean. And I think like Facebook maybe or my speed, I don't remember, but a social media wasn't what it is now. When I started my skincare was in like twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen, like now it's okay, Instagram and like it

was just a little bit more out there. And I got myself a business partner because I knew financially, I was like, I don't think I can do this myself, and I needed someone that had been in the industry for a long time. And that's how I had my business partner, Judy Castro. I started off with her because she started doing like my facials and she has an aesthetic spaw and I started going to her aesthetic spa in Corona. She's still in Corona actually, so when we

lived out in Orco. That's how I met her. We became cool and then we got to talking and I was like, I want my own skincare line, and it was Diamond Skincare. Now it's be flawless, but that's how it started, and I just knew, Okay, what is my passion? It is important you guys, if you want to start your own business, it has to be a passion. It has to be something that you're totally into. In my opinion, at least there are people that are like, Okay, whatever, this is just gonna make me money.

feel that. People aren't dumb, people like see it, people feel it, and that's why, in my opinion, it's important that you are passionate because that's how you're going to be able to wake up every day and be excited about what you're doing. Yes, money is important. Absolutely, you need money to make money. Yes, nowadays it all depends. If you're buying things overseas, yes, they're gonna you're gonna have to buy a lot of it, which requires a

lot of money. But if you're keeping it in the States, you can just buy a little bit, small quantities, small minimums as to there and not think, Okay, I'm going to become a millionaire, like it's about just making for me.

It's like making your money back plus a little bit more, instead of looking at it as oh my god, this is going to like make me I can retire Like, No, it takes a while to get there, and be patient because in any business that you open, or any business that you start, it takes at least two years one if you're lucky, for things to start flowing, to get your money back, to see your investment.

and give yourself a plan. It could be anything.

two hundred bucks, five hundred dollars. It all depends on the reach that you want. You can start off slow and then little by little, you know, widen your horizons. But you have to know it's going to take some time. It's going to take a little bit of investment. Maybe for a little bit you're not going to be able to pay yourself because it's all going towards marketing in order to make your business grow, Like you need to know all of these things going in And this is

the hard truth. Unless you just go in and you're just like a big bang and it's like super successful. But also with that, I prefer and that's how it's gone in my career and my you know, as a as a singer, it's been a slow uphill battle, and I prefer it that way. I personally prefer to go little by little, steady versus it going like a big boom, because it's not how you get there, how long it takes you to get there, it's how long you could

sustain yourself when you get there. So for me, I'm like, okay, let me take my time, let me savor this, let me enjoy this little by little. It helps me appreciate things more when it's just steady uphill versus it just going super quick.

that we're in, just to finish this first part. Be patient, understand that it might take some time, save money, invest in marketing, invest in your business for it to grow, to continue growing, because marketing is the biggest thing and it's the most expensive part of owning your own business. But it's okay because that's what's going to make it

obviously grow. And if what you're selling, you're absolutely passionate about and you're selling something great, something that you believe in, then your clientele is going to feel that and they're going to keep coming. You're going to have recurring clients, customers, you know what I mean. And that's what you want the people that by once, you want them to continue buying. So you want to make sure that you're selling something

good quality. For me, it's important that not just because it has my name and I think it's going to sell that's all it needs. Like for me, it's like, no, I want to give people quality products at a very good price because I'm always thinking of people's financial situations and I put myself in people's shoes and for me, that's my personal thing. Like I'm not trying to take advantage in any way. I want to make sure people fall in love with the things that I'm selling because

I'm super passionate about it. And it's not just about making a quick buck for me, it's just it's not I believe in like having integrity in that way, and that's a huge thing for me, something that is important to me because I want to be able to sleep at night. So I hope that you guys have those same values and see it that way before starting a business. That's just my own personal advice. So now let's get into like the nitty gritty of it. For blow me dry,

I started a corporation. I started a corporation, and under that corporation, I did a DBA okay, which is a business under So it's like, you know, your corporation, or it could be an LLC, which a lot of people recommend LLC's because they stand on their own and once you pass away, like no one's liable. It just you know what I mean, Like a corporation does the same thing. I went through legal Zoom, you guys, I learned everything

through legal Zoom. I didn't have the money at that time or the extra money to get an attorney and for an attorney to explain everything to me. I just googled everything. I googled it, I did my own research. I went to legal Zoom. I started all myself, and it was fairly a quick process.

paying you, and everything's kind of separate. And your business, you know, files taxes and you file your personal taxes, and everything is kind of separated.

And it works out for me and I can focus and I can still tap in and make sure that everything is like ran through me, but I don't have to again because I learned to blow me dry that I'm like, if I'm not there one hundred percent, it's going to be very very hard for it to be successful. So I need someone that does a lot of the legwork while I'm doing my thing. So if I'm growing as cheeky as the artist, then my businesses grow and they benefit because I'm doing my thing. But I also

have a person that I can trust that works for me. Now, if you have the time, or you have a spouse or a best friend, or you want to do it yourself, as long as your paperwork and everything, that's one thing I'm so annal you guys about filing taxes. I don't want to deal with Uncle Sam and I don't want to have issues, and I don't want to be audited. So I am a paper person. I save all the receipts, I save all invoices. I save it for just in case I have files you guys, since I don't know

two thousand and nine that are in my storage. I save everything because I was just taught that way and it's very old school, I guess. And there are other ways now to do it better. And now my assistant, my no assistant's helping me with condensing everything and putting things on like you know, the computer and scanning stuff. I'm still like very old school because I'm very like I like tangible things. I want to feel the paper.

