Ep. 157: HOW TO GROW AND SCALE YOUR PMU, MICROBLADING OR LASH BEAUTY BUSINESS
Anyone can scale their business.
Yes, anyone. Yes, even you.
You know how I know this? Because I've seen it. And I did it myself. Everyone (mostly) starts their business at the same place. We all start from the ground up, unless you like, inherit your business.
But we all start with knowing next to nothing and figuring it out as we go along. As artists we start with no knowledge on how to tattoo brows or apply lashes, then we learn, and over time we get better. The same thing applies to business. Even though the idea of scaling your business and growing seems scary - know it's possible because you have already grown your business.
I'm passionate about scaling beauty businesses because I believe that we all have room to grow. For this episode, I actually recorded a free live call I did with my free Facebook Group, Beauty Biz Secrets. I'm doing them once a month now so be sure to join so you don't miss these free calls! I answered questions from a couple of different members of the group and one member, in particular, Leanne, mentioned that she was scared of growing her business.
This is something we all face at some point! So I wanted to share this recording with you because you have no reason to be afraid of scaling up. I know you can do this, beauty boss. Okay? Let's go!
Here are the episode highlights:
‣‣ [09:28] So it's easy to look at where I am now with my business and think it's always been like this. But I struggled in the beginning and I want to talk about that.
‣‣ [12:54] Here Leanne starts to talk about where she's struggling in her business.
‣‣ [15:43] Let's talk about the importance of shifting our goals as we grow.
‣‣ [20:09] Leanne and I talk about some of the reservations she has about hiring: the paperwork, taxes, paying other people, the responsibility. All these things are overwhelming her.
‣‣ [21:37] Here's the first step to hiring in your business.
‣‣ [27:09] How do you structure payment when you first hire someone?
LET'S SCALE MY BUSINESS! (Listen Here)
You can follow me, Sheila Bella, on Instagram @realsheilabella!
Here are the links that were mentioned in the podcast!
Buy tickets to Pretty Ambitious Summit!
Text me! (310) 388-4588
FOR MY LISTENER BOSS BABES
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FOR MY READER BOSS BABES
You can enjoy a transcript of the podcast here.
Sheila Bella:
There comes a time in every beauty entrepreneur's life, where you have gone the furthest that you can possibly go by yourself. Maxed out means you're out of time, you're out of manpower. That's it, no more, finito. You are working like crazy, you're booked out, this is the most money you'll ever make unless you scale. Scaling in a business means setting the stage to enable support and growth in your company, in your business, even if you're a one-woman show. If you're a two-woman show, you'll be able to make more money. And that's kind of confusing and scary for people. So today, we're going to chat all about how to scale and grow in your beauty business. Here we go.
Welcome to Pretty Rich Podcast, where you're totally the heroine of your own story. I'm your host, Sheila Bella and I built a seven-figure PMU beauty biz and a seven-figure online biz without a degree, without a fancy website, or a sugar daddy. And if you and I hang out on here long enough, you're going to start to believe that you can do it too. How about that for a side effect of listening to this podcast? Because you really can.
I know you think, "I don't know you, I've no idea who you are," but I do, I really, really do because I am you, I was you, and I believe we are all on the same journey together. My perfect job didn't exist so I created it. The job I wanted wasn't hurting me, wanted nothing to do with me, so I skipped the line and hired myself as CEO, just like you can. So consider me your secret beauty biz BFF in case you need to be reminded on a weekly basis that power is never just handed to you, you have to take it. Are you ready beauty boss? Let's jump in.
Welcome to another amazing episode of Pretty Rich Podcast. Like I said, today we're going to talk about scaling. I took a clip from a Facebook Live that I did in my private Facebook group, that by the way, is public, you can totally join it for free. It's called Beauty Biz Secrets. I'm going to put the link in the show notes. The link is also in my bio on Instagram, @realsheilabella. Basically, I did a free coaching call for all of the members in the group. I did this free coaching call a couple of days ago and there was a question that was asked from a brave young lady, who basically admitted that she was afraid to scale, she was afraid to hire, and she had no idea where to start. But she felt like she needed to grow because, like I said in the intro of this episode, she was maxed out. She has no more time to rent, unless you add sleeping time, but that's a little important, wouldn't you say?
