Our stylists are constantly learning, whether it’s through our monthly advanced education classes here at the salon or through outside opportunities. One of our stylists, Anna Thompson, who has been with us for eight years, has the special opportunity to pursue Sunlights Balayage training in Atlanta on February 23rd. We sat down and talked a little bit about Anna’s background, what brought her to Be Inspired, and what drove her to apply to Sunlights Balayage Train-the-Trainer 2019!
When in your life did you realize you wanted to join the beauty industry?
Anna: I kind of fell into it. My mom was a stylist when I was growing up, and I don’t completely attribute my interest in hair to that, but I grew up around it. I graduated high school early and moved to Milwaukee, and at the time, I was studying accounting at the university there. I remember walking around in the Third Ward and saw the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Institute of Beauty and Wellness, and everyone looked like they were having fun. I wasn’t really jiving with dorm living and going to classes at UWM, so I decided to try the cosmetology program and thought if it doesn’t work out, then I’ll go back to the university, but I never did. I just loved it, and I instantly realized how many opportunities there were in the beauty industry.
When you graduated from IBW, what was your plan from there?
Anna: I didn’t know if I wanted to stay in Wisconsin, actually. I wanted to follow Alan Ruiz, one of my favorite stylists, who has several salons in Texas. I went there and shadowed, but I guess it wasn’t the right time for me. I came back to Madison and didn’t know where I wanted to work. I didn’t want a temporary position; I wanted somewhere that I could stay for a while, but I really didn’t have a lot of exposure to salons. Like I said, my mom did my hair all my life, so I never had to look elsewhere. I had very little experience as a client in the salon world. I did wedding cake design and visual merchandising retail until I found a home salon.
And your home salon was Be Inspired Salon?
Anna: Yes. My mom used to work with our founder Kati’s sister, and she recommended that I check out Kati’s new salon that she was opening. I interviewed right in August 2010 when it opened and started the next month. It all fell together, and now I’ve been here over eight years. I don’t have any regrets by not leaving Wisconsin.
Do you see yourself being in the industry a while?
Anna: I’ve definitely found my place here, yes. I don’t think people realize how much you can do in this industry, and beauty is the last to suffer in struggling economies. People always want to look good. And beyond hair styling, you can be an instructor, work in retail, manage a team – there’s so much out there. For me, personally, my place is behind the chair. I used to do it all when Be Inspired was first starting up: I checked in clients, answered the phone, booked my own appointments, managed other team members… we didn’t have a front desk team at the beginning. I figured out from there where I wanted to be and what I wanted to be doing in this industry.
How has being in all of those different roles made you a better stylist?
Anna: It’s definitely helped me stay grounded and kept me from being too self-righteous or too good to mop the floor. People will tell me, “Oh, you have these perfect hours, you only work four days a week and get weekends off with your family!” and I’ll remind them that I worked hard to get to where I am right now. I worked weekends for eight years. When I first started out, I worked every day, and I’d even end up coming in on my days off. I’ve done a lot of tasks that weren’t super fun or glamorous, but all of that has made me so grateful for what I have now – my clients, my success, and my growth.
What do your clients mean to you?
Anna: Kati was always good about making sure that we had new clients coming through the door, but what takes a lot of effort on the stylist’s part is making sure that those clients come back for years to come. I have clients that have stuck with me through everything these past eight years, and that loyalty means everything to me. After my husband passed away, my clients stayed with me or came back after a while, even when I went part-time. The salon was always the one place I could come back to. It was strange being back after he passed, but it was like coming back home and having a set routine so I could get through this period in my life. To work back up to a full schedule and consistent clientele was a lot, but doing hair allowed me to reconnect and stay calm. I’ve lived a lot of life here with my clients, coworkers, and Kati especially.
Would you say Kati is one of your role models?
Anna: Absolutely, but she’s also more than that too. She’s my friend and my boss, and we have a lot in common and a lot of history. We share spiritual beliefs that are very important to us, and many of our values align. We have both grown a lot together. She’s been there for baby showers and important life events, and we still have that closeness even as our team grows.
What kind of relationships do you have with the rest of the team?
Anna: I’ve created important bonds with many of them, but recently I took on Abby as my assistant and that’s a whole new kind of professional relationship. It’s both rewarding and challenging because her success is largely dependent on me, but it’s fun being a mentor. She’ll tell me I’m a natural-born teacher, and I’ll say, “Oh, I don’t know about that!” but it’s still nice to hear. She’s super encouraging, and she will make comments to our clients like, “What would we do without Anna?” and make recommendations to see me even though she’s growing her own clientele. You don’t see that often. We’re very similar, we learn the same, and we build off each other.
What’s the most important thing that you’re passing onto Abby?
Anna: Teaching her “stylist culture” behind the chair is big. Anyone can learn how to cut and color hair, but getting to know people and forming connections with clients are things you don’t learn in cosmetology school. I think that’s the most important part of the assistant program. Serving the client, caring about their lives, those kinds of things. Cutting the perfect bob is obviously a skill she needs to know, but it’s more than that.
Aside from mentoring your first assistant, the Sunlights Balayage program is your next big step in teaching. What drove you to apply?
Anna: Balayage is a huge trend that will be around for a while, and I obviously wanted to learn techniques and how to educate other stylists, but I really wanted to be a part of what Candy Shaw is doing. My interview for the program wasn’t just “I love balayage,” it was all about how I loved her brand and what she stands for. I feel like I have a bigger voice in the industry now, so I’m ready to take on the opportunity to train other stylists in this craft.
What are you most excited for?
I don’t exactly know the schedule yet, so it’ll be a little bit of a surprise, but I’m most excited to cultivate relationships. There are 30 of us from all over the world. Building an international support system and learning about hairstyling from other participants in Australia and Europe is really exciting to me. Just seeing others’ take on hair is fascinating, and I know it’s going to be an open and encouraging atmosphere because those are the kinds of people Candy wants to train.
What’s next for you in 2019?
I’ll be an independent educator after my training, so I’ll be booking my own classes and teaching stylists on my own time. Be Inspired Salon and my clients are my number one priority, but I’ll be the hands and feet of the Midwest in Sunlights Balayage training. It’ll be a totally new and exciting experience. 2019 will be my year of growing as both a stylist and now an educator.
Stay tuned for an update from Anna following her training in late February!
