Exploring Life & Business with Brittany Waters of Detroit Beauty Collective | Behold Brows

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittany Waters. 

Brittany, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
After obtaining academic training in communications, my career began in agency marketing, allowing me to garner a vast skillset across sales, events, and public relations. 

Though the experiences and relationships built during this phase proved immeasurable, it didn’t take long to recognize my passion would not be upheld in that setting, thus I shifted my focus to support small-businesses. Turns out there wasn’t as much autonomy as expected there either. Start-ups are super colorful and often innovative but talk about wearing an excessive number of hats. *cue the coffee IV 

So, I took the approach that every life-long creative gambles with (or at least considers); consulting. 

This was more self-driven and on par with what I envisioned but still had its setbacks. You know the saying ‘you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink’? – Yea, we will just leave it at that. 

There I was. Exhausted. Creatively stifled. And eight years into a path with no end in sight. 

It was time to find an alternate route. 

Much like life shifts often happens, my new venture fell into my lap. I randomly came across microblading (cosmetic eyebrow tattooing) and decided to take a stab at it. Why not? I’d be able to use it as a creative outlet, and make some extra cash while doing so. 

Unbeknownst to me, I was in the beginning stages of building something much bigger than a side hustle. Thus, Behold Brows was born. 

Along the way, I enlisted business acumen accumulated over the years to construct a strong, sustainable foundation. What I noticed, however, was that the waters I was stepping into were murky. 

The beauty industry had/s glaring gaps in resources, education, accessibility, inclusion, etc. Even further alarming, were the unnecessary challenges another individual without my professional experience (most beauty pros) would inevitably face without the proper support channels – which as far as I could see, were non-existent. 

Fast forward a few years and Detroit Beauty Collective was born as a means of merging business and beauty. 

Communication specialist, entrepreneur, and cosmetic tattoo artist, Brittany Waters, is a Detroit-based multidisciplinary creative, with more than 10 years’ experience. 

She’s worked alongside small, mid, and Fortune 500 organizations to generate customer acquisition strategies, earning her nationally recognized academic and professional accolades. 

The same grit and work ethic that has contributed to her reputation as a versatile doer, spans across everything Brittany does. From leveraging strategic relationships to servicing businesses as an inbound marketing consultant, Brittany manifests her career by the way of the belief that “our purpose lies in our innate abilities.” 

As founder of both Behold Brows and Detroit Beauty Collective, she has built a community-driven ecosystem engineered to propel the beauty industry and its stakeholders forward. 

She has a keen eye for design and passion for bringing innovative concepts to life, both attributes nourished by her meticulous nature. Pair them with the ability to facilitate meaningful connection and an affinity for making a positive impact, and you have an artistic leader driven by change. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Anyone who says their entrepreneurial journey has been “smooth,” is either donning rose-colored glasses or simply withholding information. 

In my case, one of the major challenges of operating multiple businesses has been balance. Both entities require individual attention that myself/team don’t always have the capacity to provide. 

This becomes especially amplified during the scale (growth) phase, which happened to take place simultaneously for Behold and DBC. Talk about a heavy weight to bear! 

As you know, we’re big fans of Detroit Beauty Collective | Behold Brows. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Detroit Beauty Collective is a community that provides resources for beauty professionals at all career levels. Offering space rental, education, and career opportunities, we are Detroit’s first and premiere beauty collective. 

From connect to scale, our membership packages support students, artists, educators, and founders in growing their businesses and brands by targeting needs specific to their goals. 

Behold Brows is a boutique cosmetic tattoo studio and academy. Aside from providing cosmetic tattoo services, our mission is to break beauty standards by inspiring self-expression and unapologetic individuality. 

For us, this means cultivating imagery, conversation, and tattoos encouraging people to break free of who they think they should be by shining a light on who they want to be. 

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My support system is made up of family, friends, and a few select mentors. 

My mom, who has always been my biggest fan, remains my idol to this day. She’s largely responsible for my independence and work ethic. Many perceive their parent(s) as heroes, but when I say my mom is an absolute beast, I mean it without bias. Truly. I’ve never witnessed someone balance their personal and professional lives while remaining so whole-hearted true to themselves and their loved ones. Without her, I wouldn’t be the person or businesswoman I am today. 

I’m also very intentional with the company I keep, maintaining only relationships that have a positive influence on me, my lifestyle, and goals, versus take away. My circle inspires me every day, and I quite literally wouldn’t have it any other way! 

Pricing:

• $35/ mo – Connect Membership
• $45/ mo – Build Membership
• $55/ mo – Scale Membership
• Microblading – $500
• Lip Blush – $600

Contact Info:

• Website: www.detroitbeautycollective.com | www.beholdbrows.com
• Instagram: @detroitbeautycollective | @beholdbrows
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DetroitBeautyCollective | https://www.facebook.com/beholdbrows

Image Credits
Malaika Hilson
Miles Marie
Jenn Vermeulen
Nik Heller
Brittney Gatehouse