Ep. 263: Beauty Blazers Debrief: Inside the NAACP x L'Oréal Beauty Grant Experience
I’m still on cloud nine after being named a recipient of the NAACP x L’Oréal Inclusive Beauty Fund Grant! This past week, the SalonCentric and L’Oréal team flew all the winners out to St. Petersburg, Florida for an exclusive, mind-blowing experience. It was truly life-changing!
In this week’s episode, I sit down with my fellow 2025 Beauty Blazers—Naima Woodson (Beachbum Wisdom), Ashley Rankin (AR Naturals), and Miona Short (Hello Shukrah)—to debrief and decompress about our time in Florida.We reflect on the grant process, what this opportunity means for our businesses, and what’s next for us as beauty entrepreneurs.
We discuss:💰 How we won the NAACP x L’Oréal Beauty Grant & why we applied🚀 Our reactions to winning & what it means for our businesses🏆 Our biggest takeaways from the in-person experience in Florida🔑 Why beauty professionals should apply for grants & our best tips🎯 What’s next for us as we grow our beauty brands
This episode is packed with inspiration, grant-winning tips, and real talk about what it takes to build a thriving beauty business. If you’ve ever thought about applying for a grant but hesitated, this is your sign to go for it!
📺 Watch the vlog of my SalonCentric Experience here: https://youtu.be/L_WBO8scyqg
Enjoy this episode!
Leave us a 5 star review and share this episode with a friend or 2 or 3.
GET A PEEK INSIDE OF BEAUTYPRO FUNNELS HERE
https://www.getbeautyprofunnels.com/friends
🚀 FREE GUIDE → 13 WAYS TO GROW YOUR CLIENTELE https://friendsinbeauty.com/grow-your-clientele-7590
JOIN US INSIDE OF THE TRAILBLAZERS CLUB
https://bit.ly/FIBTrailblazersClubb
JOIN US ON THE WATER BREAK RETREAT - BALI | SEPTEMBER 21-27, 2025
https://www.bit.ly/FIBWaterBreakRetreat
GET BOOKKEEPING & ACCOUNTING SERVICES - Tell Them Friends in Beauty Sent You
https://kickstartaccountinginc.com
ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS OF THE PODCAST
https://www.friendsinbeauty.com/advertise
LEARN HOW TO RECORD + EDIT A PODCAST IN 7 DAYS OR LESS: https://bit.ly/DIYPodcasterCourse
FRIENDS IN BEAUTY FACEBOOK COMMUNITY
https://www.facebook.com/groups/friendsinbeauty
Additional Resources:
MUST HAVE BEAUTY, PODCASTING, CONTENT CREATION TOOLS, AND BOOKS
https://www.amazon.com/shop/akuarobinson
LEARN A NEW SKILL
Skillshare - Use this link for 2 months free of the premium plan: https://skl.sh/30t352q
SAVE 10% ON MENTED COSMETICS (I’M SHADE D10)
Shop Mented Cosmetics - https://www.mentedcosmetics.com/?rfsn=1290937.f2481
Use Code “AKUAROBINSON” for 10% of your purchase
Join the Friends in Beauty Mailing List: https://www.bit.ly/FIBTribe
Social Media Info:
Naima (Instagram) - https://www.instagram.com/beachbumwisdom
Ashley (Instagram) - https://www.instagram.com/arnaturalsskin
Miona (Instagram) - https://www.instagram.com/helloshukrah
Friends in Beauty (Instagram) - https://www.instagram.com/friendsinbeauty
Friends in Beauty (YouTube) - https://bit.ly/FIBTube
Akua Robinson (Instagram) - https://www.instagram.com/akuarobinson
Akua Robinson (Website) - https://www.akuarobinson.com
NOTE: I am a Brand Ambassador and affiliate for certain businesses, products and services that I believe in. I may have referenced these and included links in this video, description or someplace else at this site. I hope you find the resources helpful.
Copyright, Liability Waiver and Disclaimers. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act, and/or without the prior express written permission of Friends in Beauty, LLC, Akua Robinson Artistry, LLC and/or Akua Robinson.