We were lucky to catch up with Annaliese Corbett recently and have shared our conversation below.

Annaliese , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

As someone who has been in the beauty industry for nearly 7 years, I truly think that everything will happen on the timeline it is meant too. I believe every job, position, lesson is all for a purpose. I by no means have any college qualifications to be owning or operating a business, however I have worked in different positions in my field to gain the necessary knowledge to start and operate the business I have always dreamt of. Do I wish I would’ve started my business earlier? Heck yeah! I have freedom in my schedule, I have good work life balance, I control in my compensation and hours worked, I can make the business decisions and changes necessary without consulting for approval, etc. If you have vision and discipline than being a business owner is well worth it. Do I think my businesses would have been as successful if I would’ve opened them sooner than I did? No. I needed the experiences, training, verbiage and communication that came from my previous jobs and experiences in order for the openings of businesses to have been successful. My advice is to follow your gut and intuition. When you know, you just know. Stay firm in your discernment, stay consistent and you can get anything done.

Annaliese , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My whole life I have always played with makeup and skincare. I was the youngest child that would force my big sister to do my makeup every time she did hers even though I was too little to be wearing makeup. When I was 18 years old, shopping at Ulta, the manager approached me and loved my look and asked if I’d be interested in coming in for an interview. I was elated. An 18 year old with an Ulta discount, and I get to play with makeup all day?! It was amazing! From there I had decided to invest in my education and become and esthetician so I could be board certified to offer services in Minnesota. Upon attaining my esthetic license each job and position has had its own necessary learning experience that would push me closer and closer to starting my own concept. After years of gaining experiences I finally open Annaliese Aesthetics. My own esthetic space where I offer Brow, Lash, Makeup and Facial services customized to my guests needs and concerns. I truly believe that you should always give from a cup overflowing and that means taking care of yourself! At Annaliese Aesthetics my guests will have a safe and relaxing environment to rest, reset, and be rejuvenated because I believe they deserve to be pampered. Outside of my guest servicing I also have a passion for mentorship, training and business consulting. I was blessed with a busy brain full of ideas to help boost businesses, solo providers, or simply provide advice and tools to others to get things moving!

Have you ever had to pivot?

One piece of advice I will always give anyone as an employee is to be very mindful of contracts. In the esthetic industry it is very common to be given a “non-compete” contract. This would prohibit you from servicing at one place and providing the same services at another place or individually within a specific distance of the initial business for a certain amount of time. While they have been eliminated in the state of MN it did not eliminate any contracts already active. As a service provider this can very strongly effect your living. From my own experience I was prevented from working within 20 miles of “any entity” for one full year upon the last day of employment. The concept I was working for owned multiple locations in which case I was prevented from working essentially within an hour of my home plus any major cities in neighboring states. I ended up working part time jobs for a year that had nothing to do with the beauty industry because of the non compete contract. This isn’t something I would advise anyone to sign unless you were going to be given severance. This would be an example of when I had to make a pivot, and wait out the contract until I could get back to my dream.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

As a Solo Esthetician my clients will typically have access to my direct line for questions, booking, etc. It is important to have a friendly and professional relationship with clients in the esthetic industry. You want a friendly relationship so you foster a safe space for your client to receive treatments. Sometimes talking and treating the skin can feel very vulnerable for people. It is also important to maintain a professionalism such as timeliness, cleanliness, knowledge and education so that your clients trust you as a certified professional and will remain loyal to you. It is important to have multiple forms of communication options available to my guests so they can do what best suits them. I have email inquiries, texts, calls, and social media messaging as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.annalieseaesthetics.com
• Instagram: @annaliese.aesthetics

Image Credits
Photography by Madeline Erickson