Rickey Tillman grew up in Bruce dreaming of seeing the world, especially Australia.
“I remember in high school seeing an old black and white movie on TV about the Navy going to Australia, and I knew that’s what I wanted.”
Things didn’t work out that way at first. Instead, he started in the Army National Guard and was working in a furniture factory in Pontotoc.
“I was rolling trolleys and bagging furniture on the line and just decided this was not for me. There’s something else out there for me.”
He made the commitment he dreamed of as a kid and enlisted in the U.S. Navy. They made his dream come true sending him to Australia where he was placed at a remote station out in the desert.
“They bring you in at night so it’s not such a culture shock. They want to introduce you slowly to the outback,” Tillman said. “It didn’t bother me too much because I came from Mississippi, but the others from bigger places like New York, they couldn’t handle it.”
He served there for four years and helped close the base down in 1993 and stayed behind as a caretaker. It soon became obvious to him he was meant to stay permanently in Australia.
“I love Australia, especially Perth,” Rickey said. “Other than the accent, there’s not a lot of differences (from Mississippi.) People there are very outdoors oriented. They love to get out and have picnics and barbeque.”
He fell in love with the country, culture and lifestyle. He got married and had two sons – Dwayne and Malik. They both live in Perth.
“They’ve been here a few times and love Mississippi, but Australia is their home,” he said.
Tillman became a successful businessman in Australia. He owns a business that lays floor and wall tiles, and another that does industrial cleaning, both located in the city of Perth.
Tillman, 48, has lived in Australia for 28 years now.
His first marriage ended with a divorce, but seven years ago he met Meriel.
“We actually met in a pub,” she said.
“I saw that big smile of hers and ran toward it,” Rickey said.
Now the two of them are starting a new business venture – Black Swan Hair Extensions.
“I started the hair extension business because my sister (Alisha Tillman Jones of Bruce) mentioned the idea to me, and I did some research on the industry and found there’s a market for it both here in Mississippi and in Australia,” he said.
The name Black Swan comes from the beautiful, graceful birds that are unique to Western Australia and they wanted their product to be equally unique.
“The quality of the hair available now in Mississippi is not as good as what we can offer,” Rickey said. “All of the high quality hair goes to New York and California. We want to bring that quality here.”
“Everyone deserves to have the best quality, no matter where you live,” he said.
“Our hair comes from Hollywood, California. Most hair around here comes from China. Our hair is more expensive than others, but the quality is significantly better. Most extensions you buy around here last about two months. Ours last a year. You pay more up front, but you save money in the long run and look better.”
Antonio Thornton, of Bruce, helped get them in touch with the kind of suppliers they wanted, and Alisha is the primary dealer locally for the Black Swan extensions.
They hope to have them available at Cynthia Tedford’s store on the Bruce Square and in salons throughout the area as well.
“Alisha (662-800-5584) will be the primary contact,” Meriel said.
Rickey and Meriel have been together for seven years. She is a native of Perth, but all of her family is from England.
Meriel has traveled back to Mississippi with Rickey several times and “loves it.”
“I love the people. I love how green everything is, seeing deer on the side of the road,” Meriel said. “Everyone is so welcoming here, they’re not standoffish.”
“It is a bit shocking, however, when you travel around and people know who you are,” she said with a laugh. “That’s the girl from Australia.”
Talking about the differences, Rickey noted the lack of crime in Australia.
“I remember there was a big story there one time when a guy robbed a service station with a screw driver,” Tillman laughed. “It doesn’t happen there.”
And there’s no guns.
“There are no guns in people’s households there,” Meriel said. “If your neighbor has a gun, they’re up to no good. They’re not just trying to protect themselves. We just don’t see guns.”
“Where here you have to put stickers on your windows saying don’t bring your guns inside,” Meriel said. “I take pictures of those (no guns allowed) signs. It’s just very different.”
Rickey said Meriel was surprised when they were going for a walk recently and he asked his mom if his dad’s pistol was still around.
“Because the last time we were here and went for a walk in the woods the coyotes ran us out,” Rickey said.
“We’re running down the road from coyotes and I was laughing all the way,” Meriel said. “That doesn’t happen in Australia.”
Rickey said their “ultimate dream” is to develop their business to where they can be here for three to four months and be there in Australia the rest of the time.
They believe Black Swan can turn into that kind of business.
“We want to build it up to be one of the top brands there. We’re also working on a line of beauty supply products,” Rickey said. “There’s more competition here, but we believe our quality will separate us from the rest. Women feel better wearing our hair because of its quality.”