Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Reid Ryan. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Reid , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
I spent the first 15 years of my career working in territory management and training roles for large professional/retail brands. Through these roles, I had a unique opportunity get a look at the way so many of these businesses managed their operations. I saw which models were successful, which had high employee retention, customer satisfaction and buy in, and conversely, which models were failing. I saw that the ones that placed their value in their people had long standing employees who were happy to be there, and because their people were happy and focused on their jobs, their customers were happy. The experience was a positive one. The last company I worked with, I was largely focused on training and sales growth, and I burned completely out- I watched their profitability margins change, their goal structures pushed their employees to do twice as much per hour as a minimum standard, and because of it, the service and moral suffered. I got really sick from the stress of it all, and watched the same happen to many of my managers and staff. I thought to myself, I know that we have to have systems in place to be successful, but this is clearly NOT the way.
After a couple of months working for another skin care brand, I decided to get back behind the chair and rent a room a couple days a week. It was an absolute disaster- the salon owner was a trainwreck with no plan for her sustainability, not to mention she would use all of my backbar without asking and leave the station unkept.
I was getting quite busy with very little effort to build, so I decided to rent my own room at a location downtown. Again, the experience was quite a disappointment… there was no education aspect to inspire the staff, nothing that created a culture to be a part of. After a year, I was ready to do my own space, and I had some very specific ideas about it.
1. I wanted my renters or employees to have access to high end products that most wouldn’t be able to afford straight out of school.
2. I wanted a low rental chair price that a building artist could afford and favorable hourly plus commission structure for employees.
3. I wanted to have a clear brand, training and advanced education offerings available to the staff as well as the community- in the esthetics industry, it can be terribly competitive, but my feelings have always been that there is no competition between my business and any other in my area- we all can be successful if we raise the standards of the industry and are kind to one another. Basically, we are all one, and there is plenty of business for everyone!
To create this, it was a pretty large expense for me to take on. I started small, with 3 stations in two rooms and a reception area. I kept a modest buildout and focused on the level of services we could provide. All of my previous work in the industry really helped me to be prepared for opening this concept! I reached back to my contacts from different brands I had met through all of my salon connections and partnered with a Lash supply and education brand. As their Director of Education, I was able to provide certifications and training in my own location. Next, I found a high end skin care line to share with my staff that offered a ton of in person skin education and webinars. I had planned the space out in my head while we waited to get the keys, and I was able to be ready to open within a week of occupying the space. What I hadn’t imagined could ever happen hit about 5 months in. COVID-19… and we were mandated to be shut for most of that year. I continued to pay for the empty space with the EIDL support that was offered, while looking to find the right people to fit in as full time staff for when (if) we reopened.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Reid Nikki Ryan, and I am the founder of Bow and Beam (a beauty collective) and owner of Polymorph Beauty.
I am an international award winning Master Lash and Brow artist with nearing 25 years of experience in the salon and beauty industry. I currently partner with Elleebana USA as a distributor and certified trainer for their entire education offerings, which I hold in Reno, NV and Santa Barbara, CA. At Polymorph, we also distribute Elleebana products to our network across the US, shipping from our headquarters in Reno and our pickup location in Santa Barbara.
It has been such an incredible journey getting to this point in my career. Having these two brands is something I am very proud of.
Bow and Beam is my first success story- we have 7 incredible artists on our staff at the moment, offering skin therapy, lash and brow treatments, spray tanning, body waxing, and Reiki/Energy Work. Founded I. 2015, we have worked to become the best space in Santa Barbara for customized brow and lash experiences. We now operate as a 3 person ownership team, which has been really incredible for me to watch two of my favorite humans step into leadership roles with our collective. It also has allowed for me to focus more on Polymorph. As of today, my personal books are closed and I see my existing clients 1-2 days a week, with the rest of my time focused on streamlining our systems and education offerings while elevating our service experiences.
The growth of Bow and Beam actually ended up necessitating the creation of Polymorph Beauty. I was working with a smaller lash brand as their director of education, which ended up partnering with Elleebana. It had been my dream to train with this legendary brand for about 5 years, and within a year of training with them, Polymorph was born, offering a full menu of Elleebana certification courses and products! Being in two states isn’t an easy thing to execute with a salon collective that is open 7 days a week along with running an education schedule and distribution center, but I love this industry so much and it drives me as a professional. I’m actually an introvert, but it lights me up every time I meet a fellow artist that wants to level up their services. I attend a lot of industry events, where I connect with a lot of artists from different states, sometimes different countries. Hearing people’s struggles, their wins in their business, it helps me to be a better asset to anyone I work with. Polymorph Beauty works to connect with salon owners, single operators, students, and help them to elevate their business through mentoring, education, and product support.
