The weird and wonderful world of hairdressing!
Ever wondered if you’ve got what it takes to be a hair stylist?
We hear the words: ‘you make it look easy’ quite a lot in the salon!
For an experienced stylist, it can look as though it is extremely easy to cut and style hair.
Of course, it can take years to perfect the art but initially, the training lasts 18 months to 2 years. After this period of time, a level 2 certificate is gained. During training, apart from the practical side of things, there are many things to learn about, such as the structure of hair, scalp diseases, infestations, and the science of shampoo and conditioner. Added to that is the complicated world of colouring.
Also very importantly, health and safety, disposal of hazardous waste, customer service and all the practical subjects such as cutting, styling, setting, hair up, barbering, perming, lightening and colouring!
These are all official subjects but stylists often have other talents that can be attributed to many years of experience of dealing with different types of customers.
Clients often confide in their stylists and of course, the need for discretion is paramount to build trust. If we don’t treat client’s problems or confessions in the strictest confidence, the relationship would quickly crumble with no trust.
Being able to listen is one of the most important aspects of the job. A session with a hairdresser is a close up and personal experience and as humans, we are mostly naturally friendly. We form relationships with people we get along with and a session in the salon is the perfect environment to build friendships.
This happens a lot when we see our customers on a regular basis. Having your hair done is (usually) a happy experience, with the magical feel-good factor, it sets a positive tone.
We often have to give advice too… It can be something simple like recommending a product for a particular hair problem, or it could be something more serious such as a scalp disorder or hair loss. We may have to suggest a visit to a G.P. or Trichologist.
Other duties we may have to perform are training the rest of the team, dealing with cash and card transactions, running the diary and very importantly – cleaning! All day, every day!
This is a snapshot of what a stylist does!
The job is varied and interesting to say the least. Hairdressing evolves all the time and we have to keep up with ongoing training. It’s not for the faint hearted that’s for sure!
The old saying, ‘do a job you love and you won’t work a day in your life’ is true but say that to a stylist that’s worked a really busy Saturday!