Advancing Your Career in the Beauty Industry

It’s important for any professional to always be learning and growing. Whether you have over 10 years of salon experience under your belt or you’re a recent beauty graduate, there is always room for growth in this fast-growing industry.

According to a Zion Market Research report, the spa and beauty salons market is expecting to reach $190.81 billion in 2024. Fueling the growth of this market is the rising demand for healthy lifestyles and adherence to beauty standards. The salon services and products you provide help clients feel good about themselves.

There are many benefits to expanding your training as a beauty professional. It allows you to master your current skills, expand your services, and keep up with current trends. It will give you a competitive advantage to grow and advance your career in the beauty industry.

Why Further Your Training?

Stay Current with Trends

There are many new trends and practices that have popped up in recent years. Practices such as eyelash extensions and microblading are becoming more popular. In the world of skincare, there are Hollywood Spectra peel and vampire facials. The list continues through various areas of the beauty industry. To advance your career as a beauty professional, you will need to stay up to date with new and upcoming trends.

It’s important to know what is happening in the industry so you can strategically plan your business. You can discover new trends with social media, news media outlets, and trendy blogs. Some places to look include BlogTO, Narcity, and Bustle.

Increase Your Income

As a beauty professional, your income depends on various factors. Your area and level of expertise, client demographics, tipping, and size of the salon all contribute to your income.

Examples of how further training can increase your income:

• You will be able to offer new services
• Ability to provide training to others
• Your current skills will improve which can result in better services and tipping
• Opportunities to switch salons, positions, or start your own business
• Create authority in the industry

Expand Your Services

There are many opportunities to crossover within the beauty industry. You can be a makeup artist looking to branch off into eyelash extensions or an esthetician that wants to expand the type of facial services.

You will be able to take on new clients by expanding your services as a beauty professional, all while retaining your current client base. There are more opportunities for upselling and bundling your services together. For example, you can add on microdermabrasion or a chemical peel to any regular facial. It’s an added incentive for your clients while also allowing you to make more income.

Providing more for your clients will help make you the one-stop-shop for all their beauty needs. Instead of having to go to various professionals, they can just go to you. This is especially if you’ve already created the customer rapport with them.

Opportunity to Become a Market Leader

As a service provider in the beauty industry, clients go to you for your expertise. You will become professional guidance to achieve their desired results. When you further your training, you are working to position yourself better as a market leader. This becomes very appealing, especially on social media.

The more knowledge and expertise, the more you can share with your audience. This can help you build your following and improve your brand presence. Trust is important in a service-based industry, especially when it comes to their appearance and well-being. Clients want to receive services from someone who knows what they’re doing.

Start Your Own Business

Taking extra training courses can help to ensure you’re ready to start your own beauty business. As a business owner, you should have a thorough knowledge of your field. This becomes crucial when you’re running a team of your own as you will need to act as a guide or mentor to those working with you.

As the lead technician, you want to be sure your clients are getting the best service. Your work should be impeccable and shareable. It will be a driving force for business when potential clients discover your work on platforms like social media.

Alongside your beauty services, you can also provide training and mentoring to individuals. With confidence, you’ll be able to create a variety of useful materials, such as:

• Training courses
• Webinars
• Blog posts
• YouTube videos
• E-books and guides

How to Advance in Your Career as a Beauty Professional

Get Certified and Licensed

The first step in your beauty career should be getting the proper certification and licensing. The roadmap will be different depending on what line of work you’re in. Licensing will also vary depending on where you live. It is often required that you receive formal training from an approved cosmetology program and pass an exam. Be sure to do a bit of research on your state requirements ahead of time.

There are various ways to get certified or added training, including:

• Community college
• Technical beauty schools and institutes
• Individual training offered by licensed estheticians and technicians
• Workshops
• Online training

If you’re looking to meet the requirements to get licensed, we recommend training at a community college or technical beauty school. Many private technicians also offer personalized and individual training. You can consider these if you want to expand your skill sets in a specific practice.

To find certifications and training in your area, Google and social media is your friend. Start building a list of potential courses to consider. Search up phrases such as “beauty certifications near me” or “eyelash extension training near me” on Google to find programs in your area.

Things to consider and look for when picking a training program:

• The spectrum of material you will be learning
• Hours of hands-on experience included
• Mentorship and support
• The student to trainer ratio or class format
• The trainer’s background and experience in the beauty industry
• What type of certification will you receive
• Positive reviews from previous students

Be sure to do all the necessary research to ensure that you’re obtaining the best training suited to your needs. You can personally reach out to them and ask any questions you may have.

Attend Networking Events and Webinars

Networking events and webinars are great for staying up to date with the latest trends. Attending these informational events can refine and expand your skills. They are always packed with valuable information that can help keep you on the balls of your feet. Plus, they’re usually free. It never hurts to expand your network by meeting other industry professionals.

To find networking events in your area, you can try searching on various websites such as:

• Eventbrite
• Meetup
• Facebook groups
• Other social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter

Join Facebook Groups

There is probably a Facebook group for everything. Joining Facebook groups are a great way to be a part of a community that shares common interests. It’s where individuals come together to express their opinion. Facebook groups are a safe place to discuss issues, share related content, and offer expertise.

You can learn a lot from reading the posts and comments from other beauty professionals. It also becomes a collaborative platform where you can also share your work for feedback. You are bound to receive constructive feedback to help improve your portfolio.

Keep Practicing

The best way to sharpen up your skills and improve is to keep practicing. You will never get better at your work unless you put in the hours. It will be difficult when you first start, however, the process will get easier with time.

If you need more hours of practice, you can:

• Ask friends or family to be models
• Put advertisements up for volunteers
• Offer your services at a discounted price
• Practice on yourself if possible
• Use practice guides and workbooks

There are many ways and things you can do to advance your career in the beauty industry. You will find yourself grasping more advanced skills and techniques with time. In return, it can increase your income and allow you to start your own business.

What other ways are helping you get ahead of the game in the beauty industry?