We recently connected with Charity Dyck and have shared our conversation below.

Charity, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. 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?

If I could go back in time, I truly wish I would have put more emphasis into my business and started it much sooner!
Going back to the beginning, before I had my two beautiful children (and had, what it seemed, all of the time in the world), I was putting in full time cosmetics retail hours. Retail attests entirely to working weekends and holidays, so the ability to be present in my business, at the time, side hustle, limited me greatly. Retail can also be draining and mentally exhausting, which often demotivated me. I have no regrets on the retail hours I put in. They gave me experience to aid in working as a makeup artist, as well as relationships and connections I’ll forever cherish.
It was when I became a stay at home mom, I was able to solely focus, improve and become empowered to grow and work my business as a freelance makeup artist. Anyone in this industry will tell you, the more work you do, the more you get. So at 36, of course I wish my success would have started much earlier, I couldn’t fathom where l’d be now, but I do believe my timeline all happened for a reason!

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?

My story starts in 2009, attending makeup certification school at Faces ETC of MN located in Minneapolis. I knew makeup was my calling, and I’ve always wanted to work for myself, thus CD Makeup Artistry came to be.
In the meantime I started working retail in cosmetics, with numerous brands, and gained hands on knowledge working with various skin types and really getting my hands on faces! Growing a connection with my clients became my strong suit, which truly helped my business grow. The weddings I worked on began to multiply!
I have been lucky to work on some exciting production projects, as well as bookings that require special effects makeup. My love for special effects and Halloween makeup started to become a strong suit for me and has become one of my favorite creative outlets to be apart of. Some of the work I’ve created that I’m the most proud of are my Halloween looks.
What sets me apart from my competition is my perfectionism. I think it’s an aspect in this industry you have to be obsessed with! I’m also extremely Type-A and organized. My clients get almost immediate responses from me, and are able to participate in stress-free bookings and hands-on service all the way through to their event date. This is so essential when especially wedding planning is nothing but stressful. I also have been told I have a calm but infectious personality, which can really put someone at ease in my chair.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

As I said before, in this industry, the more work you find and complete, the more you will get! Word of mouth is the biggest source of growing your clientele, hands down. That and maintaining an extraordinary reputation. This means always showing up early, delivering above and beyond service and experiences, immediate responses and having an impeccable attitude. More than anything, in the beginning, I would abide by the unwritten rule of “never say no.” I took on every single opportunity that had come my way. It will truly pay off!

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned in this industry is knowing your worth. It is so easy to be taken advantage of by people, even so the people in your life closest to you. Often times they don’t even realize they’re doing it. At some point you have to put your foot down and charge appropriately. At the end of the day, your best clients are the ones who pay full price without a second thought!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cdmakeupartistry.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cdmakeupartistry?igsh=MTNybmRxMjltOXhxcw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cdmakeupartistry1?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Image Credits

Lindsay Hansen Photography, Aurora Pines Photography, Tess Ender Photography, Ashley Krug Photography, Taylor Mccutchan Photography, Onsite Minnesota Photography