Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brittany Fishman. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Brittany, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of our favorite things to brainstorm about with friends who’ve built something entrepreneurial is what they would do differently if they were to start over today. Surely, there are things you’ve learned that would allow you to do it over faster, more efficiently. We’d love to hear how you would go about setting things up if you were starting over today, knowing everything that you already know.
Hindsight is always 20/20. There are so many things, looking back, that I would have done differently. Of course, I wouldn’t be where I am today if I had taken any other path, however the main regret I have when it comes to becoming a makeup artist is that I wish I would have started earlier. I was met with considerable push back when I first expressed I wanted to become an artist. Back then, the makeup world was nothing like it is today. There were no influencers or “beauty gurus,” so it was truly the art that spoke for itself. Many people were nervous for me to take the artist route as the internet was not what it is today and the risk was very high for success. While I took on the fear of others and held back a great deal, I eventually was able to show that being an artist is worth all the risk.
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
I have been in makeup for as long as I can remember. In high school, I was always trying new and different makeup trends. While at University, I did all of my friends makeup to go out and then I would stay at home and watch YouTube tutorials. I would stay up all night just doing makeup looks and then washing them off. I never thought I would become an artist, I just loved learning all the different things you could create with makeup. Once I moved out to Los Angeles, my friend group seriously encouraged me to consider makeup as a career and I really branched out with my art.
When it comes to solving problems for my clients, I don’t think I do anything to simplify an issue. I make it my mission, however, to make my clients feel appreciated. It is such an honor to be chosen when there are so many artists out there, so I make sure that my clients feel heard, relaxed, and beautiful when they’re in my chair.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Building a kit is a very expensive necessity. Starting out I mainly used professional palettes, which I still use to this day. While you get more bang for your buck with these, they are still very pricey. I vividly remember the decision to go full throttle into makeup and realized I needed to buy tons of new and different products, cases, lighting, cameras, etc. I would drive for food delivery services from sun up to sun down just to make enough money for 3 foundations. I would work for one product that was high luxury to add to my kit just so that my clients could get amazing results with the goal of increasing my prices. I utilized this formula until I was able to make a profit from building my kit and working on clients.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
One thing that highly influenced my reputation was utilizing customer service. Going above and beyond for my clients helped when it came to word of mouth marketing. Being kind is something that people notice.
If you do a great job on a client and make sure that their experience was above expectations, they most often will tell their friends, post on social media, etc. If you have one bad experience with a client the same result ensues – they will go and tell everyone they know. Social media can be used for both good and bad, so making sure each one of my clients left my chair pleased helped build the reputation that I wanted.
Another way I built my reputation was to network and market with others in the industry. Expanding my network into different cities/neighborhoods helped show that I was able to service anyone anywhere.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.brittanyfishman.com
- Instagram: @fishmannn
Image Credits
Drayton McJunkins