scizrboy

I'm a 14 year veteran stylist here in Los Angeles. I am a self employed "rental" stylist. For those unfamiliar, I pay a flat station rent per week. (Mine is $225) All products, tools and color is my responsibility. It provides great flexibily and a feeling of being you own boss. That said, with my full clientele I earn about 1200-1500 a week plus tips. A comfortable living. It is expensive to live here however. Fortunately the tax loop holes for an independent stylist works very well in my favor! ;-)

So. I am tired of living here in the US, especially LA, and have dreamed of living and working abroad. I found out about the MODL list for Australia some time ago and now sit here well into the immigration process. The TRA application came and went easily. My medical police check/clearance should be coming soon.

I've been doing more research and I am saddened, stressed, and worried about the news I am hearing of how much or little I should say stylists make in Australia. I have friends in Melbourne and had decided on living there.

Are the numbers I am hearing correct? $500-$600 a week. Is that before taxes? I know the cost of living is less than here in Los Angeles, but is that the reason they need stylists so bad because you can't make a good living doing hair?

I really long to live abroad in a city with great public trans (cause I hate to drive) and getting out of this plastic environment is something quite important to me.

I'm not sure what to do. Am I not appreciating what I have here? Is the trade off for living abroad worth the drop in income. I worries me to work equally hard for less than half the pay.....just to have the international experience..

Thanks for reading and any thoughts you feel like sharing...

-tom

lisaxxx

Hello Tom
I have a salon in Brisbane and am paying my senior $720 per week gross. However, she also will earn commission after reaching her target of $2400 per week of 30% of what she earns after that. Going by my figures of approx $3000 per week would give a nice boost to her wages.
This depends on how busy and motivated you are.
Hope this helps.
Lisaxxx

scizrboy

Thanks Lisa. Do you know if there are salons in Australia ( the parts of AU that you are aware of at least) that offer station rental instaed of rate/commission? I couldn't imagine bringing $2400 into the salon a week and walking with $720. Yikes. I think that is why station rental is so popular here in California. A booked 'senior' stylist can easily take home $2000 a week in nicer salons in pricey areas. You will be doing conservative hair however. That is the trade off here at least.

Personally, the last salon I worked at, one of the stylists was triple booked all day (about 8-10 hours) with an assistant and made around $125,000 a year. However, seeing his stress level, the repetitious, creatively stifled worked made me appreciate the more quality over quantity approach I take. True, I make less than he does, but considering we both have been doing hair the same amount of time, and he has way more aches and pains than I do, I like to think I'm working smarter not harder. I see myself working well into the later years in life. I love doing hair.

If station rental is not available, it will be so 'interesting' to be working for someone else. That is the nice thing about my situation here is that the harder I push myself, (stay late, come in early) the benefits go right in my pocket. It would be strange to work really hard and give more than half of the profits to a salon owner. Kinda feels like slavery. Sorry if that sounds harsh. So your senior stylist, if he/she brings in $3000 a week takes home somewhere around $900 gross? Wow. Perhaps I need to own a salon there instead. That also may explain why there is such a demand for stylists there. It doesn't pay well.

lisaxxx

Hi
Thanks for your reply. Chair or booth rental is not legal in Queensland. So that is not an option here. (I'm not sure about the other states)
I can see that this setup could be mutually beneficial to both parties. At the moment my senior is building up a clientele (she is from Canada) and is not busy...... yet! She gets her wages whether she is on her bum all day or working her ass off!
We have a lot of compulsory commitments to our staff here, like, 9% superannuation, holiday pay, workers compensation, 17.5% leave loading on holiday pay, education, she actually costs me minimum of $840.00 per week, (before she has made a cent) this is why the target is set at 3x the seniors wage so as to cover these extra costs and bring in a profit to the salon. Another thing to remember is that staff do not pay for stock, advertising, refreshments, promotions, magazines ect , all these again are costs that the salon owner here is responsible for. You made the comment that "it seems like slavery" but I am the first in the salon and the last to leave at night, my weekends are spent doing bookwork, planning advertising or marketing for the salon, and generally making sure that my commitment to my salon and staff can continue.
In short ,yes I make a profit, but then I take ALL the risk. At the end of the day if the salon goes broke I lose everything, my house, my business, my reputation, the senior just gets another job.
Lisaxxx

scizrboy

Lisa,

I really appreciate and respect your information regarding the system workings down there.

