We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ryleigh Hunter a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ryleigh thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

It’s kind of a funny story actually. During high school, which was not my favorite, my school offered a program called Regional Occupational Program (ROP) and there were a number of trades you could choose from, cosmetology included. It would allow you to get out of school early every day to go to whatever trade school you chose. Despising high school but LOVING to talk to people, I was like “hell yeah I’m going to cosmetology school”. Despite not even knowing how to curl my hair, it seemed like a good idea. It was a HUGE learning curve but ended up being the best decision I ever made. I absolutely love the creative outlet, I love making people feel beautiful, and above all else I love connecting with multiple people on a daily basis. It’s been so therapeutic not only for my clients, but for myself as well. I’ve built so many great relationships and some that will likely last my entire career. I couldn’t be more thankful.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

As I mentioned in the previous prompt, I started cosmetology while I was a senior in high school. I’ve been licensed for 13 years and have worked in many many salons, my first being in Scottsdale Arizona before making my move to San Diego. I started at a commission salon, with zero clients and my skills weren’t incredibly up to par so I assisted for a few years. I assisted a team of 14 stylists and learned a ton which was awesome. I eventually became a stylist yet had a pretty hard time growing a clientele. Partly because I was new and learning, but also I wasn’t at a salon that was conducive to my growth at the time. With so many stylists, there were only so many clients to go around. I had my regulars but eventually kind of stopped growing. After a minor, not so pleasant exchange of words with one of the owners, I decided to quit on the spot completely unexpectedly. I got in my car, called my dad sobbing, thinking “oh shit what did I just do?”

I had a friend that had recently left the same salon and opened his own booth rent salon downtown with his business partner. I gave him a call and I started the next day. With not enough clients to pay the bills, it was time to hustle. I started an Instagram, I marketed, I took classes, I did everything I possibly could to get clients in the chair. I would take a client at 9pm if I had to. Fast forward almost 10 years, I’ve built a business that makes me well over 6 figures, it provides me a life I could have only dreamed of, I make my own schedule entirely, I have other stylists wanting to learn from me, and I couldn’t be happier doing what I love to do.

My day to day is so fun. I’ve curated my clientele to mostly blondes. That’s what I specialize in. I’ve added extensions to my service list as well so I’m stoked to see where that takes me. I love being a colorist because of how you can insanely transform someone’s hair within one session. It’s incredible rewarding and I just love to make people happy while doing what makes me happy!

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

As much as I love creating beautiful color, I love the connectivity part of it even more. I love building relationships with so many people. People always say your hairstylist is like your therapist and it’s so true. My clients are even my therapist at times! I’ve become so close with so many of my clients that they know everything about my personal life and vice versa. My goal is to not only make them feel confident and beautiful, but to also create a safe space for them to be whoever they want to be when they sit in my chair. I want to make a positive impact on peoples lives for the short amount of time they’re in my chair. It’s so fulfilling.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Being in the industry for 13 years, I’ve faced a lot of challenges- especially early on. It’s awesome to look back and see how far I’ve come. The most rewarding part is that I built this 100% on my own. I stepped out of my comfort zone and worked incredibly hard to get to where I am and that’s something I’m so so proud of. And the cool thing is that I can only go up from here. You get what you put into it and I’m dedicated to continue to flourish on this journey.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @_hairbyryleigh