Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kaya Cuffee . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Kaya, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.
Corporate America has removed intimacy from the beauty industry and flooded it with a disingenuine guest experience in its stead. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and place for the corporate setting; many beginner estheticians, cosmetologists, and service providers in the beauty industry who gain their footing by seeking employment in a corporate-like setting. Being employed by a national or local chain comes with a steady clientele and a standard way of executing services. However, so much is lost in this cookie cutter method of providing service! Dollar signs become the motivating factor and the individuality of each guest experience is lost. Every guest walks through the door of your business with different wants and needs and when each experience is tailored to them specifically, you’ll never be without a loyal and even loving client list.
I luckily never had to work under a corporate label. I started my esthetics journey in a local spa and then transitioned to solo work as a suite renter. I was always given the freedom to tailor my guest’s experience to their needs and I took that standard with me when opening my own business. I never really knew different than to treat each guest like a friend that I was super excited to see walk through the door. It was exciting to determine what THEY wanted to look like when they got off my treatment table. It was exciting to rebook them personally and offer them a little sparkling beverage to take on the road with them. This was so normal and the standard to me, until I started to have guests share their past experiences with me. The few that were sharing stories were usually sharing horror stories and I just could not fathom that what they were saying was the “norm” at these corporate chains they were frequenting. I heard everything from “my provider wore headphones while providing an intimate wax service” to “my provider ripped my skin off my upper eyelid and didn’t offer to reimburse me when I had to be put on a topical steroid cream”. I really noticed the lack of intimacy when I had guests gawk at me for offering them a sparkling water, followed by the “I’ve never had an experience like this before!” comment. The little things really do matter and I feel like the corporate side of the beauty industry is very far removed from that mindset.
Kaya, 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 feel so silly writing about myself, haha! I never in a million years thought I’d be working in the beauty industry, let alone self-employed and running my own business. Looking back, it makes a lot of sense because I have always been a super girly girl. When I was younger I was always doing makeovers, tweezing my little girlfriend’s eyebrows, making homemade face masks, you name it. I didn’t start esthetics school right out of high school, I actually did three years at Old Dominion University (Norfolk, Virginia) with the goal of going on to veterinary school after the completion of my Bachelor’s. The difference between where I am now and where I thought I’d be is comical. I started to feel incredibly burnt out in college around the time of my sophomore year and began failing classes and just skipping altogether. I really tried to hide this from my family and friends because I was really embarrassed but also didn’t know how to ask for help. I’d always been an over achiever and felt like a failure for not succeeding. My then and now boyfriend and I sat down (at his suggestion) and made a list of things I enjoy in life, hoping to look at said list and notice a career path I could take that involved things I loved. I think it consisted of beauty, crafts (soaps in particular), reading, and a few other things I now really wish I remembered! We came to the conclusion that I should explore esthetics, so I scheduled a tour of a local school and immediately enrolled! I tried to stick with both college courses and esthetics school for awhile because I was determined to finish my degree while also obtaining my licensure. That lasted a semester. I give myself points for trying, though. I graduated esthetics school in 2018 and didn’t begin working in the industry until October of 2020. I was employed by a local spa in my area for a little over a year before I decided to go solo. I look back on that now and really wonder how I was able to compartmentalize the fear that can come with taking a plunge like that. I attribute it to having a really strong support system. My friends, family, and guests were so, so, so incredibly encouraging and gave me the ability to believe in myself and trust that not only could I run a successful business, but that I was a good enough provider to deserve that following and stability.
I currently specialize in brow tailoring and eyelash extension services. These services can mean and look like different things to different people, which makes it fun and engaging because it never feels monotonous. I personally love accentuating a guest’s natural brow. No thin brows over here! The more full, the better. The fluffier, the better. The longer lasting the color, the better. As for eyelash extensions, I’m a little more tame there. I am currently obsessed with brown eyelash extensions. They are just the most soft, feminine, flirty looking lash and I can’t get enough. I like to round out my guest’s experience by offering them access to retail to prolong their service results or help them style themselves on their own time. This can look like brow styling products in the form of gels or pomades (my favorite is Brow Fox Beauty by Emily Stites), post-wax essentials (my favorite is Fur You), or eyelash extension care products and tools (my favorite is Lash Box LA).
