“I was with two of my clients, doing eyelash tinting and eyebrow shaping when we heard yelling and saw clouds of smoke coming from downstairs,” Tanrikulu recalls. “Everyone who worked at the salon frantically ran outside and thank goodness no one was hurt. But as I stood across the street, watching my place of work literally burn down in flames in front of me, with all the firetrucks trying to get in, all I could think was, ‘Where can I take my clients tomorrow morning?’”
Although Tanrikulu set up temporary shop at a friend’s salon the very next day, she also decided to keep moving on her dream of becoming a one-woman brand.
“Things happen in our lives, good and bad, but I never get stuck,” Tanrikulu says. “My attitude is always, ‘Okay, this happened, but what’s next?’ I believe everything happens for a reason, and I took the fire as a sign that it was time to take my career to the next level.”
Within a matter of months, Tanrikulu reopened her monicker salon, Semra, home to her signature eyelash extension and her award-winning eyebrow styling, at a new location.
After over twenty years working in the beauty industry in DC and establishing herself as an institution with a devoted clientele, ranging from Senators to Congresswomen to high-power executives to average Washingtonians, Tanrikulu’s business could not be better and Allure Magazine just named her the Best Eyebrow Stylist in Washington, DC, a fact most Washingtonian women already know.
“I have known Semra for over 20 years and consider her one of my best friends and mentors,” says Michele Samad, Founder and President of the Incentive Technology Group, and longtime client of Tanrikulu’s. “She has an incredible business acumen and the ability to identify market trends to address her customer needs. Her longevity, intense client loyalty and success speak to her work ethic, and it makes me proud to have been a witness to her incredible career.”
With her salon thriving, Tanrikulu has plans to launch a line of beauty products and open her own beauty school in the nation’s capital.
“Having your own business is amazing, and it gives you so much flexibility,” Tanrikulu reflects. “But at the same time, it is a bit of a headache. You have to work harder than everyone else, you have to think about your employees, and you have to think about every single detail and aspect of your business. I have great days and not so great days, but the most important thing is that I am so happy. I am so grateful to have my own space, my independence, and my own business. I am my own boss and there really isn’t anything better to be.”
When I bring up how it has been noted that women tend to be more risk-averse than men, Tanrikulu says that taking risks has been key to her professional success.
“I am a big believer in taking risks,” she states. “I have no fear of it. In fact, I embrace it. You have to challenge yourself and dream big. So many people, not just women, are scared to make changes. There is a poem by famed Persian poet, Rumi that says, ‘Do not worry that your life is turning upside down. How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?’ That really resonates with me because I think that taking risks is the key to a successful career. In fact, turning your life upside down is great for building your business. I am not saying just jump into the deep end of the ocean if you don’t know how to swim, but at the same time you will never know the extent of your potential if you do not take a leap of faith.”
Anushay Hossain is a Bangladeshi journalist based in Washington, DC. Visit AnushaysPoint.com for more of her work.
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