The Aspiring Stylist with Tracey Franklin

Morgan Franklin: Welcome to the
Aspiring Stylists Podcast with

Tracey Franklin. Where to begin,
grow and aspire to become the

best stylist you can be. Whether
you're thinking about becoming a

stylist opening a salon, or
developing your skills as an

experienced stylist the next
step of your beauty career

starts here. Each week we'll
discuss strategic ways to

design, plan and execute on
becoming a stylist that excels

behind the chair and above the
bottom line. Here's your host,

Tracey Franklin.

Tracey Franklin: I have dreamed
of opening a school for over a

decade now, I love to teach and
I've spent a lot of time pouring

into students through teaching
at surrounding schools shadow

days and my apprenticeship
program. As a salon owner

recruitment is always on our
minds. So I was also hoping to

attract some top tier talent.

But to be perfectly honest, the
pickings were slim, so much

time, energy and resources went
into onboarding new stylists

getting them trained and Salon
ready, all with no real

guarantee that they would even
stay afterwards. So opening

Aspire definitely started as a
passion project, but also one

out of necessity. We take a lot
of pride in our extensive

curriculum and the vast array of
guest educators that have

already visited our school and
the real world skill set that

they develop that will set them
up for success from the very

beginning. I know there are a
lot of schools out there that

run good programs and produce
skilled graduates. But there are

also some out there that are
doing the bare minimum, making

it really hard on their students
when they graduate, a new

graduate struggling to find a
job will be very discouraged,

they will likely take a position
at a salon that wasn't really on

their list or make shitty money
and have to take a second job

just to get by, or worse give up
altogether. And honestly, this

one breaks my heart the most.

This is not a unique situation
either. I've seen so many

talented stylists give up
because they got a rocky start,

or they leave school with a
flawed skill set and no real

business or people skills, there
is so much more to our industry

than just doing hair. And they
need to know what metrics to

measure for growth and how to
talk to their guests and perform

a good consultation, how to
recommend proper at home care

and how to get that guest on the
books for next time. These are

just a few of the skills you
will need to have in order to

really serve your guests well.

So while you're in school, you
do have the opportunity to get

advanced trainings and
certificates. And they really

are a great idea for students.

And it gives them a lot more
options when it comes to the

services that they can offer
like right out of school. So

many certifications are fairly
affordable, like masters of Bali

is one of my favorite ones. It's
an incredible advanced training

that you do online once a week
on a mannequin for a three month

period of time. It's really fun
and no pressure. And the last

time I looked, I think it was
around $300 for the course. Then

there's Brazilian blowouts.

That's a certification which is
entirely free for all students

and stylists. And both of these
services are well worth the time

and investment, especially if
you take into consideration the

price point that they both yield
in the salon. Getting your

license is only the first step
in building a career after

graduation. To be perfectly
honest, the work has just begun.

Building a clientele is not for
the weak, it requires a great

deal of self promotion and
talking to people you don't know

about who you are, and why they
should give you a chance. One of

my mentors said something to me
that is really stuck. He said,

You gave up the right to be shy
when you entered this industry.

And it couldn't be more true.

Building a clientele and
connecting with your guests

requires a lot of engagement.

And I've seen people really
struggle with this if they're a

little bit more on the shy side
or their people skills aren't

super strong. But I've also seen
people come out of their shell

and really flourish behind the
chair because of it. Our role in

the client stylist relationship
goes way beyond hair. So if

you're struggling to build your
clientele or retain the clients

that you do have, you need to
ask yourself if you're putting

enough energy into the
relationship. I mean, they can

get a decent haircut anywhere.

We have to give them reasons to
choose us over and over again.

So what business skills do
students need to know that they

normally aren't going to learn
in school? Well, students need

to know a few business basics
upon graduation and you will not

find that very many schools have
that in their curriculum. They

need to know how to set a goal
just a basic goal, one that has

action steps and can be
measured. They need to know how

to track their progress so they
know when to raise prices and

what to charge for their
additional services and time.

They also need to know what it
cost them when their client buys

their products. elsewhere, or
what it costs to replace that

client altogether. A lot of
people ask if the students

should start marketing
themselves while they're still

in school. And in my opinion,
it's never too soon to start

growing your following building
your clientele and promoting

yourself that should start in
school. Social media is

undeniably the easiest and most
effective way of growing your

reach and getting the word out.

This is who I am, this is what I
do. This is how you can benefit.

And this is where you can find
me. All this information will

live on your profile. And all
you have to do is show up a few

days a week, interact with
people a little bit and showcase

some of your best work. If you
aren't willing to do this, I

wish you luck. The van have
clients begging for your

services isn't coming. So you
better figure out what you are

willing to do. Not to mention a
stylist interviewing at a salon

with no portfolio of their work
as very suspect to me, and I'm

not likely to take it any
further. I think students being

in the salon early on is an
incredible way to start making

those connections. Shadow days
are a great opportunity for

students or applicants to see
how the salon operates. To see

what a busy day in that
environment feels like? How do

they treat their clients? How do
they treat each other? Is the

vibe in the salon a good match
for you? Well, Shadow days are a

great preview and you should
take full advantage. I'm always

surprised when someone comes to
shadow me and they don't ask any

questions. I mean, I realize it
takes some people some time to

warm up. But if we've spent the
whole day together and you

didn't pick my brain, you've
wasted your time and mine. So

please show up looking great.

