Jesse Linares, Sam Villa ArTeam Member, educator and stylist at Structured Hair @jesse.linares, was recently asked if there is anything he is doing differently this year to professionally evolve. Here’s what he had to say…
“In 2025, I plan to be more guest-focused they’re the oft-forgotten magic of our career!
“Starting January 1 this year, I relaunched myself as a cosmetologist. My passion is haircutting, and after twenty years behind the chair, I decided to specialize and only offer haircutting and styling services.
I retired my color apron and discontinued all haircolor. This caused a major disruption to my book, resulting in 60% of my business suddenly disappearing. Last week of December, I was 110% booked. First week of January my book was Swiss cheese – full of holes.
“Even though I had forecasted this change, I was taken aback at how jarring it is to see massive gaps between only a few guests scattered here and there. I had carefully placed my color guests with other stylists, and I felt a pang of regret every time I saw one of my former patrons being cared for by someone else. In one fell swoop, I had been dialed back to a first-year hairdresser, and my ego was stung. Regardless of how much experience and ability I felt I had, it was all equalized now and I had to do the same thing as everyone else: build my book.
“I am chagrinned by how I have rolled my eyes when someone texted to reschedule, or how I have at times canceled someone’s reservation because they were a few minutes late – even though I could have managed it. I had stopped following up with guests after major hair changes, and I seldom conducted a thorough consultation anymore.
“My styling and retail game were weak; ‘I didn’t have time to sell product.‘ I was content with what I delivered in the salon because I was content with my paycheck, and I usually left ‘work stuff’ at work when I left. All of this needed to change immediately – I once again had plenty to prove.
“It is trendy nowadays to expect/demand respect from people, and to take measures when we feel slighted. However, I have come to realize that this is not a sustainable attitude for a public servant – which is essentially what we are. If my guest arrives twenty minutes late for their reservation, and I have time to do it anyway, I must. If someone reschedules multiple times and my book allows for it, I cannot complain.
“‘The Book is The Law’ – regardless of my rank/status/tenure as a stylist, this is always true.
“Nowadays, I don’t enforce a cancellation policy, and I don’t levy a fee against a no-show. While it sometimes hurts a little to feel like someone is walking all over me, I call it cost of doing business. The best solution is to keep smiling and fill my book. When my guests know my time is premium, cancellations and no-shows will be rare occurrences – I already proved that before. It will take time and patience to train my new guests, but it will happen!
“Over the years I have also learned that most people really value their reservations, and when unexpected things happen in their lives, it’s just a real downer to have their hairdresser harshing on them for being late or needing to reschedule! And for that occasional guest who just doesn’t seem to ‘get it’, a professional and frank face-to-face conversation will usually rectify the situation. In the moment, they want to feel valuable and have a great experience (which, incidentally, they are paying for). It’s our job (joy) to give it to them.
“Small gestures like a good consultation and follow-up communication go a long way toward preventing issues and solidifying guest loyalty. In today’s saturated market, these simple things can really make a stylist stand out from the pack. The ‘Guest Experience’ is more paramount than ever before!
“As of this writing, I am rebuilding my book. Hustling now for every haircut and referral I can get, I am aware of how precious each guest is, and how integral each one is to my livelihood and – by extension – my overall well-being. If only I had realized this profound truth in year one!”
Linares will be at America’s Beauty Show teaching 1 hour classes, filter by Classroom #14 to view the full schedule here.