We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Michael Ramirez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Michael, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Too often the media represents innovation as something magical that only high-flying tech billionaires and upstarts engage in – but the truth is almost every business owner has to regularly innovate in small and big ways in order for their businesses to survive and thrive. Can you share a story that highlights something innovative you’ve done over the course of your career?
Most innovative move I’ve ever made in my career has been removing the Expectation that family would be my most loyal line of clientele.
Removing that aspect of disappointment early, allowed me to understand that Strangers become our biggest supporters!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
About me… well my name is Michael “The Last Hair Blender” inspired by Avatar Aang and by the type process I utilize on my haircut services. “Freehand Blending” is a form of Fading used mainly by the previous generation of Master Barbers which eliminates the need to use plastic/metal guards.
I became a Barber primarily to save money on haircuts for my kids. But as my skills developed, the constant inquiries coming in requesting MY services made me feel needed… Wanting to hold on to that feeling is what kept me disciplined enough to maintain consistency and patience.
I once heard my barber school instructor say that becoming a Barber will give us insight into other professions. So far, I’ve experienced being a Therapist, a Consultant, an Advisor, a Life Coach and even a Paramedic.
My level of customer service and attention to detail is what sets me apart from others. On top of loving your haircut, i bet our conversation will linger in your mind for days to come!
As far as products i offer, based on results alone Hands down its “Black Widow Razors” products for me! I use the Pro Shave Solution and Hair Growth Ointments on my clients and definitely recommend for day to day usage! Great for both Barbers and Clients! Link below for access to these products. Use Discount Code: HairBlenderMike
https://www.bwrazors.com/?ref=hairblendermike
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Having a Pivot point in careers is as scary as it is exciting! But when you’re forced to pivot back to what you’ve moved on from is a real punch in the gut. Covid 19 had Barbers and Stylists listed as non-essential which made me have to revert back to my previous career in the Customer Service/Call Center Life. I definitely had to be resilient with what felt like an unnecessary dosage of the W-2 World after experiencing the 1099 life.
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
My education originally took me into the Service World which provided me with tons of experience on how to treat a person and how I’d like to be treated as a customer or a client. I became so comfortable with it that i furthering my education to grown within that industry was the original plan. With all that dedication and commitment, i kind of burned myself out. Cutting hair was not in my plans, i knew how to do it but never imagined I’d reach the professional level. Eventually feeling like i was at a dead end, i used 80 hours of PTO and worked out of a beauty salon unlicensed… within the first week, i made the same amount as my bi-weekly salary pay. I told myself that if i could make that happen two weeks in a row, I’d heavily consider it… Can You Guess what happened?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linqapp.com/michael_ramirez2?r=link
- Instagram: @michaelthelasthairblender
- Youtube: @michaelramirez6359
Image Credits
Final Image would be myself and including Allison Arvizu of Level3 or @allison_cuts