What is a master stylist? How the hair industry secretly defines Master

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Are you getting your money’s worth for your hair salon services?

The hair industry is literate with names for hairdressers. Stylist, beautician, and hairdresser are terms that are used for the same profession, and that is simply hairdresser. There are definitely different skill sets with hairdressers, and more often than not, those with vast experience in the hair industry do a good job with hair. However, we are about to expose some truths about what a “Master Stylist” is. Think about it. If you’re planning to pay for a master stylist, you probably want a little information to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth, right?

Very common: The Master Stylist of “Sales”

In many conventional salons, you’ll be surprised to learn that the different levels of achievement have nothing to do with skill, but rather with salesmanship. As a stylist brings more money to a salon week after week, then he can begin to advance in title. He is similar to a salesperson who meets and exceeds sales quotas. The line of thought is that if more and more clients come to see a particular stylist, then he/she must be doing a great job, so give them a promotion!

Promotions based on money brought to a salon do not equate to great services. It may mean that the stylist has a great personality, connects well with guests, or may just be a fantastic salesperson (smooth-talking people can really do well to get promoted).

Don’t fall into the trap of falling in love with the so-called “teachers”. The good news is that you will eventually discover that there are constant errors in your cut and color. Unintentional uneven haircuts, holes in the hairstyle, and green or orange color are “tells” of a master who really should not have this title.

Common: The master stylist “Dinosaur”

The other teacher has “earned” the title of years of service in the industry (6+). Let me warn you, just because someone has done their hair for 30 years doesn’t mean they’ve done it right for 30 years. If someone doesn’t get any formal education outside of beauty school, then you’re probably in his ways and could be doing poorly for the last 30 years, hence the term. dinosaur. It’s like buying a PC from 20 years ago and never getting an upgrade.

The fact is that beauty schools only teach students how to pass the cosmetology exam. It is in line with what is wrong with our educational system in this country. We teach our kids to take a test and they become excellent test takers, but they never really learn the material. The same is true for cosmetology schools and their graduate students. Once a cosmetology student graduates and passes the exam, she goes directly to cutting the client’s hair. Would you hire a lawyer to handle your important case immediately after passing the bar, or have a doctor perform surgery before your internship? Of course, no! But that’s what happens with most stylists.

These recently graduated stylists who continue their work improve over the years, even if it is by trial and error. They cover up their mistakes with fancy moves and flowery language. Have you ever had a stylist aggressively cut your hair and expertly flip it?

Now many hairstylists have taken up a new trend to cover up their inability to be precise and that is to use a razor to sculpt their hair. If you’ve had your hair sculpted with a razor, then you know better than anyone that it takes forever to get your hair done in the morning while you’re trying to look decent before you leave the house. Tons of gels, sprays, powders, bobby pins, and clips are used to keep it in place. I’m sure if I had a choice I’d use glue and tape if I could.

The fact is that if you learn to do something wrong and you never know it’s wrong, you will do it wrong for the rest of your life until someone shows you otherwise. The solution to this is education outside of beauty school. Learning how to cut hair correctly is taught only in the most famous salons. But there is a catch. These advanced education classes are just 1, 3 or 5 day seminars. Have you heard of the 80/20 rule? Well, this means that of those who can actually afford to take the classes or take the time to travel to Chicago, New York or California for these seminars, only 20% will notice and the other 80% won’t (but will). will do). still put your training on your resume). Even then, a 5-day seminar won’t produce an expert, but it will at least get the stylist closer to their goal.

Less common: The master of the “template”

The template masters are the most cunning fake experts. The reason why they are crafty is because these masters have taken classes over the years for formal education giving the impression of a true master stylist. However, the additional classes and training were about learning specific haircuts, not methods and techniques. One of the most notable successes in the hair industry is that of a popular national chain. They created a system in which they specify haircuts they are taught and passed on to their stylists. Each haircut is given a different name within their community, and each graduate returns to their salon and gives their clients the cut they have just learned. The problem is that the typical hairdresser jumps from salon to salon every 6 months to a year. They leave only knowing certain cuts, but they never learned how to style their own cut. In reality, some of these salons won’t allow for creativity because they want to maintain a standard level of service across all brand locations. Therefore, they force all their clients to fit into the same template.

STRANGE: The “real” master stylist

Very hard to find are true master stylists who can be identified as members of the design teams at Vidal Sasson, Arrojo Studios, Ted Gibson and Jos Eber. You will find that regardless of the team, many of the teachers on these teams were either heavily trained by Vidal Sasson teachers or trained by those who come from a Vidal Sasson-trained teacher. An indicator of a true master is that he or she DOES NOT USE CLIPPERS. Whether it’s a men’s or women’s cut, razors are a “dirty word” for the true craftsman. Unfortunately, in some states like Texas, razors must be used on the neck instead of a straight razor due to state laws. This would be the only exception to the use of razors.

NEAR EXTINCT: The Grand Master and his protégé

The creme de la creme are those considered “Grand Masters”. A Grand Master is one who has earned the prestigious Venus of Long Beach Medallion(1), which designates him or her as a world champion designer. On rare occasions, and only if you’re lucky, you might find a Grandmaster’s protégé. A protégé is someone who has done more than take a 5-day course, but has studied intensively and trained daily with a Venus Medallion winner for 6 months to a year or more. Venus winners and their protégés are extremely rare gems that are hard to find. If you find one, hold it in awe and respect as the level of training and skill they have acquired is second to none.

In a world full of namesake and most celebrated experts, interviewing your stylist is your best bet for finding the true master. It may take time and work to sift through the darkness to identify the vendors, dinosaurs and institutionalized staff cronies, but his efforts will pay off when he finally finds that rare gem. In a later article, we’ll go into more detail about what to ask a stylist and how to properly examine her work to determine if you should give her a chance to work on your hair. Thereafter, you can be sure that you are getting your money’s worth for their services.

References:

(1) International Salon and Spa Expo (2012). ISSE Long Beach Special Events Competition. Retrieved on April 17, 2012 from probeauty.org.

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