Hello, beautiful babes! This week we’re chatting about makeup artists/hairstylists and why they’re so dang expensive! I am sure some of you have had a special event or occasion where you wanted to be fully glammed by a professional makeup artist/hairstylist. You took the time to reach out to several artists, and realized the cost was MUCH more than you expected! You probably thought to yourself, “This person is just showing up and applying makeup for 30-45 minutes, why is it so costly?!” Well, I am about to spill the tea, Sis! Hopefully, after I share some of this information with you, you’ll have a better understanding and a little less sticker shock next time you inquire with a beauty professional! 

First, I will start where we all started, education. Some, not all artists, have gone to cosmetology school or a professional makeup academy to receive training. This teaches us many of the fundamentals about hair styling and makeup applications, that will be carried with us throughout our entire careers. Throughout our careers, we also attend and pay out of pocket, for specialized classes and workshops. These courses aid us in keeping up with the latest trends and expand our knowledge of specific skills. One day courses can average $500-$1000, where multi day training can cost THOUSANDS of dollars. So now, with years of experience and knowledge, we should have the ability to raise our prices. Think of it like this…You go to college and receive a bachelor’s degree, and you take a position within your industry and get paid $60,000 annually. You then work for 5 years at that level, and decide to go back to school and obtain a masters degree in your field. Upon completion of your schooling, you have more experience and are considered an expert with your additional schooling, you expect to make more money right? RIGHT!!! If you don’t, we need to chat, honey! 

Another reason, we as artists, have a price tag that seems high, is our kits. We have to keep fully stocked kits for all jobs. This means replenishing high end, professional products regularly, as well as discarding expired products to keep our kits safe and clean for our clients. You know how you dread having to go to the store and replace 3 items from your makeup bag, because you know you’re going to drop $100-$300? Well imagine that, but times three! I am not exaggerating when I say many of our kits are worth thousands of dollars, and more likely an upwards of tens of thousands! So please take that into consideration, when hiring a professional beauty expert. 

Many artists own their companies, which means not only do they need to pay their personal bills, but their company’s bills as well. This includes items such as insurance, salon space rental fees, advertising, contracted employees, and so much more! As the cost of living increases, so must our prices. Which is why you may see an artist who charges additional fees such as travel fees or early morning fees. I have had clients who decided not to book because the travel fee is too high or I have added an early morning fee to the bill. There is a reason why we add these types of fees. Imagine you work for a company who requires you to drive your personal vehicle all over the state for part of your job. You would expect to get paid for your time while driving as well as a reimbursement for the wear and tear you are putting on your vehicle. What if they said, “You are required to drive hours from your home base, but we will not pay you for your travel time nor will we reimburse you for the mileage traveled” You most likely would not be accepting that position, amiright?! These travel fees are not put into place to nickel and dime our clients, they are put into place as fair compensation for our time and effort of traveling to you! 

Another fee that artists sometimes charge is an early morning fee. This fee is charged when we are expected to arrive onsite and begin work before 7am. I understand most jobs do not give you extra money for coming in early, however they do pay you for your time at your regular rate. Here is an example of why an early morning fee would be charged: A client needs to be ready by 7am to attend an important event, and they want both hair and makeup services completed. In order to complete these 2 services in a timely manner the artist would arrive at roughly 5am- I know what you’re thinking, “That’s not THAT early, I do that all the time for work!!” However, what you are forgetting is that your artist actually woke up at 3am, so they could get themselves ready and look like a professional, then drove over 30 minutes to arrive on time for you! Talk about EARLY! Sometimes we are even getting up at midnight or 1am to make call times, so that early morning fee is well deserved in my eyes! 

I hope I have shed some light on why we as artists charge what we do! Next time you consider hiring a beauty professional, please take into consideration that we have created our pricing based on our industry education, knowledge and expertise; coverage of expenses, such as bills and supplies; and travel time and necessary execution of time required to get the job done!