For Veola James, creativity and entrepreneurship are part of her DNA.
Her namesake Veola’s Day Spa and Wellness Center, on the far Southwest Side of Chicago, anchors a busy retail corner on 95th Street, just a few blocks from a Metra rail station, where a client base of more than 21,000 people has visited for hair, nail, and body treatments for decades.
A licensed cosmetologist by age 18, she initially worked in a hair salon—following in the footsteps of her mother, who owned a salon in Memphis in the 1950s—and later found success as a jewelry designer and boutique owner in the 1980s, becoming the first Black woman to sell her designs at Saks Fifth Avenue on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile.
Over time, she downsized her boutique, beefed up her skills as an aesthetician, and outfitted part of her retail space for spa services, which rapidly gained a following. She eventually outgrew that storefront, moving to her current location in Beverly in 2001, with her daughter Jasmine joining the business to run day-to-day operations.
When COVID-19 began to spread in 2020, spas and salons were hit hard by mandatory closures. Veola’s began to shift some of its operations to respond to the new normal. It slashed fees for the independent beauty providers who rent space at Veola’s, so they could preserve their own operations. It installed shields, continuous cleaning protocols and other safety measures to protect staff and clients.
After months of uncertainty, Veola’s is back to business and looking to restructure its existing debt to offset increased expenses and recoup some of its lost income. LISC’s small business team stepped in when Veola’s existing lender was unable to refinance its mortgage and business loans, providing affordable capital that is helping the spa to strengthen its financial position and restore growth.
That experience speaks to the unique capital needs of small businesses. To recover from COVID-19, many entrepreneurs—even those with long track records of stability and success—need access to flexible financing tools that are tailored to the unique economic challenges they face. For businesses owned by women of color, who often struggle to access conventional financing even under normal circumstances, the challenges are even more significant.
The benefits, however, are just as compelling. Veola’s, with its terra cotta façade warming the streetscape and vibrant business attracting clients to nearby shops and restaurants, is a boost to the local economy. Its success has a ripple effect well beyond its front doors.
“You can’t teach what you don’t know, and lead where you’ve never been,” Veola told her daughter once, when urging her to go to cosmetology school to learn the beauty business after graduating from college.
That sense of creativity and connection continues to guide their efforts today.