243 Five Tips for New Stylists

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This episode is like having a friendly mentor by your side as you navigate those exciting first steps in your salon career. We’ll talk about how to build great relationships with clients, sharpen your technical skills, and manage your time like a pro. Plus, we’ll explore the magic of product knowledge—because knowing what to recommend doesn’t just boost sales, it builds trust with clients. And let’s not forget professionalism, which goes beyond just showing up on time. It’s about how you present yourself and honor the salon’s culture and policies.

Whether you’re starting your journey or helping others begin theirs, this episode is packed with practical tips and insights to make those first steps in the beauty industry confident and successful ones. Let’s dive in and set the stage for a rewarding career!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Breaking into the beauty industry can feel
overwhelming, but with the righttools and support, it's totally
doable and even fun.
Whether you're fresh out ofcosmetology school or gearing up
for your first salon job, ormaybe you're a salon owner eager
to help new stylists succeed,this episode is for you.
With 30 years of experience andthe success of running four

(00:23):
award-winning salons under mybelt, I'm sharing the five
essential focus areas every newgrad needs to thrive Client
communication, technical skills,time management, product
knowledge and professionalism.
This episode's like having afriendly mentor by your side as

(00:44):
you navigate those excitingfirst steps in your salon career
.
So, whether you're startingyour journey or you're helping
others begin theirs, thisepisode is packed with practical
tips and insights to make thosefirst steps in the beauty
industry confident andsuccessful ones.
Let's do this.
Welcome to All About Hair thepodcast for anyone who loves the

(01:06):
hair industry.
I'm your host, denise Kylitz, aformer stylist educator and
owner of four award-winningsalons with over 30 years of
experience.
Whether you're refining yourskills or expanding your hair
knowledge, you're in the rightplace.
Join me for expert tips,industry insights and practical

(01:27):
advice to help you thrive in theworld of hair.
This is all about hair.
All right, let's jump rightinto it.
Our first must-know tip and, asa salon owner, keep this in
mind when you're hiring yourgraduates First of all, put
yourself in their shoes.

(01:48):
They're scared.
They've never worked in a salonbefore, right, and as a
graduate, you're scared.
You've never worked in a salonbefore.
So what are the top five thingsthat you need to know right out
of the gate?
That's going to set you up forsuccess.
Okay, tip number one the art ofclient communication.

(02:08):
I cannot stress this enough.
This is going to be probably Idon't know 75, 80% of your
success how you communicate withyour guest.
So picture this you're about tostart your very first client
appointment.
What do you say?
How do you make them feelcomfortable and confident in

(02:28):
your skills?
It's a real anxious moment and,to tell you the truth, even
after years of being on thefloor, sometimes you still feel
that way when you have a brandnew guest coming in and sitting
in your chair, becauseeverybody's different.
So what do you do?
You listen very carefully toyour client's needs and

(02:49):
preferences, okay, ask a lot ofquestions and then provide
honest recommendations Ifthey're requesting something
that you really don't thinkwould look good on them.
It's your job and yourresponsibility to let them know
that you're the professional andjust always remember that
excellent communication thatleads to client loyalty and

(03:12):
referrals, even if you are juststarting and you don't know what
you're doing and you have abrand new client and you said
look, I've never cut thishaircut before, so I might have
to ask for help.
But trust me, I'm not going tolet you go without being happy.
That goes a long way.
And, salon owners, you need togive your newbies permission to

(03:35):
do so and help them.
Of course, tip number two yourtechnical skills.
Yeah, you do need technicalskills.
You can't just go on yourclient communication.
That's not going to do it.
So, mastering the basics as afresh graduate, you're going to
want to make sure that you'vegot a solid grasp on the

(03:57):
fundamental techniques likecutting, styling, coloring.
These are your bread and butterservices.
But remember, it's not all aboutknowing it all, it's about
perfecting what you do know.
So practice, practice, practiceand refine your skills, because
the world of beauty, our world,it is ever evolving.

