It's no secret that the hair industry is hard. The entire service industry is hinged on a solid economy and over the course of the last five years, I have steadily watched the draining effects on the soul and the wallets of my small business owner friends and colleagues.
People are not spending their money. On you.
There's a huge reason and a hundred ways you can make that statement irrelevant in 2025.
If you're enrolled in Cosmetology or another beauty program, this piece is going to be so important for you. Take what resonates and leave the rest, you may circle back when it's the right time in your life and career journey.
You think Hair School is hard? Wait until you're in the real world and clients don't care that you're still learning. They have to wear your work, after all and any adjustments or corrections are now the financial responsibility of the salon that hired you. Now is the time to start really digging deep into your talent, practice and be humble.
Lean into your personal network heavy in the early stages of your education and career. You will build solid relationships; you may lose friends, but the bigger picture is still out there. A life you will love and can afford to enjoy!
Build a portfolio of your work ASAP. Salon owners looking to add to their team want to be able to confidently refer you to their guests and advertise you to those that haven't discovered you yet. A portfolio and honest assessment of your work is key. Don't get in over your head, over-promising and delivering a sub-par performance.
Experiment with your specialties. Learn about men's grooming, read up on the latest trends in hair extensions, bring in your best friend to practice balayage and foil highlighting.
Realize that pricing from student to employee can cause sticker shock for your client base. Salon pricing is set to ensure a profit can be made and even small percentage discounts can throw them out of alignment. This transition may have you shedding off your ride or dies from cosmo school but if you follow some of these tips I share, you should be able to bounce back early in your career.
Don't rely on your salon to be your marketing savior. Sure, corporate positions with JcPenney, Great Clips and Ulta have built in traffic, but they also come with strict rules, long days and no control over your target market. Essentially, you get what you get. To truly have a dream schedule and clients you love working with, independent salons have that market covered.
Keep building your reputation throughout your career. The harder you focus on this, the faster you'll reap the rewards. Strategies to attract clients, engage your page watchers and being a thought leader in your industry all fall into this. Be the service provider that clients, friends and family want to refer.
Do your homework on the salons you are applying for. That's career 101, but a lot of young candidates omit this step while hastily applying to any opening.
Be the candidate that your dream salon can not pass up. You have your resume, your education and your relevant work history to prove you will be a success from day one.
Don't expect that salon owners will fawn over you because you have held a cosmetology license for ten years. If anything, the expectations are way higher the longer tenure you've had. The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects a 7-10% growth in the next 8-10 years in the beauty industry, inclusive of hair and skin. This is much faster than the average of all occupations.
The larger the pool of stylists, the harder it will be to be heard and seen by new guests. Hyper focus on how you can rise to the top of mind of new clients to stay relevant. Being a hairstylist has morphed into being a business owner and you will have to embody all of those traits to be successful and still in business in 2030.
Finally, never stop nurturing the clients and the support that you have. That means your clients, your managers, salon owners and even Kelly that comments the sweetest things on all your hair posts.
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