Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryleigh Hunter.
Ryleigh, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I went to beauty school while I was in high school through a free program called ROP. School was never my thing and I knew college wasn’t my thing so I jumped on the opportunity and within weeks, I fell in love with the craft and knew I wanted to make a career out of it. Shortly after graduating high school, I got my cosmetology license and headed out to Arizona where I assisted for almost two years before moving to San Diego. I assisted full time at minimum wage for another year and a half here before becoming a commission stylist. The first few years were really really hard and without my parents, I would have never been able to stay in San Diego. I eventually became so unhappy with my situation that I decided to go booth rent with very little clientele. My thought process was that even if only half of my clients followed me, I’d still make the same amount of money as I was making as a commission stylist. It was the best and hardest decision I ever made. I feel like I had a very slow start to my career and after eight years, I’m finally starting to become comfortable with where I’m at. I work at an AMAZING salon called Raven and Sage Collective and it really feels like home. I’ve worked with so many inspiring and supportive women and many have helped shaped me into the stylist I am today, but it is so rad to look back at where I’ve been and where I am now and know that I made this happen all by myself. I’m feelin’ real proud of myself.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. I struggled financially for so so long. Shit, I still do sometimes if I’m being honest. Another thing I struggled with was comparing myself to other hairdressers my age that were better than me, or that made more money than me, or that had more Instagram followers than me. I think so many of us women catch ourselves doing that- especially when we’re not necessarily where we want to be in our careers. I think that we should all try to refrain from comparing ourselves and instead learn to be proud of where we’ve been and where we’re headed. Nobody’s life is as it seems on social media and everybody’s journeys move at different paces. That’s something I have to remind myself of every day. I’ve learned that if you keep setting goals, working hard, and stay true to yourself in the process, you will continue to surprise yourself.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I primarily do color. I LOVE coloring hair. I love cutting too but color is where my passion lies. I specialize in blondes- particularly natural, lived in, sometimes bold, low maintenance blondes. I love being able to give somebody that super bright blonde hair they’ve been wanting while still allowing their hair to grow in seamlessly without any harsh lines of demarcation. My favorite thing ever is when a client comes back in after not seeing me for six months and their color still looks amazing. It makes me so happy. I think the fact that they aren’t having to get their hair colored every other month is what keeps them coming back to me. Makes it tough for me to build a clientele since I only see most of them 2-3 times a year, but I don’t mind because it’s honestly so rewarding seeing my work get that kind of longevity.
Were there people and/or experiences you had in your childhood that you feel laid the foundation for your success?
I think just having supportive parents and step-parents made a huge impact on my success. I never felt any pressure to become anything other than what I wanted to be, even as a kid. If I didn’t want to play sports, I didn’t play sports. If I wanted to quit cheer after one practice, they let me. They never told me I had to go to college (probably because they knew that was out of the question) and they never told me that my decision to go to beauty school was a bad one. And even when I was broke as shit the first five years into my career, they still supported me every step of the way. They all took very different career paths and are all successful so it’s kind of like I’ve been set up with the perfect little cocktail of influences and can take away something different from each of their journeys as well.
Pricing:
- Haircut $65
- Partial highlight $165+
- Full highlight $185+
Contact Info:
- Address: Raven and sage collective-
830 25th st San Diego, CA 92102 - Phone: 7604855923
- Instagram: @_hairbyryleigh
Image Credit:
Alina Mendoza
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