Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Raak.
Hi Jessica, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have been an artist my entire life- at least at heart. I don’t like to force anything and need to feel comfortable and happy in my work environment in order to be successful. Growing up I always heard adults complaining about work life, and how much they hated “working for the man”. Well, I worked for the man.. A few actually, and finally decided that I needed a change and that in order to create the work environment I needed, that I had to go out and create it myself. I kept asking myself why can’t we just have a salon that’s fun, cozy, and creative without the fake bougie BS? Why is it that when I walk into half of these spaces I can immediately sense the stiffness? It just wasn’t my vibe. So I set the tone, put in the work, and here we are. I provide a happy, successful work environment for other hairdressers and that’s an amazing feeling.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I’d say it’s been incredibly smooth considering. Covid was a struggle, but honestly, we got so busy during that time after lockdown. They say that the underdog can rise up during a crisis and that’s exactly what happened. Managing a staff was a learning curve because I had never been in charge of anyone else before. Being the person that I am I have always been more concerned with taking CARE of my employees, so setting boundaries and creating rules was a bit of a struggle, I just assumed that I could trust people to be adults and do the right thing, haha. I learned pretty quickly that you have to set expectations and follow through to run a successful business, so learning how to walk that line between boss and peer was, and is still a challenge.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We as a team here at Hair Society specialize in Dimensional Hair color, Extensions, and Blonding. Creating new looks that our clients love is what motivates us. Staying in the loop on the latest trends, learning, and executing them successfully on a happy client is the best feeling ever. ESPECIALLY when you get that perfect photo for the gram. For me personally, I take a lot of pride in getting into my client’s head and really figuring out what they want, also complete transparency. Educating my client is key in my art and builds a trust that I think is so important when someone is handing you their hard-earned money.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I follow SO many artists on Instagram, I pay for subscriptions to multiple pages that I learn things from daily. I actually removed all of my old friends, even family off the gram (that’s what FB is for) and only follow pro hair artists so that every time I open the app I am inspired.
Pricing:
- I personally charge by the hour. $125- parts and labor 🙂
Contact Info:
- Email: salon@uptownhairsociety.com
- Website: https://www.uptownhairsociety.com/
- Instagram: @hairsocietyhou
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hair-society-inc-houston-3
Image Credits:
Omar Marcus
