Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Audrey Herrera and Christen Griffis. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Audrey/Christen, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
Christen: “Audrey and I have been doing wedding hair and makeup together for over a decade now and last year my husband challenged us to put a name to it and start our own business. I think if two people can work cohesively over a long period of time and be successful, it’s worth teaming up and making it official. We’re both perfectionists and have the same goal: to make our brides feel absolutely beautiful and make their day as stress-free as possible by bringing our services to the wedding venue. That’s the basis of our traveling business and we’re excited about where it’s taking us!”
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
Audrey: “I began my journey in the beauty industry over ten years ago after graduating with my cosmetology diploma and starting my career as a hair stylist. As my clientele and love for makeup grew, I started doing bridal makeup for friends and quickly realized I could make brides feel confident on their special day and since then, I’ve wanted to make all brides feel that way. I then teamed up with Christen, my business partner, and began doing weddings on the weekends and that’s where my true passion for the bridal industry was born. Fast forward a few years and a couple hundred weddings later, I had the amazing opportunity to intern with Meredith Boyd, the very talented and preferred hair and makeup artist of the Miss America pageant and owner of Meredith Boyd Cosmetics. For over three years I had the honor of serving under Meredith as a hair and makeup assistant at multiple Miss America pageants, Miss USA pageants, and on TV sets of the Jeff Foxworthy Biography, along with Larry the Cable Guy and Ron White. My internship with Meredith was truly the most inspiring and pivotal point in my hair and makeup career. Most importantly, she taught me to go after my dreams and execute them, and I can’t thank her enough for that. Currently, I work at North West Salon in Jasper, Georgia as a Master Cosmetologist, specializing in custom color, balayage and extensions, but my true passion is wedding hair and makeup.”
Christen: “I’m the daughter and granddaughter of two amazing hairstylists, so my journey in the beauty industry began at a very young age. Although I enjoyed growing up in the salon, my true love has always been art. After high school I spent a year at Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta, learning art and design techniques and shortly after I completed my Cosmetology Diploma. It wasn’t long before I teamed up with Audrey doing weddings on the weekends and found my new passion for creating bridal up-do’s. After five years into my career as a stylist, I put myself through college at Kennesaw State University, graduating with my Bachelor of Science degree in Communication (all while still doing hair and working weddings). I’m happy to say that my college experience has helped me become a well-rounded business woman and has strengthened my skills not only in marketing and client relations, but also in design and creativity. Wedding hair has become my creative outlet and it’s amazing that I get to do what I love, all while making someone feel beautiful and being an important part of their special day. I think what sets our business apart is the fact that we are saving brides the time and hassle of traveling to and from a salon. Instead, we travel to the brides so they can enjoy every minute of their wedding day and be less stressed. Currently, I still work on weekdays at North West Salon with Audrey, specializing in balayage, color and precision haircuts, but my true passion is still art – and translating my love of art into wedding hair design.”
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Audrey: “Honestly, the most effective strategy for growing our bridal clientele has been word of mouth. We pride ourselves on executing exactly what our brides envision for their hair and makeup, to the point where they then recommend us to other friends and upcoming brides they know. We have come in contact with so many amazing people and they are so kind to leave us stellar reviews that, as a result, snowball into more brides looking to book our services. We want our potential brides to know that they can trust our creative abilities and expertise to give them the most seamless, stress-free hair and makeup experience around. Our number one goal is to leave the wedding venue having our brides feel the most beautiful they’ve ever felt and ready to confidently walk down the isle, excited for their significant other to see their best selves.”
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Christen: “I love this question and I’m constantly telling people about two of my favorite books: The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne and The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, by Dr. Joseph Murphy. These aren’t your typical entrepreneurial books, but they are an incredible foundation to any healthy, successful mindset. To put it simply, both books cover how you can manifest literally anything in your life, from health to wealth, love and happiness. You don’t have to be a business person for these books to significantly impact your life, but if you are, you can use these as a tool to kickstart your subconscious into manifesting success and wealth. The key here is to become aware of the infinite possibilities around you and most importantly, whatever you think about the most (positive or negative) it will manifest in your life – so be careful with your thoughts. Some other fantastic books that have helped my success in life are, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey, How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie, and Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill. Dive in and never stop learning!”
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Image Credits
All images can be found with their applicable photographer credit on our Instagram, @bridemeetsglam. Those include: @styledandsnapped @hillaryleahphotography @jaimepryorphoto @mintwoodphotoco @intotheembers.photo @taylor.gaddyphotos