So as somebody who has scaled their permanent makeup business, I started out as a solo entrepreneur. I did all the services myself, I answered the phone myself, I checked in clients myself, I advertised myself. I did everything myself, and then there came a point where I was like, "Wow, I cannot handle the demand. I can't handle the business that my marketing brain was generating." So the next natural step for me was to hire and I think it's the next natural step for a lot of you, whether or not you're brave enough to admit it. Just admit it. No one else can hear you right now. I need to hire. Say it with me, "I need to hire or else I won't grow." Come on, no one's listening. I need to hire or else I won't grow.
For those of you who feel like a brow or lash robot or a facial robot, and that's all you do, it's all you do. You're maxed out, you have no more time to rent, you're maxed out. How the heck do you scale? How do you scale? That's what we're going to talk about today.
And by the way, if you still haven't joined my free Facebook group so you have access to myself every so often, because I do these calls in there, you got to join. The link to join the Facebook group is in the show notes of this episode. It's also in my bio on Instagram, @realsheilabella, or you could just go on Facebook and search the group Beauty Biz, B-I-Z, Secrets, Beauty Biz Secrets. We give a lot of value in there and it's a really great community to be a part of, and it's completely free.
Before we get going on today's topic, I wanted to give you an update, a behind the scenes update, because I know you guys are my lifers and you're on this podcast for a reason. I wanted to give you an update on the Pretty Ambitious Summit. Oh my gosh, you guys, I have had a crazy week lining up these speakers for you. Somebody pinch me, I feel like I'm dreaming. And I can't announce the speakers yet, but when I do, you must be sitting down. The Pretty Ambitious Summit is happening this year, October of 2021. It will be a virtual hybrid experience. You'll have the option of whether you want to experience it in-person in a social setting, or from the comfort of your own home. The Pretty Ambitious Summit is an online conference, it's the first PMU and lash girl power event for beauty boss babes, just like you.
Last year it was very difficult for me because PAS was postponed by COVID, because of COVID, and it was a very scary time. Well, there will be haters, doubters, small-minded people who try to keep you small, people who try to keep me small. And then there will be you doing big things, proving them all wrong. Now, I know that's happening this year, and don't get me wrong, I don't think I'm ever going to get over the loss of the first version. The first version that lived in my head for a year only to get canceled by the government the day before. The day before.
But, this comeback, it excites me in a way the first version did not. And as you climb the ladder of success, you're going to meet different kinds of people, many of whom will try to bring you down. And something I've learned is to never argue with your critics, instead observe them, thank them for the education. And this October 2021, my vision for the Pretty Ambitious Summit is to impact 1000 PMU and lash artists, all of whom refuse to settle. Those who are craving success from the inside out. And I cannot wait to announce the speakers to you. I am so serious you guys, you need to sit down. I said that twice already on this episode, but oh my goodness, once I tell you, you'll understand why.
I haven't announced the speakers yet, but we are open, ticket sales are open, the cart is open. And here's the thing, if you trust me, even before knowing the lineup, you deserve the most significant discount we will ever offer. Right now is March 19th, 2021, and if you use the word 'comeback' at checkout, you will get $100 off. This is going to be the biggest discount that we will ever offer at PAS because it's going to be for the OGs who trusted us, who trusted us even before we gave a speaker lineup. The tickets are super affordable right now. The ticket price is $327, and with $100 off it's only $227. Come on. That's probably how much you spend on Starbucks a month, right?
