Women have made significant advancements in representation, particularly in senior leadership, a year and a half after the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the difficulties caused by the COVID-19 crisis, women’s representation increased in 2020 at all levels of the corporate pipeline.
After such a challenging year, this is a promising development that merits celebration.
Situated in the heart of Stellenbosch, Blunt Hair Studio consist of five dedicated stylists who strive to perfect the art of hair, with its modern industrial interior you’ll find Michelle Heyns, owner of Blunt Hair Studio who shared her success story with us.
How and when did Blunt Hair Studio start?
It was December 2019, my husband told me about this beautiful lifestyle centre just outside Stellenbosch, so on our way home from a bicycle ride through the Winelands we popped in so I could see what the hype was about. I remember standing in front of Shop 10 A, peeking through the windows and I told him, “one day when I open my salon, it will be in here”. This moment sparked something in me and it was barely a month later when I had signed my lease and they handed me the keys to my brand new salon space. Blunt Hair studio successfully opened its doors on March 3, 2020.
What inspired you to open your hair salon?
I’ve always been quite the entrepreneur and am passionate about everything business so from a very young age it was something I knew I would achieve one day. I never thought I’d become a successful business owner so early in my career as a hairdresser.
What was your first objective when you founded your business?
To create a cozy, yet classy space where we can help women (and men) become the best, most confident version of themselves. I am so passionate about elevating people and helping them realise how magnificent they are and opening a studio where I could do this has always been the plan.
Intent is meaningless without action
What Challenges have you faced as a woman entrepreneur in business & how did you persevere through the tough times?
I feel being a business owner in the beauty industry is a relatively safe place for women to be, so my biggest challenge so far, fortunately, has nothing to do with my gender.
The most challenging aspect would be surviving lockdown. It was wild. I had the best three weeks of my life, launching my own hair studio, being my own boss, and running my own business, only to sit at home for three months, merely three weeks after opening Blunt. It tested me, thoroughly. But I hustled!
When shops were allowed to sell essential products I obtained a certificate to sell as well and ran an online shop for the months remaining. I created content to educate clients on everything hair. I employed a dynamic team in the interim, and when we could open our doors again, we were blessed in abundance and it has not stopped since.
Be undeniably good at what you do. No marketing effort or social media buzzword can be a substitute for that.
What are the secrets to your success?
Since day one I have steadfastly pursued my main objective in opening Blunt and I have not backed down, not even for a second. I also honestly believe my dynamic team hugely accounts for the success of Blunt Hair Studio. Customer service and experience are major focus points for us and I am convinced this has also greatly influenced our success rate over the past few years.
The ultimate goal would be to open more hair studios. This is something I’ve been thinking of for quite some time. Hopefully, 2023 holds some growth spurts for Blunt.
The Woodmill Lifestyle centre provides a diverse business environment where like-minded individuals can cultivate creativity. We are truly privileged to work amongst goal-driven and creative companies like Blunt Hair Studio, Burgundy Collective, Stellenbrau Brewery, Sticky Fudge and many more.
Hello Work is a coworking office space in Stellenbosch focussing on delivering a modern, creative, focus-friendly environment for creative entrepreneurs and startups.
Hello Work is delighted to form a part of a co-working community that is able to provide a functional creative space to assist with the sustainability pipeline of spinning out prospering startups and successful businesses.
