Today we’d like to introduce you to Chelsea Ford.
Chelsea, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My interest in the beauty industry started from a young age. I was fascinated by hair, the fun of creating different styles, the adrenaline of taking scissors to my own head, hours in the bathroom with color from the beauty supply. I loved the ways I could express myself through a change in my appearance. It would suffice to say no one was too surprised that I pursued this as a career.
At eighteen, a local hair stylist in my hometown of Poway took a chance on me, bringing me on as her apprentice. I worked under her for two years before being eligible to take the state test. After passing, I spread my wings. I left San Diego for new adventures, building my skills. In 2012, I came home to build my clientele in coastal North County before making it to my current salon neighborhood of Banker’s Hill.
In total, my journey has taken ten years to reach where I am today. Each salon, each city, teaching me something new about my industry, about who I want to be as a stylist. The key piece always coming down to client relations. Helping them see their vision for themselves realized and experiencing the same excitement and joy that I feel while working on their hair.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Anyone that has had a smooth road devoid of struggle hasn’t really lived. I believe it’s in how we overcome our obstacles that really makes us who we are and gives our joys real value.
I don’t think I was REALLY comfortable behind the chair until about year six. I literally grew up in my industry. It was the other stylists around me that took me under their wings, mentored me, encouraged me, shared their skills with me that built me into the stylist I am today.
If I have any advice for other women beginning their journey, it would be to always stay humble enough to make mistakes and to ask for help. Seek out successful women in your field. Watch them, ask them questions. Lean into the support available to you, and if you don’t see it, create it.
My biggest lesson has been that I am not an island. My support network, both in my work and my personal life, is the only thing that has kept me going when I wanted to quit.
Please tell us about your business.
I’m a pretty well-rounded stylist. My favorite work is in cutting and natural aesthetic color. I want to create work that not only looks gorgeous when you walk out the door but looks gorgeous when you come back two to three months later. My focus is the health of your hair, walking you through the process of color work, what it means for your hair, the right products to care for it, and finding the cut that makes you feel your best self.
I think what sets me apart from other stylists is my true interest in who my client is and how I can make that shine with their style. My industry can be shallow and surface level at first glance, I work to take it deeper. I think our hair is part of our expression of self. My best is an example is of myself. I’ve had almost every style I can think and I never feel more authentically me than I do with short, red hair. It makes me feel more confident, adventurous and beautiful than anything else. Every appointment, my goal is to create this same feeling for my client. To listen to their lifestyle, their feelings about their hair, themselves, and bring out their best self through color and scissors.
There’s a wealth of academic research that suggests that lack of mentors and networking opportunities for women has materially affected the number of women in leadership roles. Smart organizations and industry leaders are working to change this, but in the meantime, do you have any advice for finding a mentor and building a network?
Find someone you look up to. Ask them how they made it to where they are today. REMAIN TEACHABLE! Sometimes, being teachable means swallowing your pride and asking someone you don’t think you like for help because they are better than you at something. You’ll often find they aren’t what you expect and find a great ally. I’ve learned from people with decades more experience and just as much from newbies in my industry by doing exactly this.
Contact Info:
- Address: Fox and Jane Salon
2870 5th Ave Suite 101
San Diego, CA 92103 - Email: cford1289@gmail.com
- Instagram: @chelsea_lizabeth_
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