We recently connected with Nicolette De Marco and have shared our conversation below.
Nicolette, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So, let’s start with a hypothetical – what would you change about the educational system?
What I would change about the educational system is the narrow minded way it teaches students to define success. There is such an unyielding emphasis on the four year college path, that we’ve stigmatized all other options as being “less than”. The assumption that only people who aren’t smart enough to get into college become trade workers or artists is incredibly harmful to young people. Our society could not function without trades. To pretend otherwise is blatantly wrong. So why do we allow high schools to promote “all students college ready” and shame students into borrowing thousands in student loans for a degree and lifestyle they have no passion for. We should of course be instilling discipline, work ethic, and problem solving in our youth, but success is not linear! I don’t believe success can be measured by the number of degrees hanging on your wall if you have a poor quality of life. Teach students to explore their gifts and listen to their inner wisdom. Teach them about debt and interest. Teach them to manage their time. Teach them to work for what they want in life. Teach them that all career paths are valid and necessary, and they don’t have to pursue a traditional college degree in order to achieve success and happiness.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
My name is Nicolette De Marco and I am the owner of Painted Jade Parlour, a hair studio in uptown Phoenix. I’ve been doing hair for 8 years and started my business in 2018 after spending several years as an assistant and salon coordinator. My personal journey to hair is probably a little different than most. I’ve known that I wanted to be in cosmetology from a very young age, but that never interfered with my academic achievements. When I graduated high school at 17, I turned down several state scholarships to pursue beauty school and was met with a lot of backlashes. I heard everything from “you really should go to college, you’ll be more successful” all the way to “isn’t beauty school for dropouts?” but none of that discouraged me from my own inner knowing. I’ve always had a distinct vision of what it means to have success in my life and pursue cosmetology, and as a result business ownership, felt the truest to that path. I think what sets me apart from others in my industry is my unwavering dedication to changing the way women feel about themselves, from the inside out. I followed my instincts from a very young age, and it led me to prosperity, community, peace, and so much more. And I want that passion to translate into not only providing a great service but encouraging women to seek within themselves and follow their passions as well.
When people sit in my chair, they have 100% of my attention. I don’t ever double book, which allows me to offer a much more intimate and detailed service. I really take the time to understand my clients’ needs, their insecurities, what doesn’t work about their current hair, and then I offer creative solutions, that are completely unique to each person. I specialize in blonding and ‘lived-in’ looks and my number one priority is matching a head of hair to that person’s lifestyle and what will suit their needs long term. When you’re sitting in my chair, not only do I want you to leave with a color and cut that you’re absolutely thrilled about, I want you to feel heard, understood, and inspired. I want clients to know that they are safe with me, and it’s a privilege I do not take lightly.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
My reputation in the Phoenix beauty industry can be credited to two things: kindness and consistency. If you’ve worked in Phoenix for a while, you probably know that it’s a surprisingly small community. So it’s really important that your behavior always aligns with the best version of yourself. If you know me on the industry side, you know that I don’t believe in competition. The majority of the beauty industry is female, and I don’t believe women ever need to compete with one another in a way that causes harm. There are enough heads of hair in the world for all of us, and your clients will find you. The clients who most align with me and what I bring to the table, will find their way to my chair. So there’s no need to be anything but supportive and uplifting with one another. From a client perspective, I think consistency has built my reputation more than anything else. When I step into the salon, I drop all other distractions in my personal life, and focus on the client experience. My clients really get the best of me, and I don’t allow anything else to penetrate the experience I’m cultivating for them every single visit.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Word of mouth and social media have been my most effective strategies. Instagram is fantastic, because it’s a visual platform where people can gauge if they like your style, but I have found that word of mouth is still the best referral system. If you are providing a level of service that makes people want to share you with all of their friends, not only are you effectively building a clientele, you’re attracting people who you genuinely enjoy and appreciate your unique abilities. Very early on I started specializing in blonding for people with naturally dark hair like myself. In searching for my own hairstylist, I found that light blonde specialists were everywhere, but it was very difficult to find someone who understood how to work on my thick, black, Italian hair. So I decided to pursue blonde specialization at all levels, in order offer a salon home to women like me, who are unfortunately used to leaving the chair brassy and disappointed. Being able to meet a need within the community and provide consistent results built my clientele very quickly!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.paintedjadeparlour.com
- Instagram: @nicatpaintedjade