We recently connected with Kelsea Johnson and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kelsea , thanks for joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later
If I could go back in time, I 100% wish I could start my business sooner. Though I believe everything has happened at the right time, I truly wish I could tell my younger self to just believe and go for it. Stop thinking about it and just do it.
I was 6 months away from graduating from the University of Georgia with a Bachelors in Political Science when I realized I wanted to flip my life upside down and follow a completely different path. I knew I wasn’t passionate about pursuing a career in politics or law, as I once thought I was. Even though I still have a huge place in my heart for them both, I knew it wouldn’t make me happy long-term and would come with a lot of financial stress. So it was back to the drawing board…
I thought back to what I had always wanted to do as a little girl. I remember playing in my moms makeup, her red lipstick specifically, and putting on fashion shows for my whole family to see. I thought I would be a magazine editor in New York, a fashion designer in Paris, or a novelist traveling the world. So after college, I wanted to lean into what ‘little’ me thought I could be.
In the spring of 2018, the creative side took over and I started experimenting with makeup. At night after long shifts at an Italian restaurant I would sit in front of my vanity and try different looks and techniques. I have some really crazy photos from that time but I cherish where I started. Once I found enough confidence in my work on myself I started volunteering my friends as practice dolls. I would say one of my specialities today is brows—I can create the most perfect brow out of the littlest of hair. Funnily enough, I attribute this to practicing on my best friends who have red hair and very blonde eyebrows. I would not be here today without them. After many courses and sanitization requirements I started taking on paid clients, but I definitely didn’t make a profit right away. It wasn’t until I got a healthy word of mouth around town and repeat business that I started making actual money.
Now, after 5 years and hundreds of bridal and boudoir clients across the US, I am an experienced Professional Makeup Artist with a fully booked calendar!
While I do wish I could have started my makeup business earlier, I don’t know if I would’ve been ready or mature enough for all that this experience has given me. And, I don’t wish away my time in college at all. I am so grateful for UGA, the forever friends I have from there, and the knowledge I that gained during my 4 years. Everything has happened right on cue; looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing.
Kelsea , 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?
My name is Kelsea Johnson. I am a freelance Professional Makeup Artist working in bridal and boudoir. I specialize in creating a long-lasting soft glam look for any occasion. Since I began my career in beauty my main goal has been to show people how beautiful they truly are. Using makeup as a tool to instill this confidence, I have been able to create this feeling in hundreds of clients across the US. Working in bridal, I have discovered I love the feeling of a wedding day. Creating a forever look that will be memorialized in photos and videos, gets my heart going. Along with being one of your hype girls so you feel the most beautiful. My passion is watching you discover your confidence through my makeup work for your special occasions.
As a boudoir makeup artist, I see women everyday who are forever changed by their amazing experience in the Brooklyn Claudia Boudoir studio. The makeup look is only a small part of the overall event, but knowing your makeup has been professionally tailored to you is a relieving feeling. This can be a vulnerable event for a woman; maybe she is gaining her confidence back after child birth, after a divorce, or just for fun. Whatever the occasion might be, creating the makeup look that helps you take that confidence into your everyday world is what lights my fire.
I truly I hope I am well into old age and still creating rockstar looks for people to shine in every room they step foot in.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?
Becoming a makeup artist doesn’t happen over night. And building a kit that has half decent products and a variety of shades for different skin tones isn’t cheap. In the beginning I didn’t have a lot of funding to start my business. I know a lot of my essentials, like my first kit bag, ring light, and makeup chair, came from friends and family as Christmas presents or birthday gifts. Instead of asking for things for myself, I wanted things that would help my business grow. Without the generosity from people in my circle at that time, starting my business would have been incredibly difficult. In my free time, I would peruse the beauty aisle of drug stores and add up how much everything I thought I would need would be. After long shifts at Carrabba’s Italian Grill I carefully calculated how much I could spend on makeup and still pay my bills. Let’s just say, sometimes the bills took a backseat so I could buy new makeup products. I knew that one day all of the struggling would pay off. Long shift after shift, hustling for paid clients, gaining non-paid clients for exposure, and exploring every avenue until I found one that felt right, I had enough to fully stock my kit.
Today, my professional kit is fully stocked with a wide variety of shades for all skin tones, high end skin care products and luxury makeup brands. I also strive to keep only clean and cruelty free products as well.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
I have two favorite podcasts that have wholly impacted my entrepreneurial mindset. The first being “The Alchemized Life” by business and mindset coach Ava Johanna. She takes you through personal stories from herself and other entrepreneurial woman showing you their growth and how specific mindset shifts can be really impactful to your business. I love listening to her podcasts when I travel for work, it puts me in the right headspace to act like the boss babe I am! My second favorite podcast is “Powerhouse Women” by author and community builder, Lindsey Schwartz. One episode and I was hooked! She has an upbeat energy that radiates through my headphones when speaking about successes and pitfalls in her entrepreneurial journey.
I have learned so much from both of these women about business and jumping head first into uncomfortable situations in order to grow.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.Kelseajmua.com
- Instagram: Kelseajmua
- Facebook: Kelseajmua LLC.
Image Credits
Brooklyn Claudia Boudoir