Golden Valley Entrepreneur Competes for $30K Business Prize
It’s Super Bowl weekend, but at U.S. Bank Stadium on Thursday there was a different kind of competition — one with thousands of dollars on the line.
Hy-Vee hosted the competition in its third “OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit” to support businesses owned by women and persons of color.
Among the entrepreneurs who took part was Melissa Taylor of Golden Valley. Taylor founded The Beauty Lounge Minneapolis in Uptown.
“It’s kind of like ‘Shark Tank. You talk about your business and really explain why you’re worth investing in,” said Taylor.
Taylor’s business was among 15 selected for the competition from a pool of nearly 150 applicants. Each gave a five-minute presentation. The winning pitch decided by a panel of judges earned a $30,000 prize.
Taylor said she would use the money to grow her business if she won.
“Up to this point, muscle has got us there. Determination has gotten us there. But we really haven’t had any financial backing to push us further or accelerate our growth,” she said.
Inside The Beauty Lounge Minneapolis in Uptown
The Beauty Lounge business model focuses on embracing all hair types and textures.
“I’ve always done all hair types and hair textures and I think the brand has really grown around what I have done,” said Taylor.
As part of her business, Taylor started online hair classes to help multicultural adoptive families. She also developed a training program to help stylists better understand textured hair.
“I think people are starting to understand that they need to understand how to work with all textures, and they can’t just rely on what they learned in cosmetology school,” Taylor said.
And the winner of the $30,000 grand prize? The judges chose Plymouth-based Momease Solutions founded by Ashley Mooneyham.
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