I want to know that's just who I am. But anyways, going back to the whole thing, so it all depends I do. It's important file your taxes. You don't want to get screwed, you guys, because they will come if you don't pay your taxes, they will come into your account and not ask for your permission, and Uncle Sam will take what belongs to him, even if it's yours. They won't even ask you. You'll go look at your

account and you're like, where did my money go? Well, you didn't pay your taxes, so they'll come into your bank account and they can do that and there's nothing that you can do about it. So it is important that you have all of that situated and you can do it quarterly, or you can do it at the end of the year, whatever works out for you. With some of my business partners, we do it quarterly, like with Vanessa Sanchez Planteita's a haircare line with we do

it quarterly. We sit down every quarter, we go through our numbers, and that's how we do it. You know, a bookkeeper is super important. If in the beginning you can't afford someone to do your bookkeeping, you do it yourself. But it is important that you save every document that if you you know now you don't really need a location the way I had to blow me dry, a physical place to go. Now everything is online. Now everything is e commerce, you know what I mean. So you

don't really need a lot of paperwork. But whatever paperwork you have, save it, scan it, whatever works best for you. But have that so you can go back and dot your eyes and cross your t's and make sure that all that is taken care of, because because you don't want to screw anyone, and you don't want to get screwed, especially with no lube and without your permission, you guys. So with that being said, to your taxes, and I

recommend that you do get your EIA number. If you can do it yourself, great, if you get an attorney. Now I get an attorney. Now I have an attorney that helps me with it. But back then, guys, I had to learn myself. I did all my research. Again, legal Zoom is not paying me. Just FYI, but this is the truth. I use legal Zoom and it worked out for me. I'm not saying I recommend it or not. I'm just letting you know that is what I did and it was fine. Well, with all that being said,

let's you know fast forward to today. Today. I have I have a few businesses and they are yes e commerce and businesses that I absolutely love very much. I'm super passionate about, but I have learned not to get too emotionally tied to any of them. And I know that might sound a little weird, because I absolutely love my skincare. I love the hair care, I love the nutrition, I love the shape where these are all things that I use every single day that I'm super passionate about.

That I stand one hundred and ten percent behind. But I also had a makeup line and it was Beflawless Cosmetics. Some of you might remember I literally just closed it, I don't know, less than two years ago. It was very hard for me, but I sat down and spoke to Judy, who is also my business partner for the skincare, and I said, you know what, I see this from the outside looking in, and as much as I love the cosmetics, I have to be honest with myself and

with you. I'm not as passionate for the makeup as much as I am for the skincare anymore. I want to focus more on skincare. And also, the makeup industry is oversaturated and I don't have the energy to really compete and I'd rather just focus on this. And it was a discussion, and I have a very amazing business partner, Judy's awesome shout out to her. She was very respectful and she said, okay, I don't necessarily agree because she loves makeup. She's like, you use it every day you

have your shows. Like I'm like yeah. I was like, but something's telling me I just need to close it, and I went with that instinct. I was like, okay, I this is my gut feeling. I can't ignore this gut feeling. This is what it's telling me. And it hurt me very much, but I let it go and I was like, I was okay with it walking away. I didn't cry, didn't cry this time like I did with Boe Dry. I just said, Okay, thank you so

much cosmetics makeup industry for what you did. I'm so grateful, but I'm going to stick to the skincare and that's what I've been doing. And I think the key to my success because all of my businesses, I can honestly tell you, thank God, have been very successful. I think partially yes, because I have a platform, which I'm very grateful for, you know, social media and ways of being able to like promote it. I also have amazing business partners,

but I've always been very true to myself. Since my experience with my first business, I've learned to listen to that gut feeling, to that instinct to hey, am I passionate about this? I do a heart check and I'm like, Okay, is this coming from my heart? Is this something I'm passionate about? Does this make me excited? To go on social media I'm promoted, or to talk to someone on the street, someone that may not even know who Cheeky's is, about my skincare, or when people ask me, oh my god,

you smell so good, what is it. I'm like, oh, Raina, it's my perfume. And it's like it's someone that doesn't even know who I am. And I get a lot of compliments on it and I'm selling it. But because I'm like, this is something I absolutely love, so I always do that heart check of like, is my heart in the right place? Am I doing this for the right reasons? Yes, of course we want to make money. Yes,

of course we want to make ends meet. That is important, But for me, it's important to be super passionate about what you're doing and what you're selling and be able to stand behind it one hundred percent. So I think that has helped me a lot because I'm a person that wears my emotions on my sleeve, and you can tell if I'm having a bad day or I'm super happy,

or I'm able to sell it. Like there are times when I need to post something but I'm just not in the right state of mind, and I'm like, okay, and yes, I'm a businesswoman and I should just like put my emotions to the side, absolutely, but there are days where I'm like, I'm the person selling it.

no matter what. Yess, that's great. To a certain extent. You have to know again when to walk away and when to say, you know what, this isn't working. I tried it, and I'm proud of myself for trying this. I'm gonna go ahead and put it on the table for now and I'm going to move on to something else. I can come back to it later. Like you need to, like just listen to your heart, to your mind, use your logical mind, and find that balance between.

just make each other better. So thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you and hopefully to your soul. And I love you guys very much. And I will catch you on the next episode of Cheeky's and Chill. Okay, and make sure you tell your friend and your mom and your cousin and everyone else about this episode. Anyone that you know will benefit from it.