And all you have to do is go to my link in my bio, @realsheilabella, or go to sheilabella.com/event, sheilabella.com/event and use the code 'comeback' at checkout. Guys, part of the reason why I created this event, part of the reason why I do anything that I do, anything, is because I know how difficult it is, from personal experience, not just from coaching it, but from building my own brand. I know how difficult it is to build a brand from scratch. And I think the most difficult thing about that is learning how to encourage yourself, how to encourage yourself to keep going, keep posting, keep smiling, even when you feel like no one cares. I know it feels like you're throwing a party, telling everybody it's going to be great, but no one's coming. And it feels that way for a very long time, until all of a sudden, now everybody wants to come. Now everyone wants to come to your party. But it takes time.
So the most difficult thing about building a brand from scratch is to push through that first year or first couple of years. And push through those feelings because I'm sure you guys can say now several million dollars later, you probably say, "Yeah, easy for Sheila to say." But let's go back into a time machine, shall we? The first month, the first month as a brow artist, I had one client and she complained. I thought I did a pretty good job. My first podcast, that was scary. I recorded it in my closet. I think it had less than 20 downloads or something like that, and I recorded it three times because I was so scared. My first intentional long caption I remember, I'm like, "Why am I doing this?" I got criticized for it by my friends. One person in particular said, and I'll never forget it, that I was better than that. She's like, "What is Sheila trying to do, with these pictures and these captions?"
The first live I've ever done, it didn't have that many views. I'm pretty sure it was just my mom and her friends watching. Oh my gosh, my first online course, I had three sales or something like that. Three sales, and I was actually really happy about it. Even though I know people are doing way more than that, that was a few years ago, I was still really happy about it. Listen, when stuff like this happens, especially in the beginning of your business, you feel like a failure. It's just part of it though. The hardest part about entrepreneurship is showing up every day, no matter what, and just deciding that you are now a person of influence. You are important now. You have to decide those things. No one tells you that you're a person of influence now, nobody tells you that you're important now. Even through the low views, even through the low sales, even through the low likes, and even through things like period cramps.
So next time you find yourself starting to talk to yourself out of a commitment that you made to yourself, let me say that again. Next time you find yourself start to talk yourself out of a commitment that you made to yourself, I want to invite you to see what happens if instead you can offer yourself the grace of understanding that without the failures, you would not be able to reach your desired destination. You can't skip day one, or day two, or day three, or the first couple of years in business where you're just starting out. But you got to keep the faith, and those that do are the ones that will win.
Okay, so coming up right now is a Q&A live coaching that I did showing somebody how important it is to scale and what they can do to get started. And it's definitely duplicatable, so you can apply it to your own business. Here we go.
Leanne:
I feel like I'm at a crossroads. I am super busy, I have more clients... not than I can accommodate, but they have to wait basically, which is great and a blessing [crosstalk 00:13:17].
Sheila Bella:
How far out are you booked?
Leanne:
So I only open my books 60 days in advance because I don't want to be locked in. I want to be able to still plan stuff with my family, and not be over-committed and having to move people or anything. I have three little kids so I feel like I'm at this place where I'm really busy. It's a blessing, I'm thankful, but I also feel like other artists are inquiring about training or asking if I can offer them anything, like somewhere to work. I don't know, I feel like it's one of those things where I'm to the point where I have enough experience that people are coming to me.
Sheila Bella:
Yeah.
Leanne:
Almost wanting to work for me. I'm working right now just out of a studio. It's just me there. So I guess I'm feeling just at this weird... I could stay there and be fine and make a great income and work part-time and continue what I'm doing, or I could expand. I feel frozen, I don't know what to do. I don't know how to hire people or I don't know what comes first.
Sheila Bella:
Leanne. Well, congratulations. This is an amazing problem to have and this is an expected problem to have. I want to reassure you that I've seen this so many times. This is not my first rodeo. I know the problem because I've lived the problem. Every brow or lash artist gets to a point where you just feel like a robot.
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
You are a brow robot. You have no soul. These people are not your friends, they're just there for the eyebrows.
