Meet Niedra Mattox | Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Niedra Mattox and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Niedra, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I love this question because I literally had no process to starting my business. Sounds crazy right?! Initially when my business started to become a thing it was literally by word of mouth. I was once gifted a bundle of waist beads by my college roommate at Clayton State. I then added some more to my own collection and honestly after that anyone who had asked about my waist beads, I sold what I had for like 2/$10 or 2/$15. I had no idea my friends were telling people to come to me for waist beads until strangers would approach me by my Instagram name asking for information on how to purchase some.

Fast forward I said to myself, why not take this seriously? I’m able to have fun, educate myself more and educate others along the way. most importantly make women of all sizes feel beautiful. So, in terms of my thought process NOW, my main goal is too always make sure I’m able to educate and inform The diaspora on the significance and meaning behind waist beads and more. Making it my mission to fill others with the confidence, self-love & knowledge we all need.

What should our readers know about your business?
Getting where I am today was far from easy. Learning the ropes of life for myself? learning my own lessons and things I want to carry into the future? while also remembering to pour into myself and my brand?! Yeah, this road has been everything but smooth.

Being that my business started in college, I was 22-23 years young, growing into a new phase of life, I struggled with myself ALOT along the way; Anxiety, Depression, procrastination and the list goes on.

Wanting to invest in my products and business but also needing food, gas, and wanting to have a social life. Wanting to spread positivity and empowerment post but having nowhere to pull it from. There were Days and weeks where I just wanted to be left alone but have walking on campus id have babes who’d see me every day and needing my services.

As crazy as it may sound, I dealt with the fear of success and fear of failure at the same time. So for a while, I was just stuck. I was struggling mentally. My last semester in college came COVID-19 and it was definitely a blessing in disguise. Outside of not being able to have my products shipped from Ghana for a few months and summer being canceled, I was able to use that time to focus on graduating, figuring out who’s “NAA” and rebranding NaasBeauty to NaasBeauty AKOMA NTOSO.

NaasBeauty is powered and empowered by these changes. I like to believe My business helps the overall mental health of my community and its people. Not only does my business help others mentally and physically but my businesses support other small businesses too! Being able to bond and getting my supporters, to participate in my fundraising ideas and donate to nonprofits means a lot and sets me apart. NaasBeauty AKOMA NTOSO is all about joining the good vibes of the tribe and connecting with ALL communities. Building everyone up while also remembering to love yourself inside out.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Absolutely! Shoutout to my Family in Athens of course, especially my mom & aunt. But Its only right to shoutout my Tribe, and all of the amazing people I had the opportunity to build connections with at Clayton State University. To be surrounded and supported by so many selfless people, it is truly a blessing.

Id Personally like to shoutout my old college roommate Cindy, I’m pretty sure she had no idea as well that she was investing in something that would be continuously growing. Shoutout to my OG Brand Ambassador for all the continuous support; Zee, Amber, Riah, Rae, Jaz, Nisha, Dani, and my good sis Mo! From purchasing any new thing I released, to taking photos for me to use on my website and social media. Showing up and showing out! They are truly, truly appreciated. Id also like to shoutout a friend of mine from college, Kofi, he helped MAJORLY with so much behind the scene stuff. From helping me get a name that wasn’t taken already for my LLC, to educating me about his country, helping me pronounce names, my first logo and anything else that I may have been overthinking and stressing out about along the way. My brand would literally be nowhere near where it is now without the Tribe of NassBeauty and I just want all of my supporters to know I love them dearly. AKOMA NTOSO.

Website: www.naasbeauty.com

Instagram: @naasbeauty