ask all the questions and get
the most you can out of that

opportunity. Students should
definitely be trying to get that

real world experience while
they're still in school. So we

often try to hire students to
work in the salon part time as

part of the front desk personnel
or to be an assistant. This

allows us to see what their work
ethic is like do they call in a

lot? Are they late, we also get
to see how well they take care

of the guests and how they
interact with the team. In turn,

they get to be part of the team
and see if our culture and

business practices align with
them and what they see for

themselves. So how are you
supposed to get clients in the

salon when you're still in
school? Well, one of the best

ways for students to get real
world experience is in the

students salon, you will be
learning what it takes to be a

good service provider and how to
be a good listener. You may have

heard this before. And the rumor
is true clients tell their

stylist everything. So
multitasking is a must. It also

teaches you how to manage your
time and how to work within

appointment parameters. A spire
is still a relatively new

academy. So we are still
building our presence and our

reputation in our community. So
our students have an active part

in getting the word out and
getting clients in their chair.

Or they will have to work on
mannequins, which isn't nearly

as much fun. Some things in
beauty school will never change.

And one of those things is
experimenting on each other's

hair. So many girls go into
school, a virgin, a color

virgin. And it's an absolute
miracle. If you graduate without

experiencing some undesirable
results. Some things that just

didn't turn out quite right. And
for some it's a miracle if you

graduate with any hair at all.

But it is a good way of learning
some valuable lessons, what to

do, and especially what not to
do. I also believe models are a

great way to transition from the
mannequin to people without

feeling the pressure of being a
paying client. This is a good

time for you to reach out to all
your friends and family and see

who's willing to support you. Or
should I say who's willing to

trust you. So now it's time to
transition from student to

stylist? Well, you can't hit a
target that you can't see. So

you do have to know how to set
goals. It's important to know

how much money you need to make
to support yourself. How many

days are you going to work? Now
you know how much you need to

make each day. Now play with the
services you offer and see what

services are the most rewarding,
both financially and creatively.

Now you need to take a look at
your schedule and come up with a

plan. Always have a plan. If you
don't have enough services on

your book, it's time to look at
what else is possible. What can

we do to add more value to the
guest service plan and more

money to your paycheck, write it
down and at the end of the day,

assess the plan and see what
worked and where you landed. Do

this every day and watch how
setting an intention makes such

a difference. You can choose to
settle for whatever is on your

book or you can be a co creator
in your life and do what it

takes to succeed. It's totally
up to you. The students were

asking me the other day, Miss
Tracy, what's your niche and you

know, and I told them, what's
extensions, it's color. It's the

things that I enjoy doing And
they said, Well, what's our

niche? And I said, Well, I'm not
sure that's something you get to

decide. So a lot of them are
saying the same things. Well, I

think it'll be extensions. While
you're not doing extensions.

Yeah. How do you know? I don't
know. I just feel like it will.

It's so fun to hear these
excited creative juices flowing

in their minds. And I honestly
cannot wait to see all this play

out. But your niche will change
through the years in school,

it's probably going to fall
somewhere between what you

really enjoy doing and what
you're really good at. But stay

open to new things. The great
part about this industry is how

fast it changes, trends come and
go. And you can pivot and

reinvent yourself as often as
you want to finding your salon

home. How can you find the best
salon for you? Well, it is

really important, and you
shouldn't be waiting until

you're out of school to start
looking. So book those shadow

days and get that resume
updated, be prepared and be

ready. Nothing impresses me more
than receiving a student's

resume while they're still in
school. Someone that's planning

ahead and doing the footwork,
and my book is a great sign. So

there are a lot of beauty
professionals in your community

that it would probably be a good
idea to build a relationship

with. The easiest way to connect
with him is just to follow them

on social media, like their
content, ask them questions and

see how you can find out more
about them and where they work

and whether or not that might be
a good fit for you. All right,

so now it's graduation time and
I'd like to go over some of my

favorite points to know that you
are salon ready. First, make

sure that you have gotten
everything you can out of that

curriculum, leave no stone
unturned. I don't care if you

think you're going to do the
service or not, you're gonna

need it to pass your test. And
it's always good to have as many

skill sets in your pocket as
possible. Next, if you're not

confident in your service, try
and try again, practice may not

make perfect but it will make it
better. Never be too good to

bust out that mannequin head and
keep practicing. Then make sure

you have no less than five
shadow days in at least three

different salons that you're
interested in working at. Make

sure you've submitted resumes to
those salons. And lastly, make

sure that you have a strong
online portfolio do not skip

this part. I'm so thankful to be
a small part of your journey.

Thank you so much for listening,
and I wish you all continued

success in your careers.

Morgan Franklin: Thank you for
joining us on this episode of

anytime soon. The Aspiring
Stylist Podcast with Tracey

Franklin. If you enjoyed
listening and you want to hear

more, make sure you subscribe on
Apple Podcast, Spotify or

wherever you find your podcasts.

The Aspiring Stylist Podcast
with Tracey Franklin is a Morgan

Franklin Production. Today's
episode was written and produced

by Morgan Franklin editing and
post-production by Mike

Franklin. Want to find out more
about Tracey and the Aspiring

Barber and Beauty Academy go to
aspirebarberandbeauty.com