Confidence is a beautiful thing. It is contagious. When you feel confident, you feel good, and you tend to then make others feel good. 

This is why in times of great stress and pain we turn to the beauty industry in record numbers to help bring some light into our day. To give us that shine, that little bit of confidence that comes from the right professional.

After the towers fell and during the great recession of the ‘08, many people sought out their barbers and estheticians, their stylists and their nail artists to find a bit of solace and joy. Those simple interactions often can’t be captured in words, because our stylists are our confidants, our friends, our extended family that choose to spend their days making us feel good.

Through the good and bad, they have been there for you… until now. For the first time, the crisis we face prevents it. And we are all worse off for it. In addition, your stylists and barbers face the most serious threat to their livelihood in our time. 

The vast majority of stylists in America are the very definition of small business owners who make their living one appointment at a time. They are breadwinners, men women and non-binary, people of every color unified in their creativity and passion in supporting others.  Many are in communities who must shelter in place or are being forced to close up shop to help blunt the spread of this deadly virus. The impact to their businesses cannot be understated. 

I have always been a believer in the idea that if you do good, good things will happen for you. In these troubled times you have a chance to do good and get good back at the same time.  You can support those who have supported you through out your life.

StyleSeat has built tools to help you help your stylist and yourself at the same time. Go to styleseat.com or on your styleseat app and…

1. Book a virtual appointment. Many stylists offer Instagram Live, Zoom or FaceTime appointments to do a lesson (learn how to apply makeup, or trim your bangs), cut your partner’s hair or a consult. 
2. Buy gift certificates. StyleSeat offers gift certificates that go to the stylist directly, providing instant cash to them and in some cases, pros offer a discount if you buy them now. 
3. Pre-pay for your next appointment. StyleSeat offers a feature to let clients proactively pre-pay for an upcoming appointment including tip, useful during this time especially if you’re going to book that appointment anyway. If your stylist isn’t on StyleSeat, ask them how you can purchase a couple of services upfront. 
4. Ask if they offer a color kit – many stylists and colorists are pre-mixing color or gloss treatments clients can apply at home to get them through until they can get a true color touch-up.
5. Don’t cancel your appointments, re-book them for a time in the future you feel comfortable visiting your professional, when shelter-in-place is not in effect.

We are defined by how we act in times of great struggle. Did we come together and help one another? Did we work to lift each other up? Are we the people we tell our children to be?

We are all in this together. We will come through this and we will be stronger for it, but only because we stuck together.

Be safe, be healthy, stand by your stylist. 

Melody McCloskey, CEO StyleSeat