Today we’d like to introduce you to Serah Schmidt
Hi Serah, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I fell in love with the art of hair in my aunts in-home salon as a child. I loved her freedom of schedule, being able to be her own boss, the artistry, and the genuine happiness her clients had when they saw their “after”. As soon as it was time to start thinking about what I wanted to do career wise, it was a no brainer. I graduated high school in 2009 and started my journey right after. I attended Paul Mitchell the school Salt Lake City part time in the evenings, worked in a salon as an assistant during the day, and finished in 2011.
I’ve worked in 3 salons and all of them have brought me success and a path to bring me to where I am today.
The first, out of hairschool taught me client retention and etiquette, and gave me the foundation to be able to grow my clientele as curate long lasting relationships and hone my newly acquired skills.
The second was my first booth rental experience and gave me the independence to start my specialty, Fantasy Color. I quickly fell in love with doing rainbow hair and took to instagram to grow my clients and advertise myself. I gained attention from my favorite brands, and soon after started educating others via local classes, online education, and platform work, publication, and hair award nominations, as well as working full time being the chair.
I am now located in south salt lake, at The Beauty Hive Salon and have refocused my energy on my loyal clients and a more slow paced lifestyle outside of work including gardening, traveling with my husband, and 4 animals.
I got to where I am by fiercely believing in myself from the beginning and never being afraid to dream big and work HARD. Nothing is impossible if you believe you can do it. I’ve achieved every goal I had 13 years ago and I’m proud to look to my past and future and the stylist I was and have evolved into today.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Growing clients was my biggest challenge. As a naive freshly graduated hairstylist, I thought I would be fully booked immediately, but it actually took my 6-7 years of consistency and dedication to get there. I had to have a part time job to support my life while I worked, took models for content, and also continued my education to give my guests the best expertise they could have.
Something I tell students specifically is prepare to have some challenges and to try and get into an assistant/commission salon first to really nail down those skills, and have some cushion while you build.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a hairstylist in South Salt Lake City Utah and I specialize in fantasy colors or rainbow hair coloring.
I’m most proud of being an educator for a major hair color brand for 6 years and being able to help others be passionate and understand the true intricacies of what goes into fantasy hair.
I think that what sets me apart from others in my field is that I really try to understand my guests lifestyle, maintenance level, and goals to achieve their hair goals in a professional and beautiful way. My guests come in 10-12 weeks later with their color still looking stunning. Most of them commenting that they got more compliments with the faded hair then when it was fresh. Ha ha I take pride in my attention to detail, integrity of the hair itself, and giving self confidence to the people I genuinely have come to love over the years.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Find your tribe. In any career you will come across like minded individuals, stick with them and learn, when life changes or you change, find others. As my life shifted and my priorities changed, so did my tribe. And I’m grateful to each chapter of mentors I’ve had the honor to know in my career life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://serahschmidt.glossgenius.com/
- Instagram: @serahdoeshairahh
- Facebook: @serahshirleyhairartistry