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
They don't even care. They just want the brows, brows, brows. Just give me the brows. If you are... Okay, here's the thing. I look at my beginning permanent makeup instructors, the people that trained me, the people that inspired me to get into this business. I was just on an interview this morning for ABC and it made me go back in time. And listen, when I first decided that I was going to become a permanent makeup artist, I was lost. I was waiting tables, I got fired from that job. You listen to my podcast, you know the story. Anyway, and then so I just wanted to be taken seriously by the world for once. That's really all I wanted.
Then I met this lady and she had a brand new Toyota. I had an old one. She had a brand new one. I had dogs. She had two kids that were in high school already and they were alive and they were doing well. She was stable. And I said, "That's what I want. I want her life." You're telling me that me learning brows and permanent makeup is going to give me this life where I can have a brand new Toyota? She has a house, I had an apartment. She had two kids that she was able to feed and educate for 18 years. And I was like, "I need that. I just need to be not a joke now."
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
But this woman, I love her to this day, there came a point though that once I had a full schedule and I was booked out for several months, that my goals changed a little bit. I didn't want just a brand new Toyota, I wanted a Tesla, which is what we're buying in a couple of months. I didn't want just a house, I wanted a brand new $1.5 million home in the Hills, which is what we're buying this year. So yeah, my goals changed. And then I realized that there's nothing wrong with having certain goals and just wanting that lifestyle. I wanted that lifestyle, I strove for that lifestyle because it was very stable. To me, that's what it was. But I wanted more than stable.
Leanne:
Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Sheila Bella:
And if you want those things, you want that lifestyle, then you're going to be the artist that does it for 25, 30 plus years, and you stick to services. That's the kind of life you're going to have. The most money you'll ever make is anywhere between $8,000 and $15,000 a month, maybe on a really good month, depends how much you charge and where you live. But if you want more than that, then you need to do something different. Because the average permanent makeup artist that attends a yearly conference at SPCP, AAM, something like that, they probably join the AAM or the SPCP, they take online courses now. There's a new technique out and they go learn it. That's what the average permanent makeup artists does and it doesn't necessarily mean more income, right?
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
If you want more than that, you're going to invest a little bit more, learn more than the average permanent makeup artist. I would learn how to scale. And that's why I'm obsessed with scaling. I see the wheels are turning in your head and you're like, "There's something more here, there's something more. I can't put my finger on it just yet, but I know there's something more." Yes. It sounds like you now need to share the wealth because you know how many single moms are out there who would probably kill to have a position in your studio who need it. So people who are afraid to hire, I think employment is the best thing you can do for society. It's a great contribution to society is employment.
Leanne:
I just feel like am I going to be drowning in paperwork if I hire people?
Sheila Bella:
[crosstalk 00:20:13].
Leanne:
I don't know why.
Sheila Bella:
Talk to me, what else are you afraid of?
Leanne:
Taxes, I don't know.
Sheila Bella:
Taxes are a thing.
Leanne:
Paying people.
Sheila Bella:
You need to pay people, sure.
Leanne:
I don't even know.
Sheila Bella:
You're just overwhelmed by the next step.
Leanne:
Yes. I feel like because I've trained a few people now, so I've done a couple trainings and literally every single person that I've trained has asked, "Can I work for you?" And I'm like, "I would love that. But it's just me and my little studio and I have nowhere for you to go." And so then my husband's like, "Okay. Maybe we should buy a location. We don't want to rent something, we'd rather buy something." So we went and looked at something and I'm like, "Oh my gosh, this is freaking me out. I don't even have a team. I don't know how to hire a team. I don't know how to...".
Sheila Bella:
Okay, okay. I get it. I get it. I've been there. I have seven artists and I used to have 15, so yeah, I've been there. They're all booked out. They're all doing well. I can take clients on Saturdays at $1,500 and do other things with my time.
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
Okay. And that's what you want it sounds like.
Leanne:
Yes. Help me.
Sheila Bella:
So before you think team, because that's overwhelming, think apprentice.
Leanne:
Okay.
Sheila Bella:
One thing at a time.
