Recently I have been doing my friends’ hair for parties and other occasions, and they have been telling me that I’ve got a knack for this. Most importantly, I seem to feel the happiest when I’m styling someone’s hair.
After having this realization, I started to wonder if I should consider pursuing a career as a hairstylist. With that rose, the question in my mind—is being a hairstylist a good career?
Being a hairstylist is indeed a good career! Everything, starting from the salary, tips, commissions to meeting new people and making connections are nothing beneficial for your life. Of course, it depends greatly on how skilled you are at the job. But that is something that you can develop with time and effort.
Besides, if you truly enjoy hairstyling as an activity, it automatically makes hairstylist the best career for you. Because of the many perks accompanied with it—especially in the payscale—it just becomes a much better career choice for you!
Do hairstylists make good money?
One of the aspects that makes a career worth pursuing is definitely measuring the money you can earn from it. While enjoying what you do is important, it won’t be enough to pay the rent and the bills.
Good news for you, hairstylists do make good money! It’s actually far easier than you think for a hairstylist to have a thick figure of cash in their bank account by the end of the year.
The prices of haircuts, blow-drying, treatment, straightening, waving, hair extensions, spikes, and others are constantly on the rise. This is because the prices of commercial rents, raw materials, and other treatments have been on the up lately, too. Therefore, hairstylists in medium to large salons can earn a lot. And their wages can increase as the days go by.
How to make more money as a hairstylist?
Now you know that there’s sufficient hope for you to be able to pay all your bills easily if you choose hairstyling as a career. So you might be wondering how to make even more money to meet your additional needs.
You will be happy to know that there are a bunch of ways you can do that. For example-
- Hone in on a certain niche: Furnish a special or unique and useful skill that your competitors don’t have. That way, more customers will come to you for that one service and may even be willing to pay extra.
- Expand your services: Learn new skills and expand the range of the services you offer.
- Begin a loyalty program: A loyalty program encourages clients to come back. You can give rewards and special offers to repeating customers, which will make them want to come again.
- Selling gift certificates: Selling gift certificates can boost your revenue by a lot and give customers a reason to come to your salon.
- Market yourself: Join social media, post your best works, promote your salon, make online appointments, and reach a wider audience.
- Create an attractive display: Everything starting from the salon’s title banner to the interior designing should be attractive enough for customers to be drawn to it and even want to come back again. Make sure that your hairstylist is also using one of Mane Caper’s jackets, aprons, or capes during your visit
How much money does a stylist make?
When it comes to asking yourself if being a hairstylist is a good career, you will probably consider one of the first things.
With the cost of mere haircuts rising over the years for various reasons, it’s now possible for an average hairdresser to earn as much as $22,700 to $120,000 annually. However, it differs from state to state as well as from salon to salon.
Hairstylists can charge the client based on their demand and skills. That’s why highly skilled and popular hairstylists have high demands and can work in the best salons. As a result, they can make as much as $300,000 per year.
According to US News Money, most hairdressers made over $26,000 on average in the year 2019. The best-paid 25% of the bunch made $36,730 in 2019, while the lowest-paid 25% made $20,900. As of 2021, the average figure has risen to around $35,000. It might rise more in the future.
How do stylists make money?
Now that you know how much hairstylists can make annually, you might be wondering about the pay structures that are followed to make that money.
There are four pay structures for stylists to make money. These are-
- Hourly rate: Hairstylists get paid on a stable hourly basis regardless of whether they brought in any clients or not.
- Annual rate: Same as hourly, but not compensated for additional work outside the fixed working hours.
- Commission-based: Stylists are given a high commission rate based on the products they sell and the clients they attract.
- Performance-based: Almost the same as commission-based. Stylists get paid according to how much work they’re putting in while still having an hourly or annual rate.
How much money does a hairstylist make a week?
You know the yearly income of an average hairstylist. But you might be the kind of person who focuses more on the short-term future instead of the long one, which is why you probably want to know the weekly income of a hairstylist.
As of March 2021, a hairstylist of the United States can get average pay of $624 per week based on the percentile. With the 25th percentile, the figure can be $442. Meanwhile, it will be $683 for the 75th percentile. Bigger salons’ weekly wage might be around $1,500, while the lowest would be around $231.
How much money does a hairstylist make per hour?
Suppose you have chosen the hourly wage pay structure. So you might be wondering how many hours you need to work a day to get the amount of money you need to lead your life in peace. Therefore you will need to know how much a stylist can make per hour.
In the US, a hairdresser or hairstylist’s hourly wage can range between $9-$20, depending on the percentile. Basically, an average of $14.33 (as of March 2021) is ensured per hour for a hairstylist. Bigger salons might pay as much as $25+ while smaller ones might pay only $6 per hour.
In conclusion, there is no need to feel hesitant when choosing hairstyling as a profession. A hairstylist is a good career indeed. As long as you’re diligent in your job and are willing to improve constantly, you will certainly be able to get the best out of it.