Starting a Business in a Global Pandemic

I’m a hairstylist, and our industry really hit during the shutdown. But unfortunately, when things started, communication was unclear and poor – no one knew what was going on.

My last day of work was March 17, 2020 and I started back in May – I was shut down for 8.5 weeks.   Since my business is personal, I felt like I had to care for my clients and do something.   So,  I made rootkits for my clients – I put together a video and put together the dyes for my clients, and I drove around the city delivering them.

The real story for the aesthetic industry was that, despite not being able to go out of the house, the way we appear and look has a tremendous impact on how we feel about ourselves and how we feel about the world around us.  It was interesting how many people cared about their hair even though they didn’t leave their room.

Then, it was a mess when we could go back to work. The rules differed by county. At the time, I was in Arapahoe County, and our start date got pushed back and pushed back.  But only ten people were allowed in a space at a time.   There were nine stylists at my salon, so only 4 of us could work at a time with a client.  That limited our schedules.  I still had to pay rent, even though I couldn’t work much.

Once I returned to work, I realized I couldn’t work at total capacity and couldn’t service my clients.  So I decided to open my own salon.  I started looking for spaces.  Luckily, when I started looking, they gave great deals on spaces.  They were desperate for revenue, so I would just go into the buildings and ask for owners and what they could do for me.   I didn’t even use a broker!

I landed a space with excellent ventilation and a balcony so that I could get fresh air – and it would just be my client and I, so it was a lot safer for my clients.

My salon opened on August 1, 2020.

For me, seeing my clients was a sense of normalcy – it was nice to have a space where we could interact with each other. So I chose this career because I like client interaction, and I think the pandemic showed how important that is for everyone.   

I feel very fortunate that I’ve had a few covid scares in the salon over the last few years. I had two clients text me saying they had covid right after seeing me, but I was negative both times.

I know my clients on a very personal level, so they were really cautious about getting me sick, and I was careful about them. I think it helped that I let people cancel for any reason, even up to their appointment, without penalty, so people felt like they could cancel if they were sick.    I’ve always tried to be flexible with my clients since I wouldn’t have this job without them.   I also really increased my sanitization procedures – and so did my building, so that was nice.   I worked a lot more because I moved things around, but I feel very fortunate.  I had a lot of faith and trust in my ability to keep a safe space and my clients in keeping myself safe.

Obviously, stylists assume a higher risk because we are physically touching people. However, there’s only so much we can do, and then we just have to have faith that things will work out.

If I could go back in time, I would tell myself that it would be okay. It’s really hard when you are in an industry that relies 100% on face-to-face contact.  I would tell myself to breathe, and it will be okay.  In retrospect, I was definitely depressed during that time – we so closely identify with what we do. It was a pivotal moment for folks in the country to realize that what we do isn’t who or what we are.

I felt good that I was helping people feel good about themselves.  It’s what I offer to the world.  Although it’s on a small scale, that outweighed any fear that I had.   

I knew a bunch of stylists that didn’t start until late July – they were worried and didn’t want to start too early. So it was really up to each individual.  I’m fortunate to be young and healthy.   I was better positioned to go back early, out of all the people I knew.

I feel very privileged that I offer people a space to be seen and heard.  It’s one of the few safe spaces that they have.

My last advice?   A job is a job.  You should not let it define your entire life.  But if you do it, you should do it as if it does.