Do you want to learn how to build a six-figure lash business from someone who is actually living the dream?
I thought you might, which is why I got in touch with a good friend of mine, Lorena Ashmore. Lorena is a lash artist, esthetician and the owner and creative genius behind Dear Lash Love. Her lash business is unique in that it also sells lash apparel and must-have accessories. Except, it’s more of an empire than a business.
And, to top it off, Lorena and her beauty biz bestie, Kasey Boone, have recently launched a brand-new podcast called “Beauty Biz BFFs,” where they talk about all things behind the scenes of being a female entrepreneur and licensed esthetician.
I know many of my fellow lashpreneurs out there dream of reaching that six-figure sum, and although it can seem like a faraway dream that’ll never come into view, Lorena is living proof that it is possible.
So, in my interview with her, I picked her brain and obtained as much insider knowledge as I possibly could to share with you so that you could, first of all, believe it is possible for a lash artist to make six-figures and secondly, that it might inspire you to replicate her success.
{If you want to listen to the podcast episode on this topic, click on the player at the top of the post. Alternatively you can watch the video below, or read on…}
Q1. How did you get into lashes?
Lorena has worked as an esthetician for seven years. But she didn’t start out doing lashes. She offered a mix of different services including eyebrows, facials, and waxing. However, she decided she wanted to shift the focus of her business to lashes.
If you’re wondering how she managed to build a clientele for lashes, she didn’t. She already had a loyal clientele, and all she had to do was tell them she was moving away from facials to focus solely on lashes. Thankfully, they were more than happy to support her. Since they already trusted Lorena with their skin, they soon trusted her with their lashes too!
Q2. How did you come up with the idea of a lash accessories and apparel line?
There aren’t many lash artists out there who also manage and sell apparel and accessories online. So, I was keen to find out how Lorena came up with the idea and judging by her answer, it seemed like the entire process happened quite naturally.
As Lorena put it, she’s always “thinking five steps ahead.” She felt as though doing lashes alone left her limited financially and strapped for time. The idea of selling cleansers floated through her mind but didn’t hang around for long. She wanted to find a niche — something that nobody else was doing, which was when she came up with the idea to sell lash inspired apparel.
“Nothing was being made. At least, nothing that was cute, fashionable and trendy. I wanted to sell something other than a service. Something that could be available on a website so that I wouldn’t necessarily have to be there physically all day, every day.”
Lorena continued to talk about her love of fashion, which fueled her drive and passion to “get into the t-shirt world.” With her clothing line, she was able to take lashing to the next level.
Q3. Have you struggled with confidence?
Although Lorena is clearly a strong and independent woman, she faced certain challenges just like the rest of us. It wasn’t a case of simply launching a new business and sailing off into the sunset. It took a lot of dedication, hard work, and resilience.
“In the beginning, I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t know how to create a business. I didn’t know what legal documents I needed. I didn’t know any of that. I Googled a lot!”
She expressed some concerns she had in the beginning. One of her main worries was that nobody would like the design she picked. However, she soon realized that there was a demand for lash apparel and plenty of people were interested in her products.
Although everything looks perfect from the outside, Lorena still struggles with confidence.
“I still struggle with the confidence aspect of running a business, but I think that’s part of being human.”
A common misconception Lorena faces when it comes to her business is the fact that many people assume she just selects the t-shirt designs, orders a bunch of them and that’s it. But, the majority of what Lorena does is customer service based. She spends more of her time communicating with customers and working on the sales and marketing side of things than spending time on the design of her products.
Q4. How has getting a clear sense of who you are and who you serve changed your business?
Lorena talked about the benefits of being able to sell something other than a service. Her online empire has enabled her to create a recurring revenue cycle that she can count on. However, a large part of her success is due to her ability to understand her customers and reach them on the platform where they are most active – Instagram.
She uses Instagram like a customer service platform and has made a name for herself on the image-sharing network. I was interested to find out more about Lorena’s frame of mind before launching her own business. Was being a business owner something she always dreamed of?
“At school, they always ask you what you want to be when you grow up. But I didn’t know. It’s not like I knew I was going to be doing this since I was a child. But I feel like I’ve always had the drive to go after what I want.”
Q5. What would you tell your younger self?
When Lorena spoke about her younger self, she talked about how she wished she had taken things a little slower. She always felt like she had to be ten steps ahead of herself. But in reality, it’s okay to take small steps.
“It’s okay to be happy with what’s currently going on in your life and not necessarily always focusing on what’s next. Live in the moment.”
I can totally relate because as entrepreneurs, we have no lack of ideas or inspiration. It’s just who we are as people. We’re always thinking of what’s the next big step for us and our businesses. How do we get to the next level? It’s that same enthusiasm that drives our passion to keep achieving. It’s addictive. You get addicted to the hustle. But, sometimes, it’s okay to take a step back and just live in the moment.
When you stop juggling so many things at once and instead focus on one thing at a time, you end up putting out a better-quality product, which has a more significant impact and in turn, can make you a lot more money.
Q6. How do you manage Dear Love Lash apparel, clients and now Beauty Biz BFF Podcast?
With so much going on in her life, I was keen to find out more about how she can manage so many things at once.
“I just…figure it out. It’s not always perfect, but it happens.”
Lorena also talked about time management and how important it is to focus on a single task at a time. So, when she’s with a client, she’s only with that client. She doesn’t go off to do both
er things like post on social media halfway through doing someone’s lash extensions!
She has mastered the art of “context switching,” which is a form of multitasking. After all, if you split your attention on things, you can only do 50% on each job. Whereas if you’re laser-focused on just one thing at a time, the result is going to be ten times better.
Q7. What three things do you think have been essential to your success in the lash industry?
Lorena attributed her success to three things:
- Being specific
- Her creativity
- Her voice
When talking about being specific, she went over the importance of knowing your audience. She got specific with her targeting and paired it with her creative flair to think outside the box when it comes to her business.
“With my designs, I try to make everything look unique and different.”
She then went onto talk about how her voice has helped her achieve success within the industry:
“I think I brought a more raw and real voice to the industry. I tried to make it more fun, and although I fully admit that I’m not the best lash artist in the world, I always try to give tips that people find useful”.
Q8. What does the future hold for Dear Lash Love?
When talking about the future of her business, Lorena expressed her desire to put out some new designs and do more lash salon tours.
“I want to do more lash salon tours where I just pick a place to go to, whether it’s locally or I have to fly. I just want to get to know lash artists on a more personal level because they’re the ones buying all my stuff. I want I want to give back and support that.”
Connect with Lorena
If you’d like to find out more about Lorena and Dear Lash love, you can check out her website: dearlashlove.com.
Don’t forget to tune into her podcast “Beauty Biz BFFs” and connect with Lorena on Facebook and Instagram.
Have a good one,
Tara Walsh
The Lashpreneur
