When I posted my first interview and asked on Instagram who you would all like to be interviewed next, so many of you mentioned Kelly Zhang of Kelly Zhang Studio, Kelly Zhang Makeup, and Studio K Hair Designory. Yes, that’s right, this amazing mama of 2 girls started as a makeup artist in her early 20s, opened a beautiful beauty salon in Pasadena and launched her own makeup line. Little did you all know, Kelly was the next person on my list of amazing women to interview! I’ve been in contact with Kelly since 2017 about meeting up and then life happened (we both had our second kids) and we never got the chance to. Last month, we finally got to sit down for a chat at her studio and we talked about everything from makeup to business to motherhood. I hope hearing her story leaves you feeling inspired because Kelly Zhang is one of those powerhouse women who will make anything possible when she sets her mind to it. I’m so honored to share #herstory.
Hi Kelly, I’m so glad to finally be able to sit down with you for this interview.
Can we start off by you telling me a little bit about your background? I know you studied at FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising) and worked in fashion before getting into makeup. What did you do in fashion and what led you to makeup?
After I graduated FIDM in merchandising design, I went to work at Forever 21 for a long time as a merchandiser in the international buying department. Every season we would do outlooks for that season and have models come in to do shoots. I was so inspired watching the makeup artists transform the looks of these models. I decided to learn makeup with a makeup artist in Diamond Bar that I’ve known since I was 18 and had just opened up a makeup school. After learning makeup from that lady, I also went to cosmetology school. I always wanted to do something on my own and after I got married in 2003, my husband told me, “If you really want to do makeup, just go do it and I will support you.”
When I got married 16 years ago, it was really hard to find a makeup artist that knows how to do natural makeup for Asian women. I went back to Asia and became an assistant to a well-known makeup artist in China for about 2 years. That is where I learned most of my makeup skills. When I came back to the U.S., my heart was set on just doing bridal makeup. My husband, who is a background designer for the Simpsons show, designed my logo and website. He gave me a lot of encouragement and support to start the business. My very first studio was at our small condo in Pasadena. My husband and I are both really tall, I’m 5’10” and he is 6’2, but I wanted a bigger space for my studio so we turned our master bedroom into the studio while the two of us shared a twin-sized bed in the smaller bedroom for the first 2 years.
Back then, there wasn’t a lot of competition in the area, so I felt it was easier to grow my clientele. In the beginning, I would offer free bridal makeup trails. My very first client took me SIX hours to complete the trial. Of course, she didn’t book me, but it was a start, and someone had to be the first. That first year, I really learned how to communicate with my clients.
I was only 25 when I started my business and there wasn’t a lot of people my age that were entrepreneurs. Most people were looking for a steady job and steady income. Most of my family are business owners so that was what really made me want to start my own business. The first year was the hardest but it was also the most rewarding. Growing a clientele is not easy, but once you establish yourself in the industry, it becomes easier and most of my clients now are referrals from past clients.
It sounds like there was a lot of sacrifice in the beginning, but also a lot of support from your husband and family. What were some of the challenges over the years that you faced and what kept you going?
One of the biggest challenges I faced as I started getting more clients was being able to build a team. When I get booked for a wedding that includes the bride and the bridal party, I really needed a team with the right artists who do similar work as me. It was tough in the beginning because I’ve never managed people or told people what to do before. However, I’m the type of person that doesn’t give up easily. In that sense, I’m stubborn and if I start something, I really want to go through with it.
This is what I really love to do, and I want to do it right. For example, if a client tells me after a trial that she doesn’t like how her eyebrows look, I will go and buy books (because there wasn’t a lot of YouTube back then) and I would study how I can be better. I am just persistent when it comes to making it work.
There are so many makeup artists or beauty influencers on YouTube & Instagram. It’s an industry that is always innovating and trending. What do you think has made you stand out and be successful in your business?
When I started, there were maybe only 2 or 3 well-known makeup artists in the Pasadena area, but now there are maybe 10-15 artists. It is very saturated right now and obviously, we can not compete with someone who is freelance on pricing. A lot of our clients right now are through referrals. I think a lot of people know how to do makeup, but makeup is only 50% of the formula. When a client walks in through our doors, 50% of it is our makeup and the other 50% is how we do our business. For me, I always feel like it’s a combination of those two.
We get a lot of our clients through referrals because we are always going beyond what the customer is asking. Customer service is very important to us. For example, if a client is not happy with the trial, we don’t just say, “that’s it” and let it go. We will work with them to find out why they are not happy with it and try to provide a better experience. You need to have the skills to stand out, but you also need to know how to present your image and how to treat your clients well. I believe we stand out because our customer service has been really good.
I think it definitely shows that you are providing great customer service when you say most of your clients come from referrals and a testament to the success of your business.
