Sur Lash: Rebuilding, Rebranding and Relaunching
Da’ Jounique “Dolly” Shabazz is the owner of Sur Lash based out of New Orleans. Her natural attraction for makeup and eyelashes led her down the path of entrepreneurship and self-discovery. Read more below.
So how did you discover eyelash extensions?
“I’ve always been obsessed with eyelashes, even in middle school. Some people would give compliments on hair and clothes, but I would always compliment lashes -- it was nuts.
Then one day I had noticed that sometimes my mom’s face would look basic and then other days she would walk in looking like a whole new woman!
Dolly continued, “My mom has always been bad and stays with all the good shit. So, when she told me she had eyelash extensions, I was like, ‘Ohhh, I want some of those!’”
Dolly immediately started researching eyelash extensions and discovered that they were a huge trend amongst celebrities -- the public had not caught on to the new wave yet.
“The same woman that did my mother’s extensions also did mine. She noticed that I had this infatuation with lashes and I also had a large social media base of over 10k followers, so she suggested that I take her class.
I paid for my classes out of pocket and money was not easy for a teenager to come by, so I had to hustle. I took the class and didn’t learn shit, but I’m a visual learner so I asked her if I could watch her do the lashes instead and she said yes.”
Dolly became an intern at her instructor’s shop for a short period of time between 2017-2018. Once she had the basic skills down, she gained the trust of her instructor and began to take on more responsibilities.
What was the reason and process behind rebranding Sur Lash?
“At that time, I was ok at lashes, but I was not great. I didn’t make them presentable for my clients. I wanted to get them in and out so I can get paid and being money-driven just does not work.”
Dolly explained that while working under her instructor, she had a great client base and was grateful for the opportunity, but mentally she just was not ready.
She began to question why all her friends were established while she was still facing these challenges. Little did she know that those moments of self-reflection prepared her for the next level.
“I wasn’t always this disciplined. I had a lot of mental conversations with myself and I went in and out of depression for a while. I would sit in my room and isolate myself.
I decided to take a 2-year hiatus and during those 2 years I took multiple lash classes, I traveled to places like Atlanta and Houston to take classes from all the top-notch instructors, then I finally enrolled myself in an aesthetician program and became certified.”
Da’ Jounique “Dolly” Shabazz
What makes Sur Lash different from other lash studios?
“There are a million lash companies, but people have personal preferences. I don’t believe that Sur Lash is in competition with anyone, I just know that I’m me and I put my best foot forward to make sure that I’m satisfied with my work and that my clients are satisfied. I don’t want to be number one, I just want to be great at what I do.”
“But, I can say that I aim for an organic look, some people want a false lash, but I still appreciate my clients that want that natural look, I want people to question if they’re real. ”
Dolly, what is next for you and Sur Lash?
“I will be relaunching in the Summer of 2020, I’m really excited because I’ve put so much into this. I’ve made the booking process as easy as possible so that clients from all age groups can be serviced because lashes are not just for millennials, and my website is easy to navigate. I’m back, I’m better and I can’t wait to showcase my skills again! ”
Sur Lash offers a wide array of affordable eyelash extensions and can be found on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
