The one question we always get asked during our training course is: “Can you really make money as a Personal Stylist?” and the answer is always YES! Yes you can definitely make a lot of money as a Personal Stylist, (that’s right… shopping for a living!) Of course everything is relative, what does earning a lot of money look like to you? By the time I left my cushy number at Disney, I was accustomed to a certain kind of lifestyle, for me that was paying my mortgage, driving a sports car, holiday frequently and maintaining a shoe addiction! I personally was determined to earn a similar salary only this time doing a job I loved! I set the bar high and it was by no means easy but success definitely came and I’ve never looked back.
At Style ME we teach all of our delegates a tried and tested formula on how to build an individual client base/business. You’ve probably realized by now that as an agency we are all about dressing your shape; to create a slimmer balanced silhouette and wearing your colours; to create a youthful radiant complexion, we passionately swear by it, in our eyes this is the science to dressing effectively. We believe taking a client Personal Shopping without doing their ‘Colours’ or ‘Wardrobe’ first is doing them a bit of injustice, for example if my client wants to buy a leather jacket, how can I really advice on which colour to buy unless I know for sure what his/her colour season is? Should they be buying black, brown, navy or grey? Surely if you’re spending £400+ you’ll want to know for sure?
So our model is this: Do your clients Colours first, then do their Wardrobe (to see what’s missing) and then take them Personal Shopping helping them to create a ‘Capsule Wardrobe’ perfect for their individual shape and colouring. Then leave your client with key rules on how to dress so they never need to call on your services again but do the job so well that they cant help but recommend you to all of their friends and family, it’s as simple as that!
Like any business though, those initial paying clients are never handed to you on a plate. With all my experience running the Academy the period straight after training is the most crucial phase in anyone’s personal styling career and is a good indicator as to whether or not they are going to be successful. It comes down to this; how much effort are you really willing to make to get your foot into your clients door? How much are you willing to network? How confident are you at selling yourself? How much do you believe in what you’re actually doing? So the first thing to do (post training) is to live and breathe dressing yourself to perfection (no days off!) then let people notice the positive change in you and your self esteem and then passionately talk about the 3 styling services you offer and how you now have the skillset to make anyone look and feel amazing.
I’m making it sound very simple I know, but luckily for any delegate that comes to our training academy and completes all the courses they then have a chance to become a Style ME Member, where I personally mentor them, helping them with their business plan, finding them tangible ways to get their first clients; as I know from personal experience it’s that first push that makes all the difference between being a well paid working personal stylist to a stylist sitting there wishing for the phone to ring!