In the last two years, Polymorph Beauty has attended some of the biggest lash and brow industry events in the country representing the Elleebana training team. Each and every one of these events has been unforgettable. I think that being behind the chair or in the office, we feel very isolated in our practice and it can be lonely or defeating, especially when you might be troubleshooting a client’s results. At events, we get to connect with our peers and help each other find solutions, and it bonds us, lifting us out of a rut. It’s so inspiring! This is one of the few industries that it truly doesn’t matter if you are a man or a woman, your success is completely dependent on your skill level and your dedication to your craft! We work with people one on one, we hear their life stories, we listen and sympathize, celebrate the high points, and we make them feel like the best versions of themselves! At the end of the day, it can be really draining work, and having peers to connect with and talk through things with is so important for our growth and mental health.
The last 12 months have been really magical- Polymorph has been hosted in 3 different states to train our Brow Mastery workshop. I created this course to sit next to the Elleebana courses that exist, it dives into a bit more about mapping, face shapes and the golden ratio, wax theory and ingredients, proper trimming technique, styling options, and selective tweezing. It was so succcessful that I plan to offer it again in 2025 and we are in the finishing phase of an online version of the course.
There are many authorized Elleebana distributors in the US, and I feel that Polymorph Beauty is a bit different in the way we offer our support to our students. For one, I am one of the few trainers that offers certification in their entire course offerings, one of five to be exact. Second, I am still behind the chair at least one day a week, so I am right there in the trenches along all of my students and stylists, experimenting with techniques and shooting content to support questions. Third, my experience spans 2 decades in the industry and includes international competitions and judging roles. I have a lot of assistance to offer estheticians who aspire to compete!
And finally, I am an active salon owner with both booth renters and employees, so I still face the same issues as any other owner in business.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
REPUTATION- this one is a slow burn, isn’t it? Meaning, you can’t establish a good reputation overnight. It takes time to network with people and build their trust, building toward the opportunity to show them what you are capable of. I think I had a really good base to jump into working for myself, having spent so much time in so many different facets of the beauty industry.
It’s really funny when you look back at all of the different things that have built to where you are now. Things that may have seemed small and trivial at the time, they add up and before you know it, boom, your rep has been established. You have to treat every interaction as if it’s the only one you’ll ever have. Every meeting you put into your calendar, every service you do, every event you attend…. you have to really show up and be present! I was brought up to follow through with my commitments, but it was really put to the test when working with so many different brands and clients. I learned early on that it is very easy to overcommit, and it’s better to prioritize your projects instead of jumping into all of them at once.
I’m neurodivergent, which can be a strength and a challenge at times. I have never been someone who focused a lot on the “what if something bad happens?” My focus has always been more on the opportunity that is in front of me, and “what’s the worst that could happen, I fail? So what?” The truth is, it takes a lot of failure to be able to find what works, and you will never know unless you give it a shot. This mindset made it really easy for clients to approach me with ideas, and my immediate response was always, let do it. Mind you, every project needed to be looked at with proper budgets and measurable result expectations. Which brings me to another key tool that helped me build my reputation- proper consultation skills. Every conversation needed to start with discovery to find out what my client’s needs were. Often times, they weren’t even clear on what they wanted for themselves. By talking through where they were and what their desired results were, I could create a realistic expectation of whatever we were to work on while setting measureable goals and markers.
The last thing I feel that helped me to establish my reputation is my genuine investment in my people. I care so much about each and every person I work with, and have a desire to see them succeed. There are a lot of artists and mentors in this world that only see clients as a dollar sign and do the bare minimum to get the job done. It makes me so sad when I see this- to me, there is no greater joy than watching someone else grow and succeed. People respond to genuine excitement and care, it’s electric!
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Referrals! This is the main drive I have to be mindful of all of my interactions, whether it is a dtudent or a client! If someone has a bad experience, they will write you off and tear you down every time they hear you mentioned. If they have a satisfactory experience, they may mention you in passing to a friend who asks… but if they have an incredible experience, they will refer you to their nearest and dearest and that is absolutely priceless.
Our referrals have come in a few different forms- reviews on Google or yelp, testimonials on social media, and a few have even gone as far as to do video testimonials of their experience! My favorite is the personal referral, when someone contacts me directly and says, “my best friend says you are THE brand to go with, how can I get in with you?”
That, my friends, is the best thing any business owner can hear. In that moment, the blood sweat and tears melt away and you feel like it was all worth it and you would do it again in a heartbeat.
Contact Info:
- Website: Bowandbeam.com. Polymorphbeauty.com
- Instagram: @bowandbeam @polymorphbeauty
- Linkedin: Reid Ryan
Image Credits
Emily Merrill