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

Hi Kaylie, thanks for joining us today. Can you share a story about the kindest thing someone has done for you and why it mattered so much or was so meaningful to you?

About 10 years ago, a regular at the bar I worked at asked me a question that changed the trajectory of my life. He had notice my usual chipper and upbeat energy was gone during my shift, and had asked what was wrong. To which I remember answering something like’ “I went to my high school reunion this weekend, and it was good to see everyone but it was hard to be reminded that I haven’t finished college, or even started college really. Frustrated I don’t have more to show after 10 years, and jealous of the people who choose a path early in adulthood.

Another beer ordered, and then he asked, “If the amount of schooling you had to do didn’t matter, if you could afford any school, what would you go to school to be?”

I said I’d always wanted to be a hair stylist, but my parents wanted me to go to college so….that’s what I’d be, a hairstylist.

He came into my second job the next morning, I served him brunch, and when he paid his $12 tab, he wrote a check for $12,012 and said, “Go to beauty school!”

I was enrolled less than 2 weeks later and started on my path to my dream job. I will always be in debt to him, although he insisted if I am ever in a place to do this for someone else, to just pay it forward.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I did my first hair cut on my little brother, when I was 6 and he was 4. He got bangs, unwillingly and unbeknownst to my parents. I’ve been doing hair ever since, and legally since 2012. I remember in beauty school, I really struggled with how damaging hair dye and bleach was to the hair, so when I moved to San Diego and discovered keratin treatments in 2016, I knew I was on to something.

I left my small little town in NorCal shortly after getting my cosmetology license. I always knew I was more of a city girl and really wanted to build a clientele in an amazing place, so San Diego was perfect! I started working at a salon that solely focused on keratin and that’s when I really started to see the value of the service and decided to specialize in it, vs. color and cutting.

Specializing in any service is always a great idea as a stylist. There are so many services and trying to be really good at everything is essentially impossible. The level of trust that you will receive from your clients as being someone who specializes in your field, as opposed to a do-it-tall type of stylist is unparalleled. Being able to do something very well, understand something better than others and know a product so intimately is an asset in this industry and I feel blessed
To have such a passion for the services I provide and what they can do for everyone’s hair.

When I went out on my own, I knew I wanted to design my brand around keratin treatments and the manageability it provides. It works by replenishing your hair’s natural keratin, sealing the hair cuticle, and reducing frizz. The result? Smooth, shiny, and more manageable hair. My goal is always to provide a service that makes your hair completely stress free: hence my mantra, “Let us worry about your hair, so you don’t have to.” And that’s exactly what we do at Sd Keratin.

My other goal is education. I live to debunk
the myths about smoothing treatments, how they work and what they do to hair. I love to spread the good word of what keratin can do for every hair type, to the masses. So many people, I’ve discovered, have never heard of it!

I found a second passion along the way as a keratin specialist and it’s educating other stylists. I’m currently interviewing to find the perfect brand of keratin to start collaborating with. I’d love to travel and teach my craft! And I will! Keratin is simply magic and I’d love for everyone to know about it!

Although I take great pride in my technical abilities behind the chair, my skillset, and my knowledge base, I am most proud of the culture I’ve created in my chair. I truly feel as though my clients feel safe, and heard, and seen, and beautiful during their service, and that is all that matters to me. I have so much fun behind the chair and I hope my clients can feel how happy I am to see them, and to help them have beautiful and manageable hair!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I worked at a salon for 6 years as a commission stylist. I built a clientele who knew and trusted me with their hair and I was very happy there. I loved not having any outside responsibilities. I wasn’t a business owner. I just showed up, did some treatments and went home. When clients would reach out to me, I would simply say, “Call the salon to book.” And it was nice. And maybe a little easy even. Definitely
Comfortable.

Totally out of the blue and completely
with no warning, I was fired from my salon. It was devastating. I truly had built a work family and life there. I was so afraid of being a booth rental stylist, not having clients, or not finding the right space. But even more afraid of working for someone else again.

I had paid very close attention over the years. I’d watched the owner of my last salon experience all of the growing pains of new business ownership. I knew what worked and what didn’t. What programs to use to schedule clients. Where and how
to advertise.

I was fired on a Saturday and I immediately went to work. I had a salon lined up by Tuesday, a scheduling app account with all of my clients uploaded by Wednesday, business cards by Friday and I was in the salon working the following week. The majority of my clients followed me and continued to support me. I was so grateful.

And now as the owner of SDK, I look back and find myself to be so grateful to be fired. God I hate that word. It’s awful. But what a blessing. I always knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but I was so comfortable, and so safe, I never took the risk until I was quite literally forced too. I had no idea how ready I actually was. The transition was essentially seamless. I was able to spin it in a way that made it look like it was my idea. But it wasn’t. It wasn’t my idea at all. And how lucky I was to be pushed into business ownership. It’s amazing how everything works out in the end.

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

Surprisingly enough, my most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been Groupon. Because I specialize in something that not many people do, it’s an easy sale. Once my client is in my chair, and I can tell they care about their hair, I can almost guarantee they come back. So offering the first treatment at a discounted rate, to gain a forever client will will pay full price on the next visit, is a no brainer. I go through phases where I run the Groupon during slow months and pause it during busy months. It’s worked great for me!

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.sdkeratin.com
• Instagram: @Sdkeratin
• Facebook: SD Keratin
• Yelp: SD Keratin

Image Credits
Photographer: Alexis Quintana