Vilaphrenuo Rhetso and Keneingu Kelelie
Morung Express News
Kohima | May 15
What began as two childhood friends experimenting with makeup in each other’s homes has now blossomed into a thriving makeup studio, academy and full-service salon in Kohima.
Vilaphrenuo Rhetso (Vila) from Viswema and Keneingu Kelelie (Kenei) from Gariphema village of Kohima district are the duo behind the venture. Their journey, long before business plans and bookings, was rooted in shared dreams, laughter, and a deep love for creativity.
Makeup became their first shared passion, a way to make people feel confident, celebrated, and beautiful in their own skin. While Vila completed her MA in History, Kenei finished higher secondary education. Together, they have built an enterprise that now offers professional makeup services, training, and salon facilities under one roof.
After years of learning and working behind the scenes, two childhood friends from Kohima district took a leap of faith to start their own venture, ‘VK Makeup Studio & Academy.’ Launched on August 23, 2025, at the AWO Building in Kohima, the studio operates from 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Vila holds an MA in History, while Kenei has completed higher secondary education. The venture is self-funded, with no government assistance.
“The early days were all heart and hustle, long hours, small setups, and managing everything on our own,” recalls Vila. Word of mouth helped the business grow, eventually leading to the launch of their own academy. “Watching our students build their careers has been one of our proudest achievements,” she added.
Recently, the duo expanded further by adding a full-service salon. “This came from listening to our clients who wanted a complete beauty experience under one roof,” said Kenei. “We don’t just follow trends, we analyze your unique profile to enhance your natural beauty.”
“For us, this is more than a business. It’s a friendship-turned-partnership built on trust, resilience, and the belief that women can build something powerful together,” they said. “We started with just a dream and a makeup brush. Today, we’re creating jobs, training talent, and helping people look and feel their best.”
So far, 15 students have been certified as Make-up Artist from their Academy and another 15 registered for self makeup class.
Meanwhile, they are planning to introduce hairdresser and beautician course by June this year.
On their advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, the duo said, “You don’t need to have it all figured out. Start with what you love, stay consistent, and grow with the people who believe in you.”
“That’s why we opened our academy, because we remember what it felt like to have a dream and no door to walk through,” they added.
“This isn’t just a business to us. It’s proof that friendship can survive stress, that dreams don’t have an expiry date, and that you don’t need to come from much to build something beautiful,” Kenei said.
“If you’re reading this with a dream in your heart and fear in your hands, start anyway. Start messy. Start small. Start with the friend who believes in you when you don’t believe in yourself,” she added.
