India Hines builds beauty brands with data and storytelling

India Hines, founder of Hair-on-Call and Hinesight Media LLC, is using more than a decade in marketing and media to help beauty professionals turn storytelling into measurable growth. Her work in Cleveland blends performance strategy, mentorship, and a push for more diversity in marketing and media.

Why it matters: - India Hines is building businesses aimed at helping beauty professionals grow into brand-ready entrepreneurs. - Her approach combines storytelling, paid media, retail media strategy, and analytics, which reflects a broader shift toward marketing that must prove results, not just create awareness. - Hines is also using her platform to mentor women and push for more diversity in marketing and media.

What happened: - India Hines, founder of Hair-on-Call and Hinesight Media LLC, was recognized by Influential Women. - Hines is based in Cleveland and has more than a decade of experience across journalism, public relations, social media, paid media, and retail media strategy. - Her current work focuses on helping beauty professionals and brands turn storytelling into scalable growth.

The details: - Hines began her career in journalism and public relations before moving into marketing and performance strategy. - She holds a Master of Science from Western Governors University. - Her certifications include Agile for Marketing, the Walmart Connect Ad Certification in measurement and reporting, Prompt Engineering Generative AI for Marketing and Advertising, and an Omnichannel Retail Strategy Specialization. - At Spectrum Reach, Hines developed and managed integrated campaigns across digital, cable, OTT, search, and social channels. - At Glassdoor, she worked in customer success and branding, supporting employer branding campaigns, product adoption, and ROI measurement. - At Moen Incorporated, she served as Retail Media Manager and oversaw omnichannel retail media strategy across Lowe’s, Home Depot, Walmart, and Wayfair. - Hines says media mix modeling and optimization helped improve return on ad spend in that role. - Hair-on-Call is a virtual platform that connects clients with licensed hairstylists for on-demand support, with a focus on textured and curly hair needs. - Hinesight Media LLC helps beauty professionals build businesses through strategy, content development, and influencer partnerships. - Hines also volunteers with Kent State University and Dress for Success. - She has started therapy within the past year and credits it with helping her return to school and launch her businesses. - Hines enjoys reading and going to the movies to make time for herself. - More information is available through her Influential Women profile and her website.

Between the lines: - Hines frames mentorship as a major force behind her career, crediting a nail technician and hairdresser for pushing her to start her own business. - She says those mentors helped her move past imposter syndrome by showing her that her knowledge had real value. - Hines sees a shortage of Black and multicultural women in marketing and media as a missed opportunity for the industry. - At Moen, she was the only Black person on a 17-person team, even though more than half the team were women. - Her advice to younger women in the field is to learn broadly, stay flexible, and build relationships with peers as well as leaders. - Her career path suggests that openness to new roles can matter as much as early specialization.

What's next: - Hines is continuing advanced study in marketing analytics. - She is focused on growing Hair-on-Call and Hinesight Media while building pathways for beauty professionals to become sustainable entrepreneurs. - She plans to keep mentoring others and advocating for more inclusive representation in marketing and media.

The bottom line: - India Hines is turning corporate marketing experience into founder-led businesses that blend creativity, data, and community support.