We were lucky to catch up with Tori Peck recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tori, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I think being successful has a lot to do with work ethic mostly! But, I think there is a lot to say about having a solid group of friends and/or family that believe in you and your dreams. I think aggressively believing in yourself and knowing you are capable of doing the hard work to meet your goals is a perfect combination to success.

Tori, 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?

I have been a hairdresser for 5 years now & a business owner for 2.5 years! I started out at a large salon in Encinitas and 2.5 years ago a friend and I left that salon to open our own 2 chair salon suite! Before having children, my mom was a hairdresser and growing up she would do haircuts for friends and family at our house. I was always drawn to the beauty industry. I was always the one to do everyone’s hair and makeup in middle school and high school and decided to make a career out of it in 2016! I specialize in corrective color and blonding services but I offer a wide variety of services including extensions and precision haircuts. I am most proud of the clientele I have and the relationship I have with them. I like to believe I’ve created a safe place for both my clients and myself to express themselves whether that be through their hair or even emotionally! im very upfront and honest with my clients and I think that’s given me a good reputation!

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

my existing clients have actually been the best source! I’ve been so fortunate to be blessed with clients who brag about me to their friends! instagram is such a great tool too though. its a free platform to showoff my work and at the end of the day I think it really helps seal the deal for new clients!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I worked at the same salon from 2017-2019. like I mentioned before, It was a large salon and they had an assistant program in place for new hairdressers to learn from master stylists. I assisted there for almost the full 2 years I had been there. while im so thankful that I had that time to assist, I wasn’t making enough money to sustain the lifestyle that I desired for myself. when I asked for a raise I was denied because I hadn’t been there long enough- that’s when I knew I had to make a change. I didn’t want to wait another 2 years for a raise! When I sat down with management after I made my mind up about having and going out on my own, I was met with doubt and discouragement. I didn’t know many people in the salon suite business, and I knew it was risky to go out on my own, but I went for it anyway. having a friend with me definitely made it less scary but despite that I still could barely sleep getting it all together. I even grew a few grey hairs because of the stress but in the end, it was the best business decision Ive ever made!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.salonwestsd.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hairbytoripeck/?hl=en&__coig_restricted=1

Image Credits
Alyssa Brooke Photo (Alyssa Sanchez)