The beauty industry is an exciting, dynamic and innovative place to work in 2024. From aesthetics and skin care to hairdressing and barbering, jobs in the beauty sector are expanding rapidly as more and more people turn to creative professions.
But a love of beauty and a talented eye are not enough to ensure a successful career. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average salary of a hairdresser is $24,850 per year, while that of an esthetician is slightly higher, with an average annual salary of $30,090.
But with a little intelligence, talent and hard work, you can make more money than you ever have before and be on your way to a six-figure income in the salon and spa industry.
Here are our tips for increasing your income in the beauty industry:
1. Find your niche
When you’re just starting out in your field, you’ll probably be tempted (or obliged) to offer a little bit of everything to everyone. It makes sense to start by offering a wide range of services. While it may seem counter-intuitive to offer fewer services, you’ll eventually be able to charge more per service once you’ve found what you’re really good at and made it your specialty.
Take Kathryne Dare Chatelain, aesthetician and microblading specialist. After many years in the industry providing a wide range of facial and body waxing and eyebrow design services, Kathryne Chatelain discovered that she really loved microblading and excelled at it. After limiting her services to eyebrow design, she took the time to become an expert in her field, attracting more clients interested in her niche services and earning more money in general.
Once you’ve figured out what you like and do well, and focused your business, customers will start coming to you for your specific talents, and as you hone those skills, you’ll be in higher demand while charging more for your services in general.
2. Be a marketing specialist
All too often, people working in creative fields forget that they’re also running a business. While pure talent, creativity and a love of your craft are the cornerstones of success, you also need to market yourself if you want to generate a six-figure income.
If you’re not already on social networks, make sure you have an Instagram and Facebook page for your business. Post as often as possible and engage with other accounts. You can use social networks to find new customers as well as to encourage existing customers to rebook and take advantage of promotions.
Social networks are just the beginning: you also need to make sure that your website is up to date (so that people know immediately what you do and where you work) and that it’s listed in as many local directories as possible.
It’s not enough to wait for your salon or spa to generate new clientele if you want to earn a six-figure income.
3. Building relationships (and trust)
The best thing you can do for your business is to become the person your customers trust with their lives! When you strive to be not just a friend, but an expert who knows exactly what their skin, hair or body needs, you build up a list of regular customers who think they can’t live without you.
You can also build trust by consistently delivering exceptional service to your customers. Whatever service you offer, do everything in your power to make every customer who enters your salon or spa feel like a queen or king.
Your customers will trust you when you suggest the various services or add-ons they need, which will increase the overall price of their visit and boost your bottom line. And because your service is so exemplary, they’ll become fervent advocates of your services and recommend your services by word of mouth to all their friends.
4. Give yourself regular salary increases
If you don’t raise your prices regularly, you risk seeing your salary stagnate (but don’t forget that you need to build strong relationships and provide such extraordinary service that your customers are willing to pay more!).
“Raise your prices by at least 6% to 10%,” hair salon owner and author Eric Fisher tells Behind The Chair. He recommends raising prices every year, preferably in November, just before the holiday rush. “People are used to spending more and are in buying mode,” explains Eric Fisher.
5. Strongly encourage re-registration
You want your diary to be full well in advance – and one of the most reliable ways of achieving this is through loyal customers. At the end of your appointment, encourage your customer to book their next appointment directly with you. You can position it as a way of reducing his workload, keeping him in mind, and securing a place in your extremely busy schedule.
6. Retail and sell well
Too many salon and spa artists are content to say good-bye to their customers at the end of an appointment without making any effort to retail. Commissions on retail sales (or direct profits, if you sell your own range of products) can represent a significant increase in revenue that can continue to grow exponentially.
Don’t just recommend a product and hope for the best. During an appointment, you have the opportunity to enthuse a customer about the products you use on them during treatment. Explain how the products work and why you like them so much, adding why you recommend using them regularly.
Make increasing your retail sales a major objective of your sales strategy and you’ll see an almost immediate increase in your revenues.
7. Sell your own products
If you work in the beauty industry independently, or own your own brand of beauty products, you have the opportunity to profit directly from your own range of beauty products. Selling a range of high-quality, luxury branded products is actually easier than you think: you can contact our cosmetics laboratory to select products, order samples and create personalized labels.
8. When you're ready, get out of the house
Opening your own spa, hair salon or barbershop, or launching your own line of beauty products takes work, but should be the ultimate goal if you’re looking to earn a six-figure income. The beauty industry is entrepreneurial by nature: as a beauty professional, you have the opportunity to pay your dues and learn as much as you can early in your career, then use what you’ve learned to build something bigger.
As the owner of a salon, spa or brand, you have the opportunity to build something of value that goes beyond your individual services, which means you can work less and earn more.
Featured companies
- Companies:
- Carmel Cosmetics Labs