Today we’d like to introduce you to Aisha Mesidor.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My story didn’t start with some pre-planned business blueprint. It started in my bedroom — late nights, full face, ring light on, copying wild YouTube makeup tutorials and dreaming big. I’ve always been that girl. The one pulling up to Walmart with a full beat. Makeup was always my way of expressing myself, and I quickly realized I was obsessed with creating beauty not just for myself but for other people too.
Eventually, I went to cosmetology school in 2018 while juggling college, Uber shifts, and helping my mom raise my little sisters. It wasn’t easy. I had a lot of pressure, a lot of responsibilities, and not a lot of support. I’d had a rocky time in high school and ended up getting my GED just to move forward. But I always knew I wanted something more for myself. That “more” didn’t come wrapped in a bow — it came through hustle, resilience, and betting on myself over and over again.
After cosmo school, I landed my first job at an Ulta Beauty Salon. I thought I was set… until COVID hit. I was furloughed, then fired without warning, and I found out at the register trying to use my employee discount. Yikes! That moment.. embarrassing and unexpected, lit a fire in me. I was like, “OK, cool. Bet. I’ll do this myself.”
My mom and I had just bought a house, and she helped me turn our formal dining room into a little hair studio. It was supposed to just be for family & friends, but one friend turned into ten, and before I knew it, I was booked out just from referrals and Instagram. No website. No marketing strategy. No ads. Just word of mouth, results, and vibes.
So I decided to move out of the house, level up, and open a suite, in the same year I got married & bought my second house with my husband (can you tell I’m an overachiever?) But I quickly realized: the more I posted hair, the more people booked me for hair & I didn’t want to be boxed in as a hairstylist. I love makeup. I love brows. I wanted it all.
So I moved again into a bigger suite, even though that rent was more than my mortgage… and that’s the thing: when you’ve got vision, you move scared and strong.
I expanded again. I took brow trainings, invested in more education, found a community of women that were doing it scared just like me, and built a multi-service business where I could showcase all of my talents — and make real money doing it.
Then I started getting into coaching, which came naturally to me. As a first-generation entrepreneur, I didn’t have anyone to look up to or lean on. I had to learn how to grow a business and grow myself. It wasn’t always cute and there was definitely a lot of mindset work to do to prove to myself I was worthy of more… to teach others.
That’s why I started Paid Beyond the Chair — to help other creative entrepreneurs, especially women of color, realize they don’t have to keep playing small or staying stuck behind a chair if they don’t want to. You don’t need to be a slave to your schedule. You deserve freedom, not just clients. And you sure as hell deserve to build your business around your life — not the other way around.
Now? I own a building in Downtown Orlando. I’ve got tenants. I’ve got coaching clients. I work three days behind the chair, one day with my coaching students, and the rest of the week is for me. For my marriage, for travel, for rest. Because I didn’t build this just to work. I built it so I could live.
And let’s be real, none of this growth would’ve felt the same without someone in my corner who gets it. My husband and I met when I was just 17, and getting married young isn’t what most people picture for a woman building her empire. But for me, it’s been one of the most exhilarating decisions I’ve ever made. We’ve grown together, broken cycles together, and built a life that makes sense for us. We’re both breaking generational curses, navigating cultural expectations, and rewriting what partnership and purpose look like for us. People think marriage ties you down. For me? It set me free.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
If anyone tells you entrepreneurship is a smooth road, they’re lying to you! I like to explain entrepreneurship as personal development on crack. You won’t be able to grow your business without growing yourself along the way and I would know. Every business coach wants to talk strategy and although thats super important in business… not enough coaches are talking about the heavy shit. The late nights doubting yourself, the lack of familial support, friendship breakups or straight up healing from trauma. Trauma, most of us don’t even realize we have because we suppressed it as a coping mechanism. I truly believe everyone should be in some form of therapy, entrepreneur or not.
Something that gives me a different perspective on life is although I was born and raised in the US, I did live in Pakistan from the ages of 9-13. That’s a very sensitive time for a young girl developing her mind & body. Neither of my parents were with me and it was a huge culture shock but that experience deeply shaped how I see womanhood, business, and opportunity. Women don’t always have access to freedom — so I’m damn sure going to take full advantage of mine. I want to show other women (especially women from cultures like mine) that they can be bold, loud, sexy, spiritual, successful, and themselves. All at the same time.
I’m not here to be your typical coach or cookie-cutter business owner. I’m the boss bitch beauty bestie who’s gonna tell you the truth, hold you accountable, and remind you that you were made for more. You don’t need to shrink. You don’t need to wait. You don’t need to tone it down to build a life you love. And if no one’s ever told you that before, let me be the first: you are worthy of the most abundant, aligned, and audacious life possible.
This isn’t about playing small. It’s about betting on yourself — again and again — until you win.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Behind the chair, I am a color + curl specialist. I also offer makeup & brow services and I’m known for helping women feel like the bad bitch I know they are.
I am most proud of building a beauty business that is so “out there”. So many beautypreneurs are chasing “professionalism” that they don’t realize, being themselves is what’s going to get them booked and sought out.
What sets me apart from other beauty business owners is refusing to be a slave to the chair. I am 27 years old and already have back and wrist problems. This industry only has a 10-15 year lifespan and after that? No savings, no retirement, no plan. I refuse to let that be my reality.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
The luckiest thing that happened to me is me believing in myself. Besides that nothing is luck or coincidental, you create your reality & you are in complete control of your life regardless of the cards you were dealt.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.paidbeyondthechair.com
- Instagram: @paidbeyondthechair @itsaishabeauty @itsaishamesidor
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itsaishabeauty
- Other: https://stan.store/aishabeauty
