By Brittany Logan Special to the AFRO
Every woman can tell you a tale about her eyebrows, whether having too much or not enough, we all have horror stories when it comes to our brows. However, one Baltimore native and entrepreneur has the solution to your unruly, thinning or sparse brows and a little extra in between for all of your beauty needs.
Introducing Tania Speaks and Tania Speaks Organic Skincare, a skincare line that contains Aloe Vera, Vitamin E and naturally sourced ingredients.
Tania Speaks is a 20-year-old beauty entrepreneur and Baltimore native who is on fire! Speaks started her organic beauty empire in 2016 when she was just 15 years -old after years of being bullied for her “bushy” eyebrows. After cutting her brows with a sharp razor and spending a night in the ER, Speaks was determined to find a solution to her brow problems.
Brow Boost, the product that began it all for Speaks, is an eyebrow gel that tames thick brows and stimulates hair growth for thin brows.
Speaks began her entrepreneurial career by selling this gel to fellow students in high school and eventually launched her own website.
According to Speak’s media kit, following her company’s success, Tania expanded her product line to include organic beard oil for men, and an organic skincare kit featuring a foaming cleanser, resurfacing toner, and facial moisturizer.
Recently, Speaks appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank and earned a $400,000 investment deal from billionaire Mark Cuban.
Cuban and Speaks ended up negotiating the deal in exchange for 15% stake in Speaks company with a contingency to mentor Cuban’s two teenage daughters in which Cuban said “is more important than the money involved.”
“I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. Like, it was amazing. They even said I could sit there one day and be a Shark. That’s the highest compliment I’ve ever had,” said Speaks.
Cuban initially passed on the investment because beauty wasn’t his thing but had a change of heart after hearing Speaks story.
“Honestly, I thought somebody was going to make an offer. I said ‘This isn’t my wheelhouse’ but my wheelhouse is helping guide amazing entrepreneurs like yourself and helping them deal with the legal landlines that come along. Maybe I can’t help with the eyebrow gel, but I can give you the guidance that can help you avoid a lot of the pitfalls,” said Cuban.
Speaks has been featured in Forbes, Black Enterprise, Adweek, Sheen Magazine, Cosmopolitan Magazine and was named TIME Magazine Most Influential Teens.
Tania says her number one motivation is inspiring others to keep moving forward and the second is success.
“The more I achieve, the more I want to do incredible things. I stay motivated by surrounding myself with positive energy and dedicating time in my schedule to plan my current and future goals while monitoring my progress. Most importantly, I maintain a consistent prayer life. I believe every obstacle is used to strengthen my faith and execution,” said Speaks.
For Tania’s mom, Tanika Speaks, her ultimate goal was to teach her children to be confident in their abilities and have a strong work ethic.
“Our society is trapped in unfair stereotypes, particularly in Baltimore. Yet, young minds can grow beyond their environments and circumstances. We do what we learn. We think about what we are taught. Tania encountered age discrimination, racism, peer and adult bullying, faced critics, and scamming. However, she remained self-confident, and persistent in accomplishing her goals. Children will grow up to be what they decide to be.”
Tania is currently majoring in Entrepreneurship at Hofstra University in Long Island, NY and plans to expand Tania Speaks Organics to a global market.
“My advice for young, black girls is to believe in their genius and visualize themselves succeeding. Then, do what you love and charge a fee. Be brave against fear.”
Tania Speaks Organic Skincare can be found at www.taniaspeaks.com and on Instagram at @taniaspeaksorganicskincare.
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