What would you do if your family suddenly lost your main revenue stream?
That’s the question Amy Chinian faced during the 2008 recession. With five kids under the age of eight, zero income, and over a million dollars in debt, Amy had to figure out a way to survive. Her solution? Head lice.
In this episode of Small Business, Big Engine, Amy shares how she turned a red picnic basket full of lice treatment products into My Hair Helpers, a thriving, multi-location service business with a national e-commerce arm and a growing nonprofit. But her story goes way beyond lice. This is about building something meaningful out of necessity, serving others in a highly stigmatized industry, and scaling a brand without compromising values.
Amy walks us through:
How she taught herself lice removal from scratch with no formal training
Why starting tiny was the key to surviving financially and emotionally
How she landed her first customers and grew entirely through word-of-mouth
The moment she knew she needed to scale, and how she found people she could trust
Why she refused outside investors and built everything with her own cash flow
What makes her proprietary products different (and why she avoids chemicals)
How she approaches hiring, training, and quality control across six physical locations
Her strategy for dominating Google search and building a strong local presence
How she handles competition, even when it comes from former employees
Why customer reviews are the lifeblood of her brand
The surprising power of empathy in a stigmatized industry
Amy also shares how her faith and mission drive the business. She talks about Lice Free Forever, her nonprofit that provides free treatment for families who can’t afford help, and why she believes giving back is just as important as growth.
If you’re building a service-based business, running a small team, or just trying to figure out how to keep going when things get tough, this episode is packed with honest, hard-earned insight. Amy doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges—but she makes a strong case for staying lean, listening to your customers, and doing the work with integrity.
This episode is for you if you’ve ever wondered:
How do I build a business when I have no money?
Can I grow a local service brand without going into debt?
What if I’m in a niche that’s “embarrassing” or hard to market?
How do I scale without giving up ownership or control?
How do I create trust in a business people don’t like to talk about?
Amy Chinian built something powerful out of a problem most people would rather avoid!
Resources & Links:
Visit My Hair Helpers: https://www.myhairhelpers.com
Follow Amy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-chinian-90697b22
Learn more about Lice Free Forever Charity: https://www.myhairhelpers.com/charity