Typically, guest’s are booking a service with me because they are looking to change or amplify their looks. This can look like booking an eyebrow lamination (imagine your brows but 100x better) to camouflage the gaps in the body of the brow from over tweezing in 2004 (why, Jesus???) or booking an eyelash extension set in a soft brown color to accentuate the green and hazel tones of the iris. It truly depends on the guest and their needs, which is why I love when they utilize a little feature I have on my booking site that lets them leave me a note about their concerns/ideas/etc to read prior to their appointment. Doing so helps transition into the mini consultation portion of the service seamlessly. I set myself apart from others because I truly care about my guest’s experience. I want to know what they need when they arrive, satisfy that need, and then send them off (rebooked!) with the proper tools to maintain their service results until the next time they’re on my treatment table.
I am a very private and humble person and service provider, but I am very, very, very proud of all I have built over the last six years. I say six years because I started esthetics school in September of 2017, and refer to that as the beginning of my journey. It has felt perilous at times and there were moments I thought I’d never practice with my license, that I’d just have some piece of paper stored away saying I was a licensed professional esthetician in the state of Virginia. Every step and decision has proven to be worth it and I can say that confidently because I have the most lovely guests to show for it. I am ultimately the most proud of the relationships I’ve built with these women (and some men!!) who constantly root for me, my business, my wellbeing, and so much more. My guests want to see me succeed. They are eager to hear about my adventures, both personal and work related. I made an Instagram post announcing my gratitude when I first went solo, saying I felt an air of support constantly blanketed around me… to say I’ve fostered relationships with hundreds of people to be gifted something like that in return is an accomplishment! I am SO proud and I hope every past, current, and future guest knows that that is my driving force. It’s just a perk that I get to do their eyebrows and eyelashes.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
The best source of new clients for me is a close tie between Instagram and word of mouth referrals. I am very active on social media, sharing before/after photos, behind the scenes, funny videos, etc. This definitely attracts potential clients being that we live in the age of the internet. Another facet of Instagram that has helped me are client shout-outs. I don’t have a reward program for this, just my thanks and love to offer them for being inclined to share their satisfaction with my work and performance. Every time someone shouts me out on their story/post I always get a DM or a new follow. They may not book immediately, but I’m definitely on their radar at that point. Word of mouth referrals usually come in the form of an email or a personal DM. I’ve come to realize that your guest’s are your best advertisement and when they look good, someone else out there sees that and wants to look like them too.
I currently use a self-booking platform called Vagaro, and they have this super cool feature that helps me track where my client’s are coming from. There is a little icon at the top of each appointment for my reference (“V” means they booked from Vagaro, “G” means Google, there is a camera icon for Instagram, and more). I also swear by asking your first time guests “how did you hear about me?”. It is helpful to know these things and all data is good data!!
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
In my second year of solo work/self-employment I had to make a huge pivot in my work/life balance. I decided to make a huge cut to my operating hours. I had to restructure a large portion of my business including pricing, hours, services offered, etc. Towards the end of my first year in business, I was BURNT out. That’s actually the understatement of the year. I didn’t even realize what was really going on internally until the holidays were approaching and I just felt like a bump on a log (also an understatement). I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but overtime I realized I had just lost “myself”. I was so scared in that first year of business to fail that I said yes to absolutely every request presented to me. You need an appointment at 10PM? Say less! I understood that sacrifices need and should be made as a budding business owner to ensure success, but I really put myself on the back burner in the process. I realized I was only eating candy for lunch from my candy jar for guests, exercising maybe once every 4 months, mindlessly scrolling on social media in my free time, and constantly pouring from an empty cup. I quickly lost all creativity for work and it became a monotonous checklist for me. Rush to work, service guests, come home, and repeat. Scaling back on the amount of guests I was seeing was the best thing I could’ve ever done for myself and my business. I can eat breakfast, go to Pilates, go to work, and even cook dinner after??? What! I had no idea it was possible. I had to look inward and realize that as long as I’m doing my part as a service provider, my guests will always be there and my book will always be full. I wouldn’t say it was a gluttonous mentality of “more, more, more” with overbooking myself, but more fear of not having a full schedule in the future. I had to pivot my mentality to reflect that of abundance and not the possibility of a lack thereof. It was a VERY had decision for me as I was used to being readily available to my guests almost at all times. Drawing those lines and boundaries have helped me to become a better service provider and I found joy in my work again. I guess you could say I am incredibly self aware and just knew I wouldn’t be able to have that be my norm for years on end. I also discovered that my value as a service provider was not in working twelve hour days or having a laundry list of people I was turning away because I didn’t have space for them on my book.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.Vagaro.com/estheticsbykaya
- Instagram: @esthetics_bykaya
Image Credits
Klarissa Lissette Photography Alexxus Williams Photography