Career Options for a Hairdresser

Amazing Careers in an Amazing Industry

The hair and beauty industry is one of the most exciting and rewarding industries to “Build Your Future”, not only will you be able to explore your creative skills to their fullest you will also be helping to make people happier with themselves and your artistry will be on display all day every day.

Professional hairdressers aren’t limited to being a stylist in their local salon there are multiple avenues they can explore after they finish learning to be a hairdresser, which can take them around the world, they can be rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous, they can become worldwide superstars and earn salaries to match these amazing careers.

Hair Stylist

Let’s start with the career most people associate with hairdressers. As a hair stylist you will be in a salon working your magic on clients from a wide range of backgrounds. You will have freedom to advise your clients on the best style, colour and length of their hair and make those clients some of the happiest people in the world when they leave.

Choosing a career as a hair stylist is a safe choice, we are always going to need hair stylists, even when the robots come people will still want that personal touch.

Average earnings for hair stylists vary widely across the UK and have a lot of different things that can affect them. You could be working in a high-profile salon in a busy city centre earning commission on every client and additional for product sales, you could be self employed renting a chair in a spa retreat salon or you could be a part time employee in a cosy countryside boutique, the freedom to do what you want is a big plus for those choosing this path.

Find out more on How To Become a Hairdresser with our guide.

Salon Owner

Be your own boss with your own salon and your own team. Many apprentices take this leap after completing their course and some decide the right time to do it is after earning their stripes in one of the multitudes of other careers available to them.

Running a salon is a challenging path to choose but it can be one of the most rewarding. You get to build a team from the ground up, you get to know your clientele and become their friends, you get to help improve the local community and pass on your knowledge and skill you leaned as an apprentice to more apprentices in the future.

You will need to be a master of many skills to become a successful salon owner and an apprenticeship is an amazing place to learn the basics of all these.

Brand Representative

Being a Brand Representative can be something you can do alongside your other career choice.

If you have found that you have a flair for being able to explain the benefits of the after-service products a move into a role as a brand representative could be the one for you.

Visiting salons in your area to let owners and managers know of the amazing results your brand can achieve for their customers. This career choice would be perfect for those that are driven, a gift for sales, with excellent communication skills and the ability to handle pressure.

TV, Movie, Music Hair Stylist

Take the skills you have learnt and get them displayed on screen!

A hair stylists’ career needn’t be limited to a high street salon, hair stylists are sought after in a wide range of settings and TV and movies is one of the biggest gigs you can get. Working alongside make up artists you will be making the dreams of the directors and writers a reality, from the long, braided ponytails of the latest Disney Princess to whatever craze is running through the boy band world.

Being a stylist in the entertainment sector will bring something different with every new project each of which will push the skills you learnt in your apprenticeship to the limit and each of which will help you develop those skills even further.

Hairdressing Educator/Tutor

Are you more adept at passing on your skills and knowledge, do you like being able to give people a helping hand, do you think you would shine whilst teaching the next generation of stylists, then an educator role could be perfect for you.

Working in either a static location such as an academy or college, travelling around the country visiting salons to teach learners at their own place, grabbing the latest technology by the roots and teaching in a digital classroom, or even moving abroad and teaching in another country, being an educator can be whatever you want it to be.

Many educators keep their skills topped up by working part time as a stylist when they aren’t teaching, and many employers are more than happy to accommodate that as well as helping their educators develop their own skills with professional development days and events.

Cruise Line Hairdresser

Get your talent to take you around the world by starting a career as a cruise ship stylist.

Take in the sights and sounds of a new location every few weeks while showcasing your creative talents in an on-board salon on one of the many world cruise liners. These ships can take months or even years to complete their journey and during that time there could be thousands of people needing the skills of a qualified hair stylist to make sure they are ready for that invite to the Captains Table.

You will get all the benefits of travelling the world, visiting exotic and exciting locations all whilst earning an amazing salary.

Mobile Hairdresser

Being a mobile hairdresser is a great steppingstone between a career as a hair stylist and moving up the ladder to being a salon owner. You get all the flexibility of being your own boss without the worries of managing staff or renting a salon and you are still able to flex your creative muscles and help your clients feel amazing.

Your car is your storeroom and your clients’ homes are your salon. You can choose when and where to work and earn as much as you want.

You only need a driving licence and a fantastic social media presence (and a few other boring legal bits 😊).