Sheila Bella:
Okay. Everybody is talking about Clubhouse, the new app, and I know what you're thinking because it's what I thought too. Oh my goodness, another app I need to download and maintain? I was so resistant to downloading this app, you guys. But as soon as I got on, I realized that it's not as high maintenance as I thought. Actually, it's very low maintenance. It's an app that's audio only, and I've been able to grow on there so easily with just an hour or so a week. I've been able to get more sales for my business. Not only that, using this app has helped me position myself as an authority in my field. And let's just face it, using these new apps keeps us relevant. That's just the name of the game nowadays. Social media requires you to constantly update, learn, and evolve.
But a lot of people aren't quite sure of how to use Clubhouse properly. That's exactly why I created my super affordable training called The Elusive Clubhouse Unlocked. It took me a minute to learn the app, but now that I know, oh my goodness, I wish somebody would have taught me all of these things sooner.
So in this course, you will learn exactly what Clubhouse is about and how to use it, who is in Clubhouse and why you need to be there too, what to do once you're in Clubhouse, how to optimize your bio, what is a room/club, room etiquette and details, because if you don't know, it could get embarrassing, and the many sales benefits of being on Clubhouse You've got to learn how to convert Clubhousers into prospects and paying clients. So if you want in on this course, all you need to do is go to sheilabella.com/clubhouse. Sheilabella.com/clubhouse. This free app could totally change your business. Get on it early because it's so easy to grow on there, it's going to be big. So get it now before it becomes too hard to grow. It's definitely changing the marketing game. Again, just go to sheilabella.com/clubhouse.
Leanne:
Do you keep track of... okay, so the paying thing. I don't even know how... Is there a certain [crosstalk 00:24:14] or what to pay, how to keep track of it best? How do you... I don't know.
Sheila Bella:
Okay, that's fine. If you don't know, you will. You didn't know how to microblade, you didn't know how to do machine at one point.
Leanne:
I'm a quick learner.
Sheila Bella:
You're going to learn this too and you're going to be able to teach it to someone else, okay? So first things first is let's start with what would it look like for you to have one more person on your team? So there's a few things you can do. The first thing I would invite you to consider is not necessarily have a full-time artist on your team who takes their own clients. We teach something inside Pretty Rich Bosses called double booking. What the heck is that?
Leanne:
Yeah, I did hair for 15 years before this. I know what double booking is.
Sheila Bella:
Right. Yes, I know. If hair people can do it, why can't we do it? And this is something I actually stumbled upon because my apprentices, or the people I was training, were just watching me picking their nose. I'm like, "Here, do something." Yeah. Can you check a client in? Can you numb them? Listen, so we teach all of this inside PRB systematically. So we teach two different types of booking. We do staggered booking and then we also teach double booking and they both work a different kind of way. But it doesn't require for you to have another artist to do [inaudible 00:25:54], it just requires you to pay somebody minimum wage and then being tipped if you're generous, I don't know. Just to help you take on twice as many clients the same day. If you're booked out for 60 days until Christmas if you let it, you can do twice as many clients for the same time for double the money. Why wouldn't you without sacrificing quality?
So we teach the system inside PRB. Now, it's different for everybody, but you can customize it to you, so I want to invite you to consider that. And also, if you want to add another artist, have that artist do double booking too. Hello? Everyone should do that because I mean it's just... Think about it. When you go to a doctor's office, you see so many people before you see the doctor. Somebody else checks you in, somebody else tells you where the restroom is, somebody else takes your vitals, and then you talk to the nurse practitioner and you tell them all your symptoms, and then the doctor comes in there for five minutes and gets paid the most.
Leanne:
Yeah.
Sheila Bella:
While I'm not suggesting that you just see your clients for five minutes, I mean there's something to that. There's something there. And it's just all about managing expectations, pay, setting up your systems and strategies for how to accomplish that.
