We recently connected with Sam Chapel and have shared our conversation below.

Sam, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

I love being a business owner! As someone who likes to be in control of their work and books, being my own boss helps ease my mind in many ways!
I tend to run on the anxious side of the road and opening my own business actually made me feel less anxious once I was up and running. Everything being in my control was pretty amazing for my brain (for the most part!)
Now don’t get me wrong, the process of opening up my business was nerve wracking for sure because you never know what’ll happen!

Even though I’ve been loving working for myself, of course I think about what a regular job would be like- especially when it comes to time and honestly, benefits!
I work a very creative job and see a lot of faces so my working hours can get a little weird to say the least. I’m currently open Wednesdays-Saturdays (I tend to do makeup on any day of the week as long as I’m available) which is working really well but it can be hard when it comes to my personal life and the long days can become taxing on my body. Finding time off at the same time as family/friends can sometimes be challenging, but there’s ways to work around it!
The amazing thing about being a business owner, I have the option to change my hours if I want to or need to. I love working four days a week and am so thankful I have the ability to do so! I can always add another day or drop one if I need to as well! But I like to be consistent and keep the same hours for my guests!

When I’m having a day where I’m pondering about a regular job, it’s normally when something comes up like health insurance, PTO, sick leave, etc. I have searched and obtained some of my own benefits but I don’t really get the freedom to call in! If I’m sick, I have to reschedule my own books and find the time to get everyone back in. It’s doable but some days it’s tricky!
In the end, the more I grow as a business owner/self employed person, the more I love it and know it’s where I need to be for me.

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?

My name is Sam and I’m the owner of Wildflower Beauty Room located in Clarkston Michigan!

At WBR I offer makeup, bridal makeup, face painting, brow shaping by tweezers + scissors, staining/tinting, + lamination, lash lifting + tinting, rejuvenating + hydrating facials, + body waxing, + individual makeup lessons!

My original plan was not to become a Makeup Artist and Esthetician! I wanted to attend an art school for illustration- at least it’s what I thought I was supposed to do!
I was enrolled at the College for Creative Studies and was even offered a decent scholarship. At the end of the day, CCS was not in the budget and I don’t think in my heart.
I still create but not as much as I’d like. I would like to learn more art techniques, so I’m working on it and finding a balance for it!

I worked at another space doing only a handful of services for almost 5 years then Covid came around. This forced me to find my own space and that opened more doors for new services for me! Working for myself means I can add new education and services whenever I’d like.

What’s very important to me as an artist and business owner is sanitation! I have unfortunately seen a lot of not so clean work spaces and everyone deserves to and should have a clean service! Every one of my tools are washed with warm water and soap and then placed in a disinfectant for the amount of time it calls for. Every brush is cleaned with a brush cleaner after every application and hand washed with brush shampoo when it’s due!

I love what I do, not only is it fun and rewarding, but I also get to meet so many amazing people! My service times bounce around 45 minutes to an hour and a half+ so I get to know a lot of my guests personally! Getting to know everyone a little more means I can really cater your service to you and work with you on your beauty goals! Whether it’s working to grow your brows fuller, doing a first time brow clean up on your pre-teen, or doing your makeup on your big day, it’s special to me!

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

I like to be able to speak to my clients first hand so I have a number they can text me at with any questions at any time! 248-795-5512
I do keep it as only texting just because I can’t get to the phone when I’m working and texts help keep record of all my conversations! I keep every message thread so we can go back and refer to past conversations. This is perfect for my brides who need to keep in touch! I also have email as a means of communication- [email protected] for bigger inquiries.
I use a booking app called “Fresha” and have been using it since 2017! (It used to be called “Shedul.”)
There I can have my guests online book if they’d like, it sends out confirmation texts, 24 and 48 hour reminder texts, and others that you can personally set up.
The best way for me to stay consistent and connected with everyone is to have them prebook their next appointment before they leave!

How did you build your audience on social media?

My social media presence has been up and down with each year.
I started on Instagram and Facebook with a page that I wanted to grow as a face paint/sfx/makeup page and it was doing pretty well in the beginning!
I would come home from work every night and paint for 3-6 hours just for a few good photos. If you scroll down on my Instagram- wildflowerbeautyroom you’ll see the face paints!

Covid kind of killed my passion for face painting and honestly it was exhausting to come home and work for another handful of hours. Now my social media is dedicated to my services that I offer. I share mostly before and after pictures and makeup looks! Don’t get me wrong, the itch for face painting it still there and I hope to bring it back again in moderation.

The best way to grow a good social media presence is consistency! Every person I know that has a successful page is very consistent, whether it’s posting daily or constant stories. Post good quality photos, photos of yourself- your followers love to see your face!, and reels! Instagram really thrives on reels and I’m the worst at taking videos haha!

I have to be honest though and I know a lot of artists and business owners feel the same way, I really struggle to post on socials! It can feel very tedious and defeating when the post barely gets any attention. It just seems like another thing to keep up and compete with! But… I’m trying to make posting on socials for marketing more interesting, fun, and less stressful. It’s a work in progress and a big part of the job, stay tuned!!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.wildflowerbeautyroom.com
• Instagram: wildflowerbeautyroom
• Other: Booking software:
  https://www.fresha.com/book-now/ag1i3ykv/all-offer?share&pId=435193

Image Credits

Colleen Bingham
Breanne Rochelle Sucharski