Episode 6: Part 3 of 3: The Only 3 Ways to Make More Money as a Personal Stylist
So, you wanna become a personal stylist? Join us on this three part series as we break down what it’s REALLY like to run a business, things they don’t tell you, and what you’ll need to do to succeed.
PART 3 -
I’ve been in the styling industry for the better part of 10 years and I’m convinced that there are only three ways to make more money as a stylist.
Raise your prices
Grow a team
Get online
I want to spend a little bit of time talking about each - because there are pros and cons to all of them and none of them is a bad option. And I don’t want YOU dear stylist to think you aren’t doing it right if you want to be a solo preener and create a solid business for yourself. And on the flip side, if you want to get online, I want to make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons for YOU, not because it’s the latest business fad.
1. Raise Your Prices
Yep - I said it. You can’t go around charging $75 or $100 / hr for ever. At some point, you’ll need to raise your prices if only to represent your years in the industry and gained experience. Depending on where you live, you can probably charge anywhere from $150 - $350 / hour or package services from $1,200 - even $10,000 depending on your ideal client (yep, think about super rich people who want a stylist on retainer. Get a few of those and you’ll have a good option).
pros
Create a solid business, work for yourself, not have to manage a team, keep all the money.
create various income streams as a way to increase your income and expand your growth areas. Work as a stylist on set, work with photographers, create packages, etc.
cons
you may reach a cap on what you can charge hourly.
You’re limited to the number of people you can serve in a day because of the nature of 1:1 services.
2. Grow a Team
I tried this one out. I hired 2 people. Both talented, one needing more training than the other from the offset. But ultimately, this wasn’t for me. I really don’t like managing people.
pros
this will allow you to reach and serve more clients. you could also even grow outside of your immediate location
you’ll grow a team! that’s pretty damn cool and you’ll get more clients
you can take on more work
you can retire the day to day if that’s what you want to do
cons
more expenses and legal stuff - if you add team members: are they employees and then do you need payroll? are you paying for health benefits? can you afford that? are they contracts? what does your contract then say about work they can do with other stylists?
less time doing styling - more time spent doing admin work on the business
you gotta oversee people. and sometimes that means firing people. and that can be sucky. unless you’re a cold hearted fashion person and you like that sort of thing (devil wears prada anyone?).
3. Get Online
Okay - let’s dive into this one. Because it seems like these days there are virtual services everywhere and everyone has an online course, is teaching a master class or webinar, or has $2 downloadable PDFs.
Taking your business online can definitely be the way to go if you want the freedom to work anywhere, more flexible hours / work locations, and the potential to expand.
BUT you need to think strategically because there is a different in scale between virtual 1:1 work and online group programs.
Pros:
the freedom to work anywhere, any time you want. this is HUGE draw for people - especially in this day and age of freelance work.
the potential for unlimited growth - IF you’re going for the group offering, then you have the potential to make more money for your time.
sometimes online group works comes in at a lower price point if you are leveraging the power of numbers. NEVER discount your services just because you are offering them virtually.
reach clients around the globe
Cons:
online business take TIME to cultivate and grow. just because you put out a webpage that has a buy now button - doesn’t mean anyone is going to buy it. You still have to actively market, promote, and send out emails about this way to work with you.
If you don’ like managing people - news for ya: you’ll need to learn to like it and to delegate. Hiring a team is the only way to go if you’re going to go online. There are SO many aspects to running an online business, that you’ll only be able to do so much.
Speaking off… there are so many aspects of running an online business! I’ve created a style course, business course, and online membership and when I tell you that sometimes I feels like I just write all day long - it’s because I’ve been writing all day long - website pages to promote the product, abandoned cart emails, welcome emails, automation emails, course material, monthly emails, posts, blah blah blah.
it can be LOT of upfront work - not a lot of $$ when you start, but less work later, and more $$$$ as you grow and snowball.
Time for… listener Qs!
An online platform for sharing files / photos of outfits or clothing pieces with clients? - @jf.stylecoach (2/3/20)
Hue and Stripe - I would venture to say this is the most popular and well known of the group. It’s probably one of the pricer options, but it’s really easy to use. I used it myself when I was working with 1:1 clients. A lot of stylists in TFC use this.
GoodPix (formerly Pixavo) - several stylists in TFC have switched to this platform because it’s a lower cost. I don’t think it’s as intuitive or pretty in the design, but works! It sounds like they have bene listening to stylist feedback and making tweaks to make this platform work well.
Garmentier - way newer, the founder reached out to me to schedule a call, but I haven’t been able to schedule one yet.
Google Drive - old school, but it works! I’ve used this.
That’s a wrap
Allright, that’s it for this week, you can find me on Instagram at @chicstripes and all podcast things at www.chicstripes.com/podcast.