Welcome to the Ask an Exec series: a series where I ask our UNT Her Campus leadership team questions about their lives and their advice for new students!
Today’s interview features Lilly Kuel, the co-president of UNT’s Her Campus. Lilly is a biology major on the pre-med route, and minors in chemistry. She is a junior here at UNT. She and Seun Seriki, her fellow co-president, are the backbone of Her Campus and ensure that everything runs smoothly. Lilly acts as the “internal president,” handling logistics and behind-the-scenes work. Not only is Lilly the co-president of UNT’s Her Campus, but she is the owner of two small businesses: Done By Lilly and Lilly’s Leches. Today, I asked Lilly more about what it’s like to be a small business owner in college, and how she got started.
Done By Lilly Done by Lilly is a hair business specializing in lace rentals and wig installations, founded and owned by Lilly Kuel. After having her hair done by her aunts and cousins for years, Lilly decided to learn how to do her own hair. With time and practice, her skills developed, and she started helping others with their hair. “I did a few friends’ hair, and they were like, ‘This is really good. I feel like you should open up a business. You know what you’re doing, and this is a really good service that a lot of people would want.’” Not only that, but Lilly wanted to help other college women of color get affordable hair care. “I saw the need for more affordable hairstylists, especially in the college space. It’s really hard as women of color to get our hair done that often while also being in school, not working that many hours, so making sure that it’s affordable [is important]. You look good and you feel good. It really makes your attitude and your personality and even your confidence feel a lot better.”
Lilly’s Leches Lilly is also the founder of Lilly’s Leches, a tres leches cake business featuring her own twist on the classic dessert. Lilly has had a love for baking since she was a child. “Growing up my mom would always catch me in the kitchen making little cake pops or treats in the middle of the night. I got really good at it. So every time at family events, I was always in charge of making cakes or making little cupcakes and macaroons.” Her tres leches business expanded from her own experiments with the cakes. “I found the fun of making different flavors and sharing it with people and making everyone feel good. My friends always say my cakes make them feel better if they had an exam or something that really stressed them out.” Now, Lilly shares her cakes with other customers, and cheers them up too.
When starting a small business, one of the biggest challenges is finding what tools to use. Lilly uses Instagram and TikTok to market her businesses and connect with customers (@lillynyajal and @lilly_leches on Instagram). Recently, she started using Square. “I made my own square site [which is a] better tool for me with Lilly’s Leches. My customers are able to book whenever they would like to get their cakes, and they can pay for it through there, and also [pick] if they want to do delivery. Now I am partnered with Square so I can do my deliveries through DoorDash, so I won’t have to deliver the cakes myself.” Done by Lilly uses a direct message (DM) system for now, but Lilly is working on getting a website up and running for the business.
Running a business isn’t just marketing. Lilly also uses different internal tools to manage her schedule and business finances. “At first, before I was on my website, I would use Google Sheets. I would make sure that every order had an invoice, and I had it automatically sync with my Google Sheets.” Since partnering with Square, Lilly has been able to automate that process even further. “They do that automatically for you, and they calculate the expenses of every order, even down to the pickup. It’s a really good software I would recommend to small businesses.”
Even with the help from her website, running a small business is a lot of work. Along with her two businesses, Lilly is also a pre-med student. For someone with such a heavy load, balance is the name of the game. “It wasn’t easy. What I had to start doing is using my different calendars…making sure that I have reminders set out, letting me know what time I need to do everything, and making sure everything is very organized. For my cake days, I set aside Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and I prepare all my orders or anything I need to get out. I make sure that I prioritize each day for different tasks. Giving myself a break, but also knowing when I need to get back onto it. [It’s about] knowing the balance between each.”
Running a small business can be incredibly worthwhile, but also difficult. Lilly has some advice for people that are just getting started. “Do your research, know your why, and stick to your why. A lot of times, when people start small businesses, they forget their why and get caught up in the money. But remember your why, and make sure that you live it, you talk it and you breathe it.” Making sure you balance college with your small business is critical. “College is very difficult, but you make college what you will. So if you make your college experience really, really hard on yourself, you’re not going to feel like you have time for anything. Balance is the key, because life is going to be thrown with different curve-balls and obstacles. You’ve got to know when you’ve got to get back up and get yourself together.”