Considering becoming a hairdresser

[Amber-]

Hi everyone.
I have always loved hair (especially extensions and colour) and am interested in training as a hairdresser.
What attracts me to it is that, I find the subjects interesting, I like working with my hands and I think it would be a rewarding job. Plus, I would like to have a skill that will allow me to relocate anywhere I like, and this seems like a good choice since there are salons in every town.

I have a few questions I hope you don't mind me asking,

1. What is the best way to study- apprentice, college course?
2. What would you consider to be the pro's and cons of the job?
3. What is the average salary both during training and after qualifying?

Since my biggest love is extensions I have been looking into studying that alone, however all I can find are 1 day courses, I cannot see how I can do a job on a client after only having 1 day's training?

 

[Tonianne]

im not a hairdresser, but i would think you would need your level 2 in at least cutting to know how to blend the extension in the hair.... im sure an hairdresser will be along to answer your questions soon x

 

[persianista]

Hiya. Hair is still the love of my life after 25 years! It is a job that is always in demand, and I have never been unemployed.
By far the best way to train is apprentice in the best salon you can find, with day release to college to get your NVQ's. Hairdressers trained this way are more sought after than purely college trained ones.
The hair industry is a meritocracy. The better you are and the more clients you retain, the more you sell determines how much you earn. As a rule, newly qualified with no clientelle start on min wage right through to top stylists in big salons who earn large salaries. There are more and more millionaire hairdressers!
There is no quick or easy way to train, a couple of short courses would get you laughed out of a salon. It is a skill based job which requires time and practice to master.

 

[princessrach]

I agree fully with persianista, with regards to hair extensions I do believe courses are offered to non hair pro's, however, my advice would be to train as a hairdresser first and learn the craft before moving onto hair extensions. Sometimes when I see clients they want the hair extensions cut and styled obviously this is something you would not be able to do with just hair extension training also you need to know how to blend the extension hair into the real hair even if your not cutting. One last thing, hair extension training can be quite expensive, if your employed for any length of time in a salon as a hairdresser then your employer may cover the cost of the training for you.

Good luck, it's career that offers many opportunties & personally I love it

 

[persianista]

I do indeed pay for hair ext training for my stylists once they have reached a certain stage, and yes it is expensive for the really good training.

 

[Amber-]

Also another question. Obviously it's a female dominated industry and I have worked in female dominated offices before where there was a lot of tattle taling. Is there much bitchiness within salons?

 

[princessrach]

I have only ever been in city centre salons and in city centre salons your that busy you dont really get a chance to stand around tittle tattling as we just dont have the time for it. I wouldn't let something like that affect your decision though, once your qualified and learned the trade you can go anywhere in the world with it

 

[persianista]

Some salons are bitchy, some are enormous fun. I have been lucky to work with some amazing people over the years, who mentored me and also entertained me. Salon life is rarely boring.

 

[Amber-]

also may I ask how much I can expect to earn? do apprentices get a percentage of their takings?

 

[princessrach]

In my experience apprentices never get a percentage of the takings, thats not to say it would never happen it's just I have never seen it, when I was newly qualified I was on minimum wage which is the norm - personally I think that when you are qualified and doing the job for a while you will find something within the industry that you really love and want to develop your skills further in, for me it was hair extensions and there is ALOT of money to be made if your a qualified experienced stylist/hair extensionist but like most vocations you have to start at the bottam

 

[Amber-]

In my experience apprentices never get a percentage of the takings, thats not to say it would never happen it's just I have never seen it, when I was newly qualified I was on minimum wage which is the norm - personally I think that when you are qualified and doing the job for a while you will find something within the industry that you really love and want to develop your skills further in, for me it was hair extensions and there is ALOT of money to be made if your a qualified experienced stylist/hair extensionist but like most vocations you have to start at the bottam

i love extensions too

 

[persianista]

No Appentices get training allowance plus tips. Junior stylists get min wage. It is generally when you are 7-10 years exp, with a big clientelle that you start earning top money (if you are talented) At the very least, the first 5 years are poorly paid. This is a reflection of how long it takes to become fully competant and worth money to the salon. Trainees and new qualified are ten a penny, and do not command big salaries.