What Do Salon Owners Look For When Hiring?

Salon owners have a big responsibility when it comes to selecting the stylists and other staff that will be welcomed into their salon. They have to choose people that will be reliable, prompt, punctual, and a good fit within the salon. Owners want team members that will be organized and efficient as well as having great customer relations and being able to work well with other stylists. They also look carefully to be sure that a stylists abilities are up to par and that they will be well received by the clientele of the salon.

The most important thing to be aware of when it comes to getting on at a good salon is that salon owners don’t just look for the newest talented graduates right out of cosmetology school. In fact there’s a much more complex evaluation that goes into them deciding whether or not any given candidate will be an opportunity to work at their salon. Most salon owners will give a standard performance examination to be certain that any potential hires are competent and skilled at what they’re doing and that they won’t create huge problems for the salon but many salons will also provide a bit of a training period for their new hires if they are just out of cosmetology school. This allows them to ease into the culture of the salon and get a little more in depth with their training by shadowing other stylists to start out with before renting out a booth or coming on as a full time stylist. Most salon owners, unless it’s a very competitive or prestigious salon, will give new graduates a bit of leeway when it comes to their skills as many of them are aware of how woefully inadequate schools can be at giving their students the proper skills they need to do well as a cosmetologist. So while they may spend time examining and testing your abilities the sharpness of your scissors isn't’ the only thing they’re keeping their eye on, so to speak.

To many salon owners it’s far more important that you have good customer service skills, that you’re able to learn quickly, and that you can work well with the other stylists in their salon. For a lot of salon owners these kinds of qualities are more important, especially if they’re running a pretty average salon, than being a ridiculously talented stylist. Having amazing skills in any aspect of the cosmetology industry will do you little good if you don’t also have great customer relation skills and a professional way of doing business to match them. No matter how great you are at that cut or color if your clients don’t enjoy coming in to see you then they simply wont keep coming in to see you - regardless of how talented you may be. They’ll find someone else, gladly and pay them for a mediocre hair cut if they have a fun time getting it. So make sure that you take your ability to flatter and woo clients into account when you’re making an effort to get hired. Do more than just show off your nifty skills and talents - show the salon owner that you are personable, easy to get along with, dedicated, and above all - professional. This will take you much farther than if you try to rely on your status as a graduate from cosmetology school alone.

Make sure that you also have your portfolio to present nicely and neatly and that you yourself have a clean and professional look to you. Little things like these go a long way with salon owners and could mean the difference between your next job.