Daybird Beauty continues its lash expansion
- Jenelle Lippai | June 02, 2023
Nicole Daybird, founder and owner of Daybird Beauty, has continued evolving her lash business since its initial launch in November of 2020. And despite emerging amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, she says the community’s positive outpour and her own knowledge on marketing had the largest impact on her success.
“It was a little scary [to start a business during a global pandemic],” Daybird confessed. “I also didn’t have a background in business, but more of a background in journalism.”
Though Daybird Beauty was gaining traction quickly throughout the pandemic, she knew she had to do something to set her business apart from the rest. And she did just that, by incorporating her own culture into her creations.
“I’m Cree, and I’m still learning my language,” Daybird explained. “So the first collection I came out with was the Cree Collection. It has ten different lash styles, and each is named one to ten in Cree.”
From pēyak to mitātaht, she designed these 10 sets of lashes in her Cree Collection and named them using her own language. Each style of lash also differs in length and thickness, depending on the customer’s personal preference.
Alongside her career as an entrepreneur, Daybird is also a full-time mother and community research coordinator in Fort Qu’Appelle. Each of these roles combined have allowed her to incorporate aspects of them all into her beauty business. She’s even found ways to honour her special friendships.
“I had reached out to them [those Daybird has worked with] and asked if I could name a pair of lashes after them,” she said. “We kind of worked together to pick out their favourite style. They also gave me a quote about what resiliency means to them.”
This is how Daybird Beauty’s Resiliency Collection was born.
But with the successful launch of each collection and the community’s ongoing praise, Daybird also acknowledges the challenges she’s had to overcome. Rather than it being a deterrent, she sees it as an opportunity to make future improvements.
“I think I grew my business too fast,” Daybird admitted. “It was really hard to keep up. And so over the last couple years, I would take a break for maybe two or three months.”
Last summer, she even took six months away from Daybird Beauty, while continuing to sell her lashes in local beauty supply stores.
“It was too much to manage and I really wanted to take care of myself. But I don’t know if that was the best move for my business, because right now it feels like I’m having to kind of rebuild it up again.”
These days, in hopes of freeing up a bit more of her time, Daybird mainly focuses on her beauty business during the evenings. She’s also using this time to plan a few more projects, to expand what Daybird Beauty carries.
“I have branched out into other items besides the lashes. I carry self defence keychains, but they’re sold out right now. And I’m also looking to carry more beauty items and maybe even apparel.”
Other salons and beauty vendors that carry Daybird’s products include Miyosiwin Salon Spa and Becky’s Place.