Scammers are targeting clients looking to get their hair braided by using real stylists’ work and creating fake social media pages.
Reports of Scams
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is receiving reports of scams targeting individuals wanting braids. Scammers take pictures from legitimate stylists and post them on fake social media pages.
Modus Operandi
Potential clients find the fake pages and book appointments, often making small deposits. Clients realize they have been scammed when they do not hear back from the supposed stylist on the appointment day.
Impact on Legitimate Businesses
Real stylists like Porsche Hensley, who has been braiding hair for over 10 years and owns Divine Innovation 615 in Nashville, are affected. Hensley reported instances where clients arrived for appointments, only to find out they were scammed.
Precautions to Avoid Scams
BBB advises not to pay for the service in full before the appointment. Visit the stylist’s location before booking. Verify the stylist’s work by searching for them online and including the word “scam” after their name. Ask for the stylist’s license number and verify it.
Continuing the Business
Despite the scams, stylists like Porsche Hensley remain undeterred and continue their work.
Conclusion
Scammers exploiting the popularity of hair braiding are causing issues for both clients and legitimate stylists. Clients are advised to take precautions to ensure they are booking authentic services.
Talk show host and bestselling author Tavis Smiley speaking at the Bunker Hill Community College Compelling Conversations Speaker Series. (PRNewsFoto/Bunker Hill Community College)Talk show host and bestselling author Tavis Smiley kicked off Bunker Hill Community College’s annual Compelling Conversations speaker series on Thursday, October 22, with an upbeat talk about optimism and hope that brought cheers and laughter from the audience. Before the lecture, Smiley enjoyed a lunch with students and staff in the College art gallery and met with students in Professor James Rogash’s journalism class. Smiley answered student questions and told them the best journalists are “generous listeners.”Sharing his own story during his lecture in the College auditorium, Smiley described growing up in a three-bedroom trailer with nine siblings, his parents and his grandmother. He told the audience about the epiphany he had at age 35 when he realized that, given the life expectancy for black men, he already had fewer years ahead of him than behind him. He urged the students to write a mission statement for their own lives and use their time well.Smiley was born in Mississippi and grew up in a town in Indiana called Bunker Hill. He said that he had built his life on hope. He talked his way into an internship and then landed a job with Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley to launch his career in communications. In 2004 he became the first person of color to have his own daily show on National Public Radio.”You have a role to play in shaping America to be as good as its promise,” he told the students. He said they should give themselves an assignment to do something about an issue they encounter every day. “By brightening the corner where you are, you can have a huge impact,” he said.TIME magazine has listed Smiley among “The World’s 100 Most Influential People.” He has been honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Smiley is currently the host of the late-night television talk show tavis smiley on PBS, as well as The tavis smiley Show from Public Radio International (PRI). He is the author of 18 books.For a decade, Compelling Conversations has brought high-profile speakers to Bunker Hill Community College to discuss their professional experience and provide inspiration for students. Speakers have ranged from author Wes Moore and advocate for the deaf and Academy Award-winner Marlee Matlin to Grammy award-winning rapper Ice-T and documentary filmmaker Ken Burns. Learn more about the BHCC Compelling Conversations Series at bhcc.edu/cc.
