ISSUES #22: MAY 2016
BLACK ENTREPRENEURS
May 2015
Renaissance Man
BENSON TILLMAN
Benson Tillman makes entrepreneurship sound easy. It seems to come so naturally that, hearing him discuss it, it sounds almost effortless. Ben is currently the shop manager at Grand Lux Salon & Barbery in Katy, TX. He also is a distributor for Little Debbie and currently has his eye on real estate investing. Ben is a family man and clearly driven to work hard and sculpt a future for him and his wife’s three daughters. Focused. Making moves. Achieving his goals.
I got to talk to Benson between clients in his chair at “the office”.
Are you from Houston originally?:
Born and raised. I grew up in Houston’s 5th ward. I’ve been in the Katy area for about the last 7 years.
How long have you worked in the industry:
I’ve been a licensed barber for... it’ll be 13 years this November.
So what was your path to becoming a barber? Educational background and such?:
I graduated high school, had some college. I worked as a computer operator al Haliburton and was a part time supervisor at UPS. A friend from work who was attending Trends barbering college introduced me to barbering and I enrolled in school as well.
I transitioned through a few shops until I started here at Grand Lux. I’ve been here for a year and a half..
Well, I know it has to be more rewarding to work for yourself but the uncertainty of how the money’s going to flow has to be a little unnerving. How has the business transition been for you?
Actually I’ve been working at business my whole life. I had my first business when I was 8. I was one of the dudes in the neighborhood cutting grass and everything so the mindset has always been there. I have had businesses of some sort or another for the last 25 years. I worked in corporate America with Haliburton for 4 years and UPS about the same. Long enough to know that I didn’t care for the office politics or the glass ceiling. I wasn’t a big fan of the concept of “If you want to move up the corporate chain, you first have to wait for someone to move out. And I really don’t do the whole “kissing ass” thing. I know how the game is played but that’s not really my personality. I really do like the structure of corporate America and I can appreciate some of the foundational work but to through the daily grind and wait for my opportunities behind another person… not interested in that AT ALL.
So clearly you like being in control of your own destiny:
Yes. Definitely. In here it’s a more personal relationship. In here, I matter and my customers matter.
So you grew up with your mom and pops? Brothers and sisters?
In my household, I was the youngest of three. I had two older brothers. Actually I had more influence on them than they did on me. My older brother, he’s passed now, but he AND my other brother both went to barber school too. After I completed my run, they both went to school and got their licenses too.
And you have a daughter?
Actually I have three daughters. By year’s end my oldest daughter will be 13. My middle daughter will be 7 and my youngest will be 4. Been married for 13 years.
How did you end up in the manager position here?
I worked with the owner of this shop at another shop he owns. We built a cool relationship and when he was ready to open another shop, I was offered the position to manage the shop as well as have my own booth here. So I work here as a barber and the salon manager.
So, in the era of the reality shows and all the drama they suggest, you opt to be a manager at a salon? LOL!! How does that work?
It works for me. Like I mentioned, I was in management when I worked for UPS so I’m not unfamiliar with the responsibility. And the other side of the scenario, keeping everybody happy and having to make those phone calls when somebody is unhappy, or taking the brunt of it someone is unhappy… it’s a task but it’s worth it because you build relationships with them all.
There are times when I have to crack the gavel and play the judge and put things in place. I’d say one of the best things about working here is that the staff here is very professional and they’re mature. We’ve always been able to dialogue and get things together. And I’m going to do my job and make sure that things that are put on the table are taken care of.
And speaking of reality shows, I’m really not into them. I try to stay away from them as much as possible anyway. In my opinion, they’re just an opportunity to make a mockery of Black culture. I really don’t understand why we glorify drama anyway.
What do you have planned for the future? You gonna team up with your brother on a shop or something?
Well, I wouldn’t be opposed to a shop in the future but I try to diversify as a business man. That’s why you see I have products and snacks and things for sale in my shop. I do other things as well. I also am a distributor for Little Debbie. I have a route that includes stores in Katy. Just another income stream. What I really see for myself for the future is to move into real estate investing. Just to keep the whole business concept going. My interest in real estate investing comes from my desire as a father to, as my daughters come of age, to provide my daughters houses as wedding or graduation presents. I want to start by purchasing a strip mall. If I want to have my own business I can have it in the location and have other suites drawing income. If I rent a location for my business I’ll always be paying rent. I want to get to the point where I own my own land, property, or strip mall. Otherwise, you can be in business for 20 years and unless you own your location, you’re always paying. At least when purchasing property there’s an end time to the payments. Then I can build the legacy and pay it forward to those that I’m responsible for.
I want to own rental property and retail property. That’s how I want to set myself up for retirement along with the other things that I’m into.
So that will be your passion?
I’d say that, really, people are my passion. This would just be another way to relate and connect into it by diversifying my business into a different area.
You’re pretty focused and well-spoken Ben. Where’d you go to college?
I went to Houston Community College for a bit. I was interested in computer programming for a bit. As tricky as it is... I don’t knock education but depending on where you’re headed in life college isn’t for everybody. Being an entrepreneur, that’s who I am. Respecting what I’ve done
down through the years from the time I was eight, I’m not a classroom dude. If I was to go back to school for anything it would be to get credentials as a barbering instructor. Just to continue to pay it forward, to teach etiquette and about the business itself.
Any last comments or things you want to impart?
At the end of the day, in this life, there’s one thing I try to break away from; that’s being a workaholic. It’s a sacrifice to get where you want to be but you can’t always live in that moment.
My task now in challenging people with the hustle and bustle of life… watch your overhead so that way you’re not a slave to your job. I can take a day off to be with my family and not miss a beat. And then, just enjoy what you do at the end of the day.
Speaking of breaking away, what do you do to make time with family?
On the weekends that’s pretty much the time I sacrifice to be with my kids. I try to make sure that the time that I do have is very intentional and quality time. It’s away from the phone, it’s away from everything else. I generally am wherever they’re at. Whatever they have going on I generally just cater to the girls. Sometimes it may be the nail shop, sometimes it may be Chuck E. Cheese, or sometimes it’s the movies. Whatever it is, I make sure I disconnect from everything else and ensure that they have their time. Outside of being a barber I have a responsibility of bringing up three girls in today’s society. That’s a whole other interview.
This dude. Much respect. All the best wishes for the future for Benson Tillman. I’ve got a feeling it’s inevitable, anyway.
V. Ray
#positiveblack
