A late starter in the hair & beauty industry and a passionate advocate for social change.
With all the uncertainty in the world as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, most salons have been able to reopen, but there is no way to determine if they will still be open in a month or where they will be at the end of the year.
When you look at how most people have adapted to the changes, it's impressive, but it hasn't been easy, and it's not over yet.
In some countries, states and cities, salons that have just reopened are now being forced to close down again because of a second spike in the coronavirus infection rates. I think the most predictable thing at the moment is that everything is unpredictable.
And that's how it is with my guest on today's podcast, Los Angeles salon owner Paula Peralta. Paula is a hairstylist, a brand ambassador, a passionate advocate for social change and an entrepreneur.
In this podcast, we will discuss:
- The advantages of being a late starter in the beauty industry.
- The importance of letting your career evolve.
- The four energies needed to succeed in business.
- The ‘Black Lives Matter' movement and the momentum behind it.
In This Episode:
[02:39] Welcome to the show!
[04:03] Paula shares her journey into hairdressing at 29.
[06:45] She fixed other people's hair while in high school for parties and enjoyed it.
[09:00] Listen as Paula shares the benefits of getting into the industry late starter in the industry.
[11:50] Paula speaks about her first few years in the industry as an editorial stylist.
[13:05] How did you know it was the right time to open a salon?
[16:04] Paula said she didn't fear failure because she'd already failed at her first job.
[18:01] Paula discusses closing her salon and where she is going in her career.
[21:02] She shares that she just opened a salon suite in Hollywood.
[23:06] Paula explains the four energies that you need to succeed in business.
[26:36] “When you allow those different energies to show up in your business, that's what allows you to create greater.”
[28:31] Is most of your focus going to be on the coaching and educational stuff, or are you still going to work behind the chair?
[30:13] Paula built her business on Instagram and built her client base in six months.
[32:06] How do you think the ‘Black Lives Matter' movement has affected change?
[35:34] Paula discusses what is happening with the movement now that the pandemic is taking all the air space.
[38:17] If you are engaged in the movement, you can see where the conversations are happening.
[40:32] Paula shares how racism manifests itself every day.
[43:05] Paula speaks about having awareness about what's happening and also being willing to do something about it.
[44:21] Paula talks about the difference between racism and antiracism.
[46:40] What does the hairdressing industry need to do to be more inclusive?
[49:17] What do manufacturers need to do?
[51:03] Paula shares what Paul Mitchell is doing to help with inclusion now and in the future.
[53:20] Paula speaks about what the average salon owner can do to add diversity in their salons.
[55:40] What milestones need to happen to keep this movement going forward?
[1:01:09] Paula shares some final thoughts.
[1:01:45] Thank you for being on the show!
Thanks for listening!
Thanks so much for joining me this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons at the side or bottom of this post.
Also, I’d love it if you’d leave an honest review for The Grow My Salon Business Podcast. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show and help other people find my podcast. I also love to hear what’s been helpful! Just click here to review, Click through to ‘Listen on apple podcasts’ scroll to the bottom, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favourite part of the podcast is. Thank you!
And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on Apple or Google to get automatic updates.
Special thanks to Paula Peralta for sharing her words of wisdom with me for this week’s episode. Until next time!
Find Paula
@hairbypaulaperalta
@naeemahlafond