For just share of information purposes, here's a run down of my situation.
I choose to supply my clients reading materials and beverages. (This usually is not needed..but the salon I am at really lacks in this department.) Color and station products/supplies I provide as well...including backbar shampoos and conditioners. The salon stocks retail and we as stylists see about a 30% commission off what we sell. The salon provides towels, front desk services and electricity/water. I am responsible for all taxes, healthcare, training...of which I skip on health care as it is $$$$$$...and I am young and healthy :-). The salon reports nothing to the government as far as my employment there. I have always supplied my own business cards, website, marketing etc. I too am always the last to leave my salon every day...but that is more to the fact that my current co-workers don't take their business all that seriously. Actually, I may be moving into a private room at the salon (my dream) so I can completely control my clients' environmental experience.

Anyway. Outside of California, booth rental is illegal in many states. This is because it is really really easy for stylists to hide their income from the government. I and every stylist I know reports about a third of their total income. If the cost of living here was cheaper I'd probably be looking to stay. They are changing the things slowly and are beginning to profile stylists as a means of getting a handle on how much money say an average 10 year stylists makes. I imagine before I am 50 (36 now) things will be more strict here. That is the nice thing about California being so liberal, the laws work for me!

So, I can see by you system at the salon it definitely has its advantages to being an 'employee' I wonder. I have built very strong relationships with my clients over the last 14 years....some are like family. Does this happen in the salon world there? Are they the stylists clients or the salons? What happens for example if I work for you for 7 years and Betty Jo who has seen me once a month wonders where I went (in the case I move on)? Is she out of luck? Do clients follow a stylist around? (most of mine have over the years...through 4 different salons now) The internet has really helped with clients being able to track you down.

I plan on keeping my site www.yeahtomdoesmyhair.com up and with me wherever I end up in the world. It's all to easy to inform my clients that I am on the web and such a great tool for them to always be able to find me. Is that sort of thing really frowned upon by a salon owner such as yourself? How can it be prevented? I know its usually not ok for a stylist to gather client information independently, but is giving them a website not ok?

Sorry for all the questions....I'm really curious to the workings down there....always good to be prepared.

Thanks -tom

scizrboy

As I thought, turns out Victoria outlaws station/booth rental as well. Which means that lifestyle I am used to (leaving for a few hours if I am not booked) would have to end. I've not been an 'employee' at a salon in my career thus far. From what I hear...you stay at the salon...regardless if you are busy or not. If your shift is 10-8, you stay 10-8..with perhaps an hour lunch or so. That will be the most difficult adjustment. The pay I will manage with, but not having the freedom to come and go...mark myself out to take care of errands when I am slow...that will be rough after 14 years of self employment. Difficult decisions I will have to make. The allure of living abroad is strong. This process has indeed gave me ample time to reflect on my life/business here and actually I find myseff appreciating it more...funny how that is.

Seems as though there are many people reading this thread but not many comments...really...feel free to speak up...even if its to tell me off...

jan

Yo Tom
The only worthwhile way to go is to rent your own salon. In effect that is what you are already doing, Worldwide all salons work around paying the stylist 33% nothing new not exclusive to Aus, I AM VERY expierienced i started hairdressing in 1975 salon trained sassoon, ginger group, Molton brown. got bored moved from London to Anahiem southern calif.studied 1600 hours Marrinello to get cosmetology licence,moved back to london did photo shoots mainly for fashion houses,moved back to calif. worked at ron pickering in tustin lots of wealthy punters ,whilst there i was offered a position with Revlon in New york, hated the big A and moved back to u.k. i set up my own small salon ,money rolled in at present i am working for someone else the wages are crap and tips are non existent.If i were you i would head for London build clientele and rent a chair $2000 bucks a week + tips.
Europe has so many great places to see lots to do and flights O.M.G.they are cheap south of France Soutern spain and sunshine just a couple of hours .way to go.

emmalina

Hi Tom - i understand you dilemma, i own a small salon in england and was thinking of working for someone in Aus just for a year to sus out the way it all works in Aus, but i dont think i could handle losing my freedom, like yourself, i can run errands when not busy. I was hoping to rent a chair, but it sounds like you can't do that over there. maybe you should just open up your own salon? hey maybe we could be partners! lol What have you decided to do? What ever you do, don't come to England, the weather will depress you!! Emma x x x x