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

Stormy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, let’s jump into one of the most exciting parts of starting a new firm – how did you get your first client who was not a friend or family?

I think the hardest part about starting out wanting to do alt hair is finding people who want to let you do weird and whimsical things to their hair! When I first started out, I did a lot of advertising for free hair, and thankfully had a lot of people who would volunteer themselves to allow me to be creative. The best part about offering model services was that it allowed me the chance to feel like I could mess up. I could do the wrong thing and it was okay, because I was learning. But all of the wonderful people who allowed me to experiment over the years were people I knew, at least a little bit, and for a while I felt as though I was just destined to only do the hair of my friends. The first time I had someone reach out to me about doing vivids as a client was recommended through an old friend, also a stylist, where their schedule no longer worked for the client. I was so excited and it felt as though all of the hard work and effort I had put into just perfecting my craft was finally paying off! I did this clients hair for years after that first initial appointment, it was a great recommendation, and it really helped me feel as though I was capable of following my dream. It’s incredible how having good and lasting relationships with the people in your community will impact your business over the course of your career.

Stormy, 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?

Who am I?

Well I go by Stormy, and have for the past 10 years or so. Whenever I was 17 years old, I had dropped out of high school, gotten my GED, and I made the plan to go to cosmetology school. I officially enrolled in Paul Mitchell the School Charlotte and started my first day on my 20th birthday right after having my son a few months prior. From the very start, I knew that I would want to specifically do vivid hair colors. I have always enjoyed all aspects of doing hair, but vivids just make sense to me, and that’s what I wanted to do more than anything. I also joined the industry in a time when color corrections were becoming increasingly more important in the world. People who were focusing on fixing and refining techniques to do hair and to make it extraordinary, not just the average chunky highlights you would see before.

I think from the beginning I knew that color corrections and vivid hair colors could go hand in hand with each other. A lot of people who enjoy having beautiful and unnatural hair colors are the same people who would have to do these colors at home, and not always entirely well. About halfway through school I was hired as an assistant (intern) at Hair Klaudt in Charlotte NC. This was almost the only salon that was open and available to alternative clients in the Charlotte area at the time. I was given a safe space to learn how to create and manage my craft, as well as surrounded by people who felt the same way I did about hair in that it was an art meant to be a refined skill. I was also given the opportunity to learn from successful stylists and see how they built their books and got their clients.
Eventually, as I was licensed, I was allowed to take on models to practice on. I would search out for people who had hair that they were sure could never be fixed and I would find a way to fix it, for entirely free. I was given free range to do whatever I was capable of, and I learned more from doing that than anyone could have ever taught me. This also helped me to connect with and bond with people and eventually helped me to build my clientele.

Being in an internship along side going to school was the most effective and rewarding part of my journey. In order to make it in this industry you really do need drive. And while over the years my priorities have changed and shifted, I have never wanted nothing less than to be great at what I do, and being in a salon environment that nurtured my passion and knowledge was everything I needed to set myself up for later in my career

As time went on, I eventually joined a commission salon with similar values to mine, and was able to build a relationship with clients that would end up following me to the ends of the earth, and now I have the ability to really work my schedule to fit me best, and take on clients who understand me and I can connect with.

As well as a hairstylist, I am a painter, a crafter, a mother, an animal lover. I am many things outside of just my profession, but my profession has defined many key parts to the growth I have had as a person. The most important aspect of this industry is how you are able to connect and communicate with those around you, and I have consistently been blessed with people who have wanted to see me thrive and succeed by seeing the potential I was bringing to the table. I have had many great leaders in my time in this industry, and I cannot thank them enough for what I’m able to do. One day, I would like to fill that role and help people such as myself reach their dreams as an alternative stylist.

I have shifted my focus in my career from ‘vivid specialist’ to ‘alternative hair specialist’, because I am not just confined to only doing vivid hair anymore. I am not afraid to take on any project in front of me. I am very real about the expectations I set for my clients, and they are very much appreciative of this. As time goes on, my skillset and confidence grows, and I am excited to see what I am able to create in the future!

How did you build your audience on social media?

Now I’m not the most followed person on social media in this industry, I don’t think it’s ever been my goal to be, but honestly my best advice to you is to just post! Be as open with your life as you are comfortable with. People love to see you as a person, not just a hair machine. It’s worth it just to put yourself out there.

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

Social media and word of mouth have been the best tools I have used over the years. Being consistent in your work, your photos, your brand, it’s all a big part of what draws people to come and see you!

That being said, you really need to connect yourself to the people in your chair. They are just as human as you are, and you will do well to see them as such. The most difficult but also the most rewarding part of doing hair is getting to be apart of the lives of your clients. We celebrate with them, we sit with them, and we talk with them through their lives.

Be consistent with your work, be consistent with how you treat your people, and you will do wonderful in building a clientele.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Thehairdoer