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

Laura, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

Entrepreneurship is all about risk taking, in my opinion. The first risk, and most important one I took on myself and my business venture was to leave my job and be fully reliant on the income from my business. In 2021 I was working a desk job in an office setting and I was yearning for more out of life. I wanted so badly to carve out my own path and set my own hours- I knew I could handle being a business owner… I just wasn’t sure yet how to achieve it. I began researching and obsessing over microblading techniques (a form of permanent makeup) and found an artist that I felt was incredible. She was about a 5 hour flight away and I felt like this was my shot; learning from who I felt like could teach me what no one else was offering around me. I took the chance, booked the flight, and learned how to microblade. When I came home, the risk had only just begun. I had a lot of hoops to jump through to complete my training and licensing. It was so daunting but I powered through and took each task one by one and eventually I was open for business! Within the same year of opening my business in 2022, I was able to leave my full time desk job and become my own boss, focusing on my microblading and business. It has changed my life in so many ways. I’m so grateful for saying “yes” to a risk.

Laura, 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 Laura, owner and microblading artist at my studio, LS Brow Studio in Shenandoah County, VA. I opened my permanent makeup business in 2022 and I am forever grateful for each client that has come to me, still comes and all of the new ones that will come and see me! My focus is on very natural eyebrows. I use both microblading and nano to achieve natural results for my clients. Microblading is much like it sounds, there is a tiny blade comprised of tiny pins that create a “micro blade” in which I use to create hair-like strokes in the skin. I also use a machine that is similar to a tattoo gun, but less invasive and less permanent than a tattoo because I do not work as deep in the skin. The machine will have a needle on the end that creates tiny pixels in the skin that are layered to create an individual hairstroke. I am able to build beautiful brows with these two tools.
I believe that natural brows are the future of microblading because they offer a more timeless approach. Keeping close to your natural brow shape and hair pattern will help to create a seamless eyebrow that stands the test of time and trends. Whether you are wanting a low maintenance makeup routine or you just want to spend less time doing your brows- I’m here to make life easier.
Eyebrows are truly an enhancement to your face and have a way of creating a more youthful appearance when done correctly. I love what I get to do every day.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Social media is what I’d consider your portfolio, especially instagram. It’s so easy to navigate and show all of your work, especially as an artist. I’d say TikTok is another platform that can help on a larger spectrum but instagram is better for a community if your business is one that operates on a smaller scale or relies on local business. Once I started to post routinely on socials, I began to gain more and more traction. The biggest or most effective strategy after building a portfolio is absolutely word of mouth. I gain most of my clients by word of mouth.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to learn early that as a business owner, you have to protect yourself by setting clear boundaries. State them on your website, on your paperwork, in your studio or salon area. You must protect your business by setting rules for a reason and the more you stick to them, the more your clients will respect them. Obviously, things happen and plans can change. However, you should have guidelines set in place and you can decide case by case on whether or not you must enforce them. I would say it’s also important to know when you should bend those rules because life can be tough and you also want to treat someone the way you would want to be treated in that scenario.
I once had a client ghost on me. Fully ghost- this was early on and I didn’t have anything set in place for this happening. After that incident I decided to start taking non-refundable deposits and this way they had way more incentive to only make an appointment they knew they could keep.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lsbrowstudio.com
• Instagram: @lsbrowstudio
• Facebook: LS Brow Studio LLC