Donita Smith

Donita Smith is the owner and master stylist of the salon and serves as Director of Education at MIAA Beauty Institute. She works across hair, teaching, color and non-surgical hair replacement. She previously worked as a freelance stylist for Black Entertainment Television (BET) for more than 10 years, and her client work has included decades of working with women.

She is a licensed hairstylist and a licensed senior cosmetologist. She holds Wella certifications as an instructor and as a Professionals Certified Expert Colorist, is a certified non-surgical hair replacement specialist, and holds certification as a Career & Technical Education (CTE) Educator.

Her focus is color and non-surgical hair replacement. Through her coaching work, she teaches consultation and business planning courses for beauty professionals and is the author of The Consultation Blueprint, a guide to client consultations. A workbook, The Beauty Business Playbook, is forthcoming. She also founded Life Beyond the Chair Collective, a group with digital and in-person spaces for women going through life transitions. She gives talks at beauty schools, industry events and women's conferences, and is available for speaking and media engagements through a speaking contact form. She speaks on licensing and career success for beauty students, salon ownership and building niche services. She is featured in professional beauty publications.