Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Caitlin Willardson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Caitlin, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I have gone back and forth on different perspectives with this same question SO many times! I have thought about how nice it would be to just show up at a job, work normal hours, and get to turn the clock off after hours. On the other hand I often think how lucky am I that I get to set a schedule based around my needs, treat my clients how I wish they could be elsewhere, and run my business in a way that aligns with my values.

The times where the wishing becomes too powerful can often be difficult and disorienting. The times where it hits me most is in the height of growth. It ALWAYS is during the growing pains. Once I started realizing this it has made it easier to overcome even though it doesn’t solve the problem.

The most recent time was during this peak wedding season. My business had just done its best month yet. My artists and I were at about max capacity, and I was EXTREMELY overwhelmed with the back and front end of scheduling and executing services. In my monthly review, my booking platform reported almost 800 emails, an average of 2 inquiries/leads a day after raising pricing and setting service minimums, and we had 90+services scheduled for the month. On one hand I was incredibly proud of myself, my company, and my girls. On the other hand I was doing most of it on my own. The mental fatigue of raising two young children, answering SO many emails, and giving my clients my all, while balancing home life, my relationship, and friendships was daunting to say the least. Date nights often consisted of getting the kids in bed and working in the same room together until we were both so tired we had to sleep.

The max burnout was there. We were at the limit where I could no longer sleep without sleep aids, the tension headaches were debilitating, and I started falling short at home and in friendships. I thought multiple times while going to bed at night how nice it would be to just be able to get away from work the moment I clocked out.

The pain is temporary and it means we are ready to grow and expand so that’s what we are doing! It will come with more pain and more learning but we are ready and I couldn’t ask for a better job!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a bridal hair and makeup artist and the owner/founder of a bridal hair and makeup company. We provide luxury services for our brides and their loved ones!

I got into the wedding industry by working at an event center as a hostess while attending cosmetology school. After being there for a while I was promoted to assistant director. That is where my love of weddings sparked. I then graduated hair school and went into barbering while working part time at a wedding dress shop. I quickly realized that my dream clientele is brides! When the opportunity arose to start in bridal hair that’s when I knew this was where I belong. My passion had met my love and it blossomed into this beautiful career that I adore.

Having experience within different realms in the industry and a customer service background sets me apart for taking care of brides down to the details they would have never thought about. The experience along with the passion helps us to create lasting looks that coincide with their dream wedding inspirations.

The one thing I want our brides to know is that we are here for YOU. I will help guide, educate, and serve you. The look you want will always be most important to me. Whatever your hesitations or concerns are, I am here to hear and help you to feel your very best for your biggest day!

How did you build your audience on social media?

Social media is one of my main sources of client traffic. In the beauty industry social media is SO important. It is a direct reflection of you and your services in your clients eyes.

One of the biggest things that I have learned is it’s about connection more than the amount of followers you have. My following consists of brides future and past, fellow vendors/creatives, and people who love hair and makeup! This allows me the freedom to share myself so that these people who know me or will know me, get a glance into who I am as a person behind this brand. The freedom is also there to showcase my work and build a moving portfolio that is easy to access.

For someone just starting out my advice would be, build your portfolio and relationships! Share your face and your best work. Take a little extra time getting content that is worth sharing that also attracts the clientele you want.

I began with doing a lot of free styled shoots in trade for professional photos. The photos and relationships were very worth while. It also allowed me to figure out my boundaries when working with other vendors, models, and clients! A great learning opportunity without having to put someone’s biggest day on the line!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

One of my main core values as a person is connection. Although I believe it is very important to have separate work/personal values, this is one that is extremely important to me to have in both.

My job is a very personal experience for brides. There is a lot of trust, hope, nerves, excitement, etc. and there has to be a foundation of connection to allow those feelings space as well as room to execute a look that they will love. Makeup and hair are a very personal and personalized thing especially for women. With connection comes trust, value, and so much more. This allows brides to be honest in what they want and what they want to change.

In connection with vendors, it allows a lot of working relationships within a field that can be very isolating. I typically arrive and leave before any other vendor. This means it is important to me to engage with these incredible people outside of working hours. Lunches, dinners, events, these are all times where I get to show these people who I am and how much I care. It also allows me to know them and love them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bridalbycaitlin.com
• Instagram: @bridalbycaitlin

Image Credits

Elevated Boudior
McKenna and Clayton
Davis Smith Photo
Valeria Hall
Westward Up
Sav Brown