(04:18):
Take all the classes you can.
Salon owners, get classes inyour salon.
Set up some kind of skillassessment program.
If you need help with that, wehave one.
Just reach out, we can help youdevelop yours.
That was a game changer in oursalon when we had our skill
certification program, becausewe hired directly out of school

(04:42):
and really salon owners.
This is where you need to gonow directly out of school and
really salon owners.
This is where you need to gonow.
Don't just sit there andcomplain that nobody wants to
work.
People are still in cosmetologyschool.
They need a job, okay, and it'sup to you, as a salon owner, to
teach them the ropes.
It's okay.
Just have to change yourmindset just a little bit and

(05:02):
they're wanting to learn.
Tip number three the art of timemanagement.
Okay, wow, working in a saloncan sometimes feel like a
whirlwind, right?
There's all kinds of thingsgoing on.
You got appointments back toback and clients are late, but
they expect you to be on time.
So, being efficient, gettingyour haircut skills, your

(05:27):
haircut services, your coloringservices timed proficiently, you
know, make it a game.
Stay organized, make sure youhave all your tools clean and in
place and make sure that you'reon schedule.
Complete your appointments onschedule.
I know that we used to timethings a lot and part of our

(05:51):
skill assessment was timing.
You know how.
How long does it take to wrap aperm?
How long does it take to put atouch up on?
You need to know your timingand, yeah, when you're first
starting out, it's going to takeyou a little bit longer, but
you have to speed up the process.
Trust me, it's a game changerIf you can get your time

(06:12):
management under control gamechanger.
Now let's talk product yourproduct knowledge.
Tip number four it is not allabout your scissors and your
combs.
It's also about the productsthat you use on your client's
head.
Take the time to learn theproducts that your salon is

(06:32):
carrying.
You don't have to know everysingle ingredient in the bottle,
but know at least one or twothings that this product could
do for your guest and justunderstand what those benefits
are and how they can benefit theperson sitting in your chair
and then recommend that product.

(06:53):
I can't tell you how many timesI've been in a salon and, trust
me, I don't need any moreproducts.
I got all the products I can.
I ever need right, but I stillwant to buy something.
I still want that magic potion.
I want to know what's going onmy head.
Look and when you recommendsomething you don't have to like
be a salesperson.
You are just recommendingsaying, hey, you got frizzy hair

(07:16):
.
Here's what I would recommendfor that.
Okay, maybe stick it in theirhand, show it to them, let them
smell it, touch it, feel it.
This builds trust with yourclients and it does boost retail
sales, so it's a win-win.
And last but not least, being atrue professional.
Yes, and I feel like this isoverlooked, I guess.

(07:41):
So it's more than just yourskills.
It's your entire presence,everything about you.
You got to dress the part, yougot to maintain a clean and
organized workspace and youalways have to adhere to the
salon policies and the handbookof the salon you're working at.
So your professionalism itextends to how you interact with

(08:02):
your team members and, ofcourse, your clients.
Do you shake their hands?
Do you give them hugs?
Do you listen, uh, making eyecontact?
Do you show up at work withyour hair done, nails, clean,
makeup on?
If you wear makeup, or are youcoming in with a messy bun,

(08:23):
wrinkled shirt, crocs, I don'tknow.
You know that just doesn't lookprofessional.
So it's up to you to be a trueprofessional.
So those are the five tips theart of client communication, the
technical skills, the art oftime management, your product
knowledge and being a trueprofessional.
As a graduate, when you startyour first salon job, the

(08:46):
principles hold true.
These are the five things youneed to concentrate on and
really, really, it'll step upyour game and it'll give you a
head start on being successful.
Okay, that's it for today'sepisode of short and sweet, and
I hope you found this valuableand, if you did, could you
please go over to the podcast?
Maybe leave us a review?

(09:07):
I would love, love, love that,and remember the beauty
industry's always changing, soyou got to keep learning, you
got to stay passionate and yougot to keep making the world a
more beautiful place.
One client at a time, everyclient every time.
If you have questions or youwant to share your own
experiences, I would love tohear from you.

(09:28):
Don't hesitate to reach out onany of our social media
platforms and, as always,remember when you know better,
you do better.
Thanks for tuning in to AllAbout Hair.
Here's what I'd love for you todo next Take a screenshot of
this episode and share it onyour Instagram stories.
Tag me at Denise Keilitz so Ican see you're listening.

(09:51):
Sharing helps more peoplediscover the podcast and if
you're really enjoying the show,please leave a review on Apple
Podcasts.
It really helps others find us.
Thanks again, I'm DeniseKeilitz, and remember when you
know better, you do better.
See you next week.