Almost 20 years ago Carlos Constantino came to Brownsville with a dream and $500 in his wallet.
Now, Constantino owns what probably is the most successful hair salon in the city with more than 50,000 followers across its Facebook and Instagram accounts. Soon, the professional stylist will open his cosmetology academy.
“I am an immigrant from Mexico City and I came here with new ideas, new styles and people liked it, but at the same time they didn’t, because it made them leave their comfort zone,” Constantino said in Spanish. “When I started working here in Brownsville, at the hair salon that I was at, about 18 years ago, they offered the same services to everyone, it was all the same. All the clients would come out looking the same way, it was like mass production.”
After being fired over his fresh ideas, Constantino first entered a state of shock because he did not expect it and did not have any money saved. However, that soon turned into an “aggressive passion” for him to do a market study and open his very own professional salon.
“I was in shock, because since it was unexpected, I didn’t have any money saved. Since they pay was good I would spend all my money on dumb things. … So, I rented a chair at a salon and I started to do this little market study, even though I didn’t have any idea how to make one of those,” he said. “I don’t like to sit around and wait for opportunities, I’m very aggressive with my work, so, with a notepad I would go to the mall, to Peter Piper Pizza, Kmart, and many other places and ask women about what kind of styles they like for their hair.”
