Take the Risk
Take the Risk!
Prior to starting my business, growing up as a kid I had a strong love for art and creating. In elementary grade 6/7, I started making clay charms. Michaels craft store was my favourite place, I would buy clay and make little charms shaped as celebrities, fruits, animals, and many more. I would then put these clay creations into the oven to harden, and afterward I would make bracelets out of them.
I actually had a friend ask me to make her something in elementary school and she paid me for it, so in a way I had a small side hustle. I genuinely enjoyed being creative and making these charms.
In grade 7, I also got into making stock cards. I’m not even sure where the idea came from, but once again I convinced my dad to take me to Michaels and I got all the supplies I needed. I would make cards for my family, and they would give me money — I’m sure mostly to make me feel good. Safe to say, I still have those supplies and sometimes I still make cards for my family and friends.
This mindset of having my own business stuck with me because when I was 17, I finished high school a semester early since I wanted to work and save up. I somehow ended up with three jobs at one point: one at a bakery, another at Canadian Tire, and lastly at Nando’s. I eventually had to drop one of the jobs, but even while working all the time, I wasn’t able to save much money.
In 2019, my best friend was in hair school, and I remember complaining to her about money. She told me, “Why don’t you start your own business?” and suggested becoming a lash technician. I wasn’t too sure about it at first, but I took her advice and looked into it. I found a lash technician whose work I really liked, so I decided to invest in it. At the time, the course was $1100, and I didn’t really have money to spare. I still took the risk, and it ended up being one of the best risks I’ve ever taken.
Even though it took a lot of practice to get where I am now, I will always say this: everyone who takes risks are the ones who succeed. Being in school while running my business went hand in hand and gave me so much freedom. Although I still have a lot of growing to do and I’m not yet where I want to be, I’m proud that I’ve been able to continue this business for the past six years.
Building Clientele
In the beginning of starting my business it was the most challenging. I started at a young age, and prior to starting my business I had zero marketing skills. The biggest challenge was building a reliable clientele list. Even after completing my training, I had to continue training myself to make sure I could maintain great lash sets with good retention and in a reasonable amount of time.
I practiced on friends and family while also taking clients right away. One of the biggest mistakes people make is taking the training course and doing nothing with it then complaining that they don’t have a place to work or that they’re too scared to start. Clients are only worried about how their lashes are going to turn out. I did my first two clients on my couch, and I also offered mobile services with extra fees. This really helped me grow my clientele and get my name and work out there.
The biggest takeaway with any service business is to give it your all every time. Don’t half-ass it and expect clients to keep coming back. There are constantly people getting into the industry 24/7, so it’s important to always give it your best and only showcase your best work online.
Your social media, especially your Instagram page, becomes your portfolio. Most people looking for beauty services will check your Instagram to see your work. If half your work is good and half is bad, you have about a 50 percent chance that person will book with you. But if you only post your best work, you increase that chance to almost 90 percent.
Building your clientele is about 60% word of mouth and 40% social media. That’s why it’s so important to put your best work out there. Stay consistent and trust that when you show up fully, the universe will meet you halfway and reward you with success.
