I’ve always been interested in the creative field; however, it took me a little while to find my feet in exactly which industry I felt I fitted into.
I come from an artistic family. My grandfather was in hair artistry and my mother in the beauty industry. I was given the freedom from a young age to be creative and explore different paths until I found the right one for me.
When choosing a college, my first instinct was to explore my passion for music. I went to music college and loved every minute of it. However, I realised it probably wasn’t something I wanted to pursue a career in.
I then went into marketing and love it to this day. I still work part-time in this field and it has helped when it came to starting my own business.
I knew quite early on in my career that I wanted to have my own business someday and to challenge myself professionally.
Read more: The key to getting ahead – find out what excites you and choose a job you love
Starting my own business
It was about two years ago that I started Tia Bliss Makeup.
I trained in bridal hair and makeup as I felt this industry suited my style the best.
I found that there was a gap in the market, especially in my area of Sussex, so I made the most of it.
As an artist or anyone in the creative field, I think it’s super easy to get pulled into the Instagram world and the trends without looking at the market in front of you. Make it clear what you offer and go in one direction.
Finding my dream team
From the get-go, I felt that it was very important to network and get to know as many people in the industry as possible.
In order to promote myself, I decided I needed some killer shots to show off my work and to do that, I needed help.
I went online and got in touch with as many bridal suppliers as I could. I organised my own shoot, and off I went.
Looking back now I know I could have done things a little differently as my style has grown and developed, but it got me started and I loved every minute.
Don’t be scared because you’re not ‘perfect’ from day one. Your style will grow and develop. Go with the flow, enjoy and be open-minded to criticism and take advantage of people you can learn from.
Doing photoshoots
I absolutely love doing shoots. I got to nurture my talent, create bridal looks, and I worked with some fabulous teams and suppliers.
Fross from Fross Wedding Collections had faith and trust in me from day one and I couldn’t be more grateful. We still work together now from time to time.
Danilo Torrisi Photography has worked and managed projects alongside me multiple times and we plan to continue in the future.
And many others have joined me in some fantastic and fun projects.
More recently, in the last six months, I have taken on an assistant to work with me on larger weddings.
I think when looking for people to work for you, you need to be very certain about their style, personality and flair as this is representing you and your business.
Raquel, my assistant is a star and we work so well together. We both believe in vegan, cruelty-free and sustainable tools and products and we both learn something new on every job.
First impressions
As I have a marketing background, I also have done quite a bit of SEO and website development (small scale, but I have a certain amount of useful knowledge) and I got building my website.
To this day I update and optimise my website to perform at its best, so my brides don’t need to look far to find what they need.
I would certainly recommend getting a web developer if you’re not super techy as this the first impression of your business.
When I first started up, I did some social media advertising, joined all the wedding groups to ensure I was staying on top of trends, being part of the discussion and reaching out to anyone in need of an artist.
But be careful what and when you post. You are there to be helpful, not pushy.
My ethics and products
When making the decision to become an artist, hairstylist, beauty therapist or even start your own business in a totally different field, I think one of the most important things to consider is to ensure what you’re doing and how you go about it suits what you believe in.
For me, it was paramount that I consider my footprint when joining the industry.
This came in the form of ensuring what I bought was cruelty free (and now vegan too). I am very careful about the amount of waste I leave behind.
I still consider all these things in every job I do and make changes to my kit regularly.
Ensure you’re doing things your way, and leaving behind something that matters, because if we can all be supportive, successful and sustainable Girl Bosses we’ve made another step in the right direction for the industry and our planet.
Find out more about Tia Bliss Makeup – Bridal Hair and Makeup Sussex: http://www.tiablissmakeup.co.uk
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Email: tia@tiablissmakeup.co.uk