How a home-run beauty service grew into a local salon in Ghazipur

For Meera Maurya, the decision to start a beauty business was not a single moment of ambition but a gradual response to her circumstances. Based in Aamghat, near the Women’s Degree College in Ghazipur district, she began working from home in 2015, balancing household responsibilities in a joint family with a growing urge to do something of her own.

Before marriage, Maurya had completed her schooling up to intermediate level. Her interest in beauty work existed since earlier, shaped by observation and a habit of learning small skills on her own. After marriage and the birth of her child, the idea became more practical: she began offering basic services from a small setup inside her house.

The early phase was cautious and slow. She invested little, relied on word of mouth, and focused on improving her technique. Alongside serving clients, she started training local girls, sharing what she had learned. The combination of practice and teaching pushed her to upgrade her skills further through formal courses, taken over time as finances allowed.

A business built on services and training

Today, Maurya runs a neighbourhood salon that offers personal grooming and beauty services, while also functioning as a small training centre. The business provides threading, facials, skin-specific treatments, manicure and pedicure services, body spa treatments, makeup, and hair styling, including bridal work during the wedding season. Training young women remains a parallel activity, aimed at helping them build employable skills.

The shift from a home-based setup to a rented salon space came after nearly a decade of experience. Maurya learned about the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (CM YUVA) Yojana through news reports and conversations with people around her encouraged, she approached the district industries office to understand the process.

The formalities took time, and required her to submit training certificates, open accounts, and complete documentation. The CM Yuva Yojana, she says, helped her take the step she had been postponing, allowing her to invest in a better location and equipment without disrupting her household finances.

Teaching self-reliance through experience

The response has been steady since moving into the new salon space earlier this year, she says, particularly during the wedding season. Clients now come not only for routine services but also for event-based work. Trainees, meanwhile,  see the salon as a practical learning environment. 

Maurya describes the journey as emotionally demanding, marked by self-doubt and gradual confidence. “I wanted girls to have a skill so they can stand on their own feet even when situations become difficult,” she says, explaining why training others remains important to her.

Looking back, Maurya views the early years at home as essential groundwork. The limitations taught her patience, and the small gains built trust in her own abilities. The business today is modest but stable, rooted in skills learned over time and a support system that arrived when she was ready to expand.