I love working in beauty — Isn’t it apparent?! Professionally, nothing makes me happier.
Regularly I get emails from followers, friends of friends, etc., asking for advice on pursuing a career in Beauty. Recently a young lady, lets call her, “B”, contacted me to ask the following:
I was talking to “A” the other day about my interest in beauty. She mentioned your name and told me to get in touch with you. I hope you don’t mind!
I have become interested in the beauty sector over the past several months and am considering going into it as a career (though I think it is a difficult area to get your foot in the door). I’m not as interested in the makeup artistry end as the business end — production, marketing and the like. However, I’m not quite sure what steps I should take to help me on my desired career path. I am thinking that maybe I should take a makeup artistry course to better understand makeup. Also, it seems that the blogosphere and youtube play a large role in beauty these days, so starting a blog is something I’ve considered as well.
I was wondering if you had any advice about your experiences as a beauty consultant and blogger and any suggestions on steps I should take to get better acquainted with the beauty sector. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I decided to share my response here on the blog, in hopes that it helps some young tender roni out there in search of advice on establishing a career in Beauty. So here you go. All the best!
Hi “B”! I’m happy to help. Beauty is an incredibly fulfilling area of business, if you have a passion for it. If you’ve had no beauty experience, I recommend that you begin immersing yourself in beauty via organizations (like CEW, and others – start your research), attend industry trade shows like IMATS, HBA, IBS, The Makeup Show, etc. You should also begin establishing your interest via social media (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, blogs, your own blog, etc.) and connecting with like minded individuals, groups, and organizations.
Realistically, and depending on your end game, be prepared that it can take 2-3 years to establish yourself and break through the clutter…beauty is quite saturated. This is in no way a deterrent, but more so me trying to give you a honest look into what it takes to make a career switch into beauty. Oh, and, you should definitely learn the basics and mechanics of makeup application, even if artistry is not the end game. If you want to work in beauty, you gotta know what you’re talking about when it comes to makeup! Also increase your understanding of fragrance, hair care (for all ethnicities), nail care, cosmetic procedures, etc. You’ll be expected to have more than surface knowledge.I hope this is helpful.All the best,Felicia
