Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Holly Woods Tate. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Holly, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
I am a hair colorist and I have a niche! So many people think stylists need to be able to do every type of color and style. I think it’s better to specialize in an area that you love and are amazing at doing! I specialize in blended, lived-in dimensional blonde, bronde and brunette and also grey coverage. My clients love going to a specialist because they know they’re going to the right person for their desired look.
Haircoloring is so different than even ten years ago and if you haven’t changed or kept up with the times, you’ll be left behind. I have specialized in balayage + lived in color from the get go of it really starting to trend about 2011 and now I’m the go to person for this type of color! It’s such a niche and the clients know exactly what they’re looking for in 2024. They have Pinterest, they have the internet- 25 stripey highlights just won’t cut it these days. We’ve got balayage, babylights, shadow roots, tip outs, gloss, etc and any so many combinations of these to get the looks clients are wanting these days.
Doing things my own way and positioning myself as a specialist in one area has truly paid off for me- I love going to work every day, never get tired or dread my work, clients get something I truly care about and an art form! It’s not a fast food restaurant-every person gets a customized color I create just for them!
People are scared to niche down or think they’ll lose clients. And that’s true- you will lose clients for things you don’t love but you’ll gain new dream clients in your niche!
I also started a digital coaching business for stylists and I teach them to find their niche and lean into it also!
We want specialists for doctors now- hair is the same way! I want someone who can do exactly the type of hair I want and so do my clients!
Holly, 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?
I’m a haircolor specialist located in midtown Memphis- right on Madison in Overton Square. I have been in the hair industry for 19 years but really found my niche and started specializing in dimensional and lived-in color in 2011 and never looked back!
I think clients love seeing a specialist- we don’t go to the same doctor for every issue- same idea! There are things I am terrible at (updos!) and don’t enjoy doing so I don’t do those things and just to what I truly love doing and am great at! The result is a service thats truly done with passion and love and they get the best of me because I’m not burnt out doing things I don’t enjoy- I truly am a haircolor nerd. I could read and learn about it all day and travel to learn more about it and I think that’s so important- never stop learning!
There are so many bells and whistles that go into a beautiful haircolor in 2024- we aren’t doing 25 yellow highlights stuck under a dryer with no toner and see you in 6 weeks. Now- its balayage, babylights, tip-outs, shadow roots, glosses- so many more parts to it now and clients know that now.
They’re educated and know what they want- if people don’t adapt and learn modern techniques, they run the risk of being left behind. Modern doesn’t mean edgy- modern means soft and beautiful and blended and lower maitenance. No stripes here- unacceptable!
I am especially proud of the enviromnent my salon fosters and the caliber of women that are attracted to me and my brand/work. They are professional women and moms who want are also super cool and creative and want to have hair that can go either way- I joke that my haircolors can go to the country club or to the club! There’s a really small area where color can be professional but also cool and modern and that’s my sweet spot that I get my clients to! I love my cliends and they all end up being friends too- SO many connections made at the salon and it’s always such fun seeing it!
I also automate the onboarding process with new clients with convenient digital consultations and a concierge level website I created to make them feel like they are in the right place from day one! It is like a little magic filter that attracts my perfect client matches and they really appreciate the ease of knowing they are in the right place and not having to send a million texts back and forth to get an appointment! I like to make it easy for the clients and for me too!
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
I have a work partner at the salon- we have two businesses under one roof like suite mates but the two of us share an entire salon. Her name is Robin Tucker and she is a barber/haircutting specialist and makes her own natural skin and hair products. We have had the salon for 8 years this week actually!
We met when I was 16 and she had a salon where the Beauty Shop Restaurant is now called Hollywood Design and she did my hair! She saw me at a stoplight one Saturday on my way to photography class at MCA and hired me to be her receptionist out of the car window! We have been like family since day one and continue to be that way!
The salon sort of fell into our lap and we decided to go with it and never looked back! It has been so beautiful and cool and I wouldn’t change a thing!
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson I had to unlearn is that just because people don’t understand your hair/art/music/whatever, don’t give up on your vision. People who have a true vision are often misunderstood but if you keep on pushing, it will pay off.
When I first started doing balayage and lived-in haircolor, people did NOT understand it. They didn’t get why anyone would want soft haircolor when we were so ingrained with the 1000 foil bleach blonde march and it was a hard idea for people to wrap their minds around. I was (and am!) obsessed with the idea of beautiful and soft natural looking color and balayage but people in Memphis didn’t understand yet- or not enough to make a living. My only clients who got it back then were all the Anthropologie managers in 2011! I knew they knew what was cool and it gave me the hope to keep on with it instead of moving away to a bigger city where it was more popular.
Fast forward to 2024- everyone knows me as the go-t0 girl for balayage and lived-in color and me talking about it incessantly paid off. And I STILL do the Anthropologie managers hair- haha!
Contact Info:
- Website: hollywoodscolorist.com
- Instagram: hollywoodscolorist
- Facebook: facebook.com/hollywoodscolorist
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/holly-woods-colorist-memphis
- Other: https://g.co/kgs/tgqufLZ my google biz page
Image Credits
Julie Wright