The honest truth: Why a £1,200.00 style package means only £30.00 per hour for your Stylist!
Hiring a personal stylist or image consultant doesn't come cheap and could lead us to believe that it's all a big rip off and easy money for them. But what does it really mean for the bottom line to work as a Personal Stylist?
Looking only at the surface, it could appear that this is a lucrative business – and don't get me wrong, we all need to put food on our table. But what looks like a massive investment to you as a potential client translates to much less than you might think for the qualified consultant (that's me!). Even though there are no overheads such as shopfronts or product stock in a service based business, anyone hiring a self-employed expert in their field should remember this basic truth: We only take 30% home from whatever your invoice says. So where does the rest of the money go?
In my own business, I've adapted the following mindset: 20% is tax, 30% are expenses, 20% gets invested in future growth or put aside for a rough patch within the business and 30% is my salary. So if you decide to work with me in 2018 on my “4 Step Program to Speak in Style” and we work together over 4-6months with a total of 12 hours face-to-face sessions, then my hourly salary shrinks down to £30.00 pretty quickly. And that doesn't pay me for my time spent travelling to your house four times, the time I research and order your shopping list, the follow up work creating your personalised Style File and the adhoc Style on Demand service you enjoy so much. All of that is extra. I over-deliver. It's what I do, it's what most women in business do, commonly known as imposter syndrome. Just imagine I charged you my hourly rate for those extra things too...
As a self-starter and small business owner without sponsors or external funding, it was pretty tough when I first started. In fact, I went the first two years without paying myself a penny. Of course, I had clients and a decent turnover right from the start, but initially it was a case of investing my time into the business without an immediate return. I had to put money into my training (by the way, you don't wake up one day with the full skill set of a personal stylist), my continious professional development and the basic infra-structure, before I could experience the joys of a modest salary. After all, you can only take out what you put in, as they say. Would you work for two years without being paid? I'm not sharing this to organise a pity party, but to create more awareness and an opportunity to gain perspective. While I'm the public face of my brand, my business is not a one-(wo)man-show and I've always looked after my team before looking after myself. For example, part of my revenue goes towards dance classes and football sessions for my colleague's children rather than a fancy holiday for me. It's often hard to decide on a price tag for a non-tangible service product and it's even harder to communicate what you as a client are actually paying for, beyond the obvious part of your session.
In all honesty, I felt sales shame for a long time, feeling uncomfortable to tell potential clients the price for my service and I was giving discounts left right and centre. But I had to learn to value my own expertise, experience, investment and commitment. Over the years, I've seen first hand how my support has changed the lives of women I've worked with, how my suggestions have enhanced public speaking gigs of influencial female speakers and how my work has inspired others to value themselves. Once you see the value of something with your own eyes, you can no longer undersell yourself.
So next time you think to yourself “Whoowhhhooo that's extortionate” - think again! If the quote you receive from other experts like your dentist or personal trainer isn't questioned then surely the same can apply to your personal stylist.
