Senior Profile: Kalik Davis, Knightdale High School

June 8, 2022

Senior: Kalik Davis

School: Knightdale High School

Postsecondary Education: Winston Salem Barber School and business school

Kalik Davis was struggling and needed a fresh start. He found it at Knightdale High School.

At his high school in Rocky Mount, he was getting into trouble and not doing well academically.  “It’s been a rocky road,” Kalik says. During his junior year, he was encouraged by his brother-in-law and mentor, Xavier Odom, to move from Rocky Mount to Raleigh to live with him. 

It was the right move.

Hard work pays off

Less than two years later, with the help of administrators and teachers at Knightdale High and through his own hard work, Kalik is on his way to becoming a successful businessman. 

He started his own business, The 1 Stop Shop, which offers landscaping, car detailing, and haircutting services to support his dream of running his own barber shop. He is putting the money he earns toward attending Winston Salem Barber School after graduation. Later he plans to attend business school. 

"He's a hard-worker," says Kia Bradsher, his culinary arts teacher. "And hard work always pays off."

Building relationships with the community is important to Kalik. He’d like to build a business in Rocky Mount one day to help support the community in his hometown. “The most important factor is to invest in yourself in order to get where you want to go in life,” said Kalik. 

Entrepreneur enthusiast

Kalik has learned business and entrepreneurial skills during his time at Knightdale High. He presented at the school’s Business Expo in May. He has also learned about the value of developing positive supportive relationships. 

Teacher Kia Bradsher encourages Kalik to pursue all of his interests. She teaches her students “If you dream it, you can do it." This slogan hangs in her classroom and in her home. 

Kalik adopted the title "entrepreneur enthusiast" after guest speaker and business growth coach Stacy Michelle Scott visited his class. Stacy Michelle started multiple businesses after graduating from high school. “That’s the path I see Kalik taking,” says Kia Bradsher. “Now he just needs to do it. And he will!” 

Goals and plans 

Kalik’s dream is to become a barber, but he couldn’t afford good barber tools, which can cost more than $1,000. So he bought a lawnmower to start a landscaping business and earn money for his barber tools. He pushed the mower around the neighborhood, offering to cut lawns. He made $300 the first day.

Kalik purchased the upgraded barber tools, and he offers free haircuts to continue perfecting his craft. On Saturdays, he spends time in Rocky Mount training in a barber shop with his brother-in-law, Xavier. His landscaping and car detailing businesses have grown and provided income for him to begin investing and saving for his future. Kalik plans to continue growing these businesses to support himself while he furthers his education.

“Kalik Davis is a student that is determined not to let his circumstances determine his future," said Knightdale High Principal Keith Richardson. “He is a student who refuses to be a product of his environment. He knows where he has been and where he wants to go.”