The Wig Hall is an opportunity for students to try something new with their hair

After years of wearing the same hairstyles, second-year kinesiology student Inès Ndzana wanted to switch it up. Inspired by celebrities wearing wigs and weaves, Ndzana got a wig made when she was in Grade 11 and loved it.

A few years later, Ndzana learned how to make her own wigs and opened her business in October 2020. The Wig Hall offers custom wig construction as well as wig colouring and styling for ready-made wigs.

“I was always wearing wigs, switching it up. I just liked it. I have my curly one if I want to have fun. I have my short one if I want to be serious and professional. And I just liked how quickly I could switch it up,” explained Ndzana.

As someone who has always enjoyed challenging herself and learning new things, Ndzana had started exploring how to make wigs in early 2020. However, it was not until the early months of the pandemic that she had an opportunity to really dive into it and perfect her process. Using her mother’s sewing machine, she taught herself how to sew and made her first few wigs.

During her first year at McMaster University, she had also noticed that many of her friends would make trips back home just to get their hair done because they couldn’t find a stylist around campus or weren’t comfortable having their hair done by someone new.

“My friends always go back home to do their hair. I'm learning a new skill and I want to give out, you know? If I have the skill, I want to do it . . . There's obviously still room to grow, but for the most part, I feel like I perfected my wig making and I was like "okay, why not bring this to Mac? Why not bring this to campus so that girls don't always have to go so far if they want wigs or stuff like that?"” said Ndzana.

The Wig Hall is very much a student business for students. For example, one barrier Ndzana identified that might prevent those interested in wigs from trying them was the financial cost, as custom wigs can often be very expensive. So it’s very important to her that her business is accessible to students.

At its core, The Wig Hall is about giving people an opportunity to try new things, to take a leap of faith and to find something new that makes them feel good and comfortable in their own skin.

“I just hope that someone comes in and sees the style they've never tried and gets that style and they walk away loving it. Or they've never gotten colour on their head and they walk away loving it . . . I want everyone to walk away loving it, feeling inspired and just seeing it and be like, "I want to try that" or "we're gonna switch it up’ or ‘I'll get a longer length" or "I’ll go really short this time,"” said Ndzana.

[media-credit name="C/O Inès Ndzana" align="center" width="1920"][/media-credit]

Speaking of leaps of faith, starting The Wig Hall was a huge leap of faith for Ndzana. Initially, she had been nervous about the launch, unsure if anyone would be interested in her business, but it seems she needn’t have worried. The reception so far has been incredibly positive, which has been especially heartening.

She’s so glad now that she took that leap and encourages other students to do the same if they have an idea.

“If you have an idea and if you want to do something, you should absolutely do it because it's scary and it's daunting and it's anxious, but once you do start and once you get the ball rolling, it is very fun and you learn a lot of things and you enjoy the ride. So I would say if you have an idea, work on that idea, start it and a lot can come from it,” said Ndzana.

Through The Wig Hall, Ndzana is making wigs more accessible to students and giving them an opportunity to try something new. But more than that, her business is also an incredible example of the good things that can come from taking a leap of faith.