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Tina Knowles

  • Founder of Headliners, a Multimillion-Dollar Houston Salon
  • Entrepreneur Behind House of Deréon and Miss Tina
  • Philanthropist and Advocate for Representation in Fashion
  • Champion of Creative Access and Youth Opportunity

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Fame gets the credit. She built the foundation.

Tina Knowles is the architect behind one of the most influential families of our time—a businesswoman and creative visionary who has shaped fashion, music, and philanthropy from the ground up.

Long before Beyoncé became a global force, Knowles was defining the look, the discipline, and the long-term strategy behind Destiny’s Child. As a stylist, designer, and business leader, she built an identity strong enough to endure pressure and scale across markets and generations. Her instincts set the direction.

An accomplished entrepreneur, Knowles has launched and scaled multiple successful businesses, including a thriving Houston-based salon and a groundbreaking clothing line that expanded inclusivity in fashion. Today, she continues to lead with vision and impact, helping guide innovation and culture through her work with Cécred, where she is shaping the future of beauty and legacy-building.

From building multimillion-dollar ventures to advancing philanthropy through WACO Theater Center, her mentorship initiatives, and BeyGOOD, Knowles has consistently translated influence into real funding and opportunity for the next generation.

On stage, Knowles delivers more than inspiration—she offers a masterclass in vision, leadership, and execution. She speaks on how early decisions shape long-term success, how to lead when the stakes are both personal and public, and how to turn visibility into meaningful, measurable impact.

 

Tina Knowles headshot
Past Hosts Include:
  • National Black Law Students Association
Rave Reviews About Tina Knowles
“
Everyone agrees the evening with Miss Tina was the highlight of the entire convention. The honesty and vulnerability she brought made our members feel like they actually knew her – I am personally glad I had a front row seat. Our members were also happy to see her stay in the audience and celebrate with them as they accepted their awards. That meant a lot to all of us. The meet and greet was just as special – she was warm, present, and genuinely engaged with every person she met. One board member said, 'felt like taking a picture with a family member after a long time apart.'

”
Ms Tina Knowles Gets Personal: Breast Cancer, Her Daughters & Leaving a Legacy with Scott Evans - Get Sharable Link
Talks & Conversations with Tina Knowles
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Building What Lasts: From Early Decisions to Enduring Brands

TINA KNOWLES breaks down how the earliest choices shape everything that follows. Drawing from her experience building businesses and guiding global brands, she shares how to set a foundation that can scale without losing its identity. ...

TINA KNOWLES breaks down how the earliest choices shape everything that follows. Drawing from her experience building businesses and guiding global brands, she shares how to set a foundation that can scale without losing its identity.

The Business of Image: How Brands Earn Attention and Keep It

What makes a brand resonate and stay relevant? TINA KNOWLES explores how visual identity, consistency, and instinct drive cultural impact, and what leaders get wrong when they treat branding as an afterthought.   ...

What makes a brand resonate and stay relevant? TINA KNOWLES explores how visual identity, consistency, and instinct drive cultural impact, and what leaders get wrong when they treat branding as an afterthought.

 

Navigating Pressure and Public Success

TINA KNOWLES offers a candid look at leading in high-stakes, highly visible environments. She shares lessons on trust, boundaries, and decision-making when the line between personal and professional disappears.   ...

TINA KNOWLES offers a candid look at leading in high-stakes, highly visible environments. She shares lessons on trust, boundaries, and decision-making when the line between personal and professional disappears.

 

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Books by Tina Knowles
Matriarch: Oprah's Book Club: A Memoir

Matriarch: Oprah's Book Club: A Memoir

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Biography

Tina Knowles is an American businesswoman, fashion designer, art collector, and activist. Born Celestine Ann Beyoncé in Galveston, Texas, to a longshoreman father and seamstress mother, she learned dressmaking at an early age. In 1986, she opened Headliners, a groundbreaking hair salon that became a multimillion-dollar phenomenon in Houston. As a stylist, designer, and mother, she helped guide the day-to-day path of Destiny’s Child—the music group comprised of Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams—to global commercial success.

She co-founded Waco Theater Center, located in North Hollywood, California. The organization, whose letters spell out Where Art Can Occur, provides a platform for the art community to exhibit their visual and performing arts. It also serves as a place to mentor young children from underserved communities, exposing them to all forms of art and culture.  WACO also provides education and financial support as well as after-school tutoring and counseling. 

Ms. Knowles is presently working diligently on a voting campaign with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights called AndStillIVote, to educate everyone on the power of their vote, and to encourage them to take advantage of absentee voting and mail-in voting due to the mobility restrictions in place as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ms. Knowles, who has been an activist from her teen years in Texas, drew the attention of the entire country when she became the face of mothers taking a stand for voting rights in this historical election year.

With the Mothers of the Movement (those who lost their children to police brutality), and with the support of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, she sent a letter to Congress encouraging them to pass the Heroes Act, which includes a $3.6 billion fund needed to cover safe and secure voting for all.

With her daughter Beyoncé, she co-founded and ran the House of Deréon, a clothing line named for her mother, and then added the Miss Tina line, which revolutionized size inclusivity. In 2024, she helped to create Cécred, her daughter Beyoncé’s haircare line. Her philanthropic portfolio includes the non-profit performing arts organization WACO Theater, The Knowles-Rowland Center for Youth in Houston, and Tina’s Angels, her thriving mentoring program for at-risk youth in South Central L.A. She serves as Chairwoman of BeyGOOD, a nonprofit dedicated to establishing economic equity through a wide array of initiatives. She is a grandmother of six and a Matriarch to many. 

AC

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