So if you do have another artist there, I'll tell you a little bit what I typically do. I would not just jump to a commission structure that you think will be good, that feels good. I would structure your pay based on what you should structure your pay on, and that is budget. When people hire and then I ask them, "What are you paying?" They say, "Oh, I offered 50% because it felt fair." It felt, felt, feelings. Feelings, mm-mm (negative). Think about what it costs you per client, okay? If you're thinking 50/50, fine. What does it cost you per client? What does it cost you to get that client in the door, marketing? What does it cost you rent for the time that that person's working on them? What does it cost your front desk? What does it cost for your supplies? Blah, blah, blah. What is it costing?
Now with that number, whatever that number is, whatever's left over, split that. Split that. Let's say you charge, just for the sake of ease, you charge a thousand dollars per brow, both, that includes touch up. Let's say that you realize that it costs you about $200 to service this person, marketing, supplies, front desk. So you have $800 left. If you want to do 50/50, then I would only offer them $400 a procedure. Not 50/50 of the whole thing. So for us, it actually ends up to be about a 30%, 35% split. So the house keeps 70 and then my artists keep 30.
Leanne:
Okay.
Sheila Bella:
And I've had the same artists for about seven years who are happy. So start there. And this is... this is a long thing that's difficult for me to teach you in just a matter of minutes.
Leanne:
I know.
Sheila Bella:
But if you are considering those things, Leanne, why aren't you in Pretty Rich Bosses? We can... First of all, I can double your income just by teaching you double booking now. Duh. What are you doing with your time? Are you just like... you're just dying one brow at a time.
Leanne:
I know.
Sheila Bella:
[crosstalk 00:30:18].
Leanne:
Slow brow death.
Sheila Bella:
Slow brow death. Oh my gosh. Leanne, have we chatted on Instagram yet?
Leanne:
Maybe a little bit.
Sheila Bella:
Okay. What's your Insta?
Leanne:
Leanne Alfaro.
Sheila Bella:
Oh, I think I've seen your name. Okay. Okay. I hope that gave you some things to think about and got you off to the right start. If you're serious about building a team and it sounds like you're in... Oh my gosh, your work is beautiful. Oh my gosh. Your Instagram's beautiful too. It sounds like you're at a point where you absolutely can. You should open your books up way more than just two months, you should have a team. Even if you have just a second bed in your small studio, you should be able to incorporate double booking into your system and make twice as much money. And then you could rent another room for someone else because you have the hard part down. The hard part is the marketing.
Leanne:
That's a lot of work. That's like another job.
Sheila Bella:
It is another job. That's why you can't do this anymore. You can't do this anymore, Leanne.
Leanne:
I know.
Sheila Bella:
No, you've got to focus on... Oh my gosh... anyway. Guys, follow her. She freaking rocks. Yes. You got the hard part down. Share the wealth.
Hey, thanks so much for listening to today's episode of Pretty Rich Podcast. If you want to continue the conversation longer, check me out on Instagram. It's my favorite place to connect with you guys @realsheilabella. I'm happy to answer any of your questions or simply to chat and get to know you better. If you end up doing something super awesome like screenshotting this episode and reposting it on your stories, that would put the biggest smile on my face. Don't forget to tag me. I appreciate every share and love feedback from my listeners.
Also, do you have my number? Do you have my number? Because if we're going to keep hanging out, you should probably have my number. So you can actually text me. That's right, you can text me at (310) 388-4588. And if you're sick and tired of doing business alone and you're interested in accelerating your success by hiring a business coach or joining our mentorship program called Pretty Rich Bosses, go ahead and just apply. Why not? Check it out. Go to sheilabella.com/apply and we'll schedule a free strategy session with either myself or one of my advisors. And of course I got to include my kids. So here to send us off are Beau and Grey. Grey, say, "Share with your friends."
Grey:
Share with your friends.
Sheila Bella:
Please review my mommy on iTunes.
Grey:
Mama iTunes.
Sheila Bella:
Thanks for listening.
Grey:
Thanks for listening.
Sheila Bella:
Hey Beau, can you tell everybody what our family motto is?
Beau:
Yeah. I can do hard things.
Sheila Bella:
I can do hard things. Good job, buddy.