Yes, a lot of what keeps me going is my clients. A lot of my brides have turned out to be my very best friends. Even with 10 makeup artists on my team, I still love being a part of my client’s journey – from when they get married to starting a family – we love seeing our clients come back after their wedding for maternity and family shoots! A lot of clients have become good friends and they continue to refer us more clients. I just love them!
On your bio, it mentions that your most rewarding experience has been in working with everyday women. Can you talk a little bit more about that and who the “everyday woman” is to you?
The everyday woman is someone we would teach in our one-to-one makeup class. These are women who go out and buy makeup for themselves but don’t really know how to use it the right way. It is the mom who comes in with her teenage daughter who is just learning how to use to makeup, and we get to teach them how to do it the right way. It is women who want to know how to put makeup on for a job interview or for a new job they are starting to help them boost up their confidence. When I teach my clients how to use the right makeup and they see how it transforms them, it is so rewarding. Working with everyday women and seeing how your makeup transforms them and gives them so much confidence, it’s a huge deal.
Talking about the one-on-workshops, can you talk about these workshops a little bit and what it offers?
We have two workshops – the first is a one-on-one workshop that I started 10 years ago and the other is a professional workshop that we just started this year.
The one-on-one workshop is where I have a client bring in their own makeup and I go through it together with them to see what is good and what is not. Believe it or not, a lot of times you go to the makeup counter at the store, they are matching the wrong color for your skin foundation. I ask the client what they’re looking for out of the class and most of the time, they want to learn how to do natural makeup for everyday wear. Then, we go step-by-step from skincare, primer, eyebrows, eyeshadow, blush, and contour and I teach them how to apply each of these. Because I have a fashion background, I also work with the client to create the whole image. Even for brides on their wedding day, I don’t just do their makeup, but I ask them what accessories they are wearing so we can create an entire look. Sometimes women just need that advice to take what they already know to the next level.
Our professional workshops are for people who are already in the beauty industry or looking to get into the industry. Our courses are 3 days – the first day is a natural look, second day is smoky glam look, and third day is business strategy. The third day is important because you can be a great artist, but if you don’t know how to talk to your client, understand contracts, or know how to operate your business, then this is not going to be a long-term career for you.
You also mention in your bio that one of your ambitions is to “educate, empower and enable women to feel and look their best, not only on their wedding day, but every day.” Was education something that you always planned to go into when you started doing makeup or was it more of a natural progression?
Honestly, when I first started my business, I was just excited to do bridal makeup. I didn’t imagine it would grow into having a team, opening a studio, and being in this business for 15 to 20 years. As I started having artists join my team, a lot of them either only knew how to do makeup or only knew how to do hair. It was a natural progression to educate and guide them on how to do both. I learned from those experiences and also discovered that I really wanted to share my knowledge with people. I guess, because this is something that I really love to do, I don’t give up easily, and I am always looking for new ways to grow – including creating a good environment for my clients, building a stronger team, and sharing the knowledge I have with others – that’s why, I think I’m still here!
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing your industry?
Pricing. The industry right now is so saturated and there are so many makeup artists. We get calls from clients all the time a month or two before their wedding saying their makeup artist can’t make it anymore. For someone to say, “I can charge you $100-200 for bridal makeup” and then not show up on your wedding day – it’s upsetting. We are offering a reliable service and when you have a lot of people using cheap price to get their business up, it’s tough. We just need to educate our clients more. There are new business regulations and laws that we need to adapt to every year and running a business is not cheap. The risk you take on a freelance artist could end up costing you a lot more in the end.
Do you still do a lot of the weddings?
Right now, we are doing 400 weddings a year, which is a lot! I still do weddings myself every Saturday. If I am not doing a wedding, then I am usually doing microblading - http://browbykelly.com/
How did you get into microblading?
A lot of my clients really liked the brows that I did for them during their bridal makeup. When microblading became really popular, they asked me, “Can you go learn, Kelly?” So, I decided to go learn how about 4 years ago. A lot of microblading clients now are my past Studio K clients. Doing the right shape for an eyebrow is really important and having the right shape can totally change you.
I definitely need to come see you for eyebrows one day!
Yes, you should!
On motherhood and entrepreneurship:
Before having kids, my work was everything. After having my kids, I see things differently, almost as if it’s through their eyes. The things I cared about the most before just seem like nothing anymore. I can’t really give a specific example but kids are so pure and they don’t overthink things too much. I think that’s something I’ve taken to my work, because before kids, I just couldn’t let go of a lot of things in my business.
Running a business and having kids is hard, but luckily, I have my husband to help me. My husband is very involved in the business and he is still working his day job. He does a lot of the business side of Studio K, while I am more focused on customer service. It’s a hard balance and I am still learning to make that balance. My friends always tell me that it’s because I’m working that I can provide this lifestyle for my girls, but I am always having that “mom guilt.” For example, if the school calls me and I can’t go pick them up because I’m with a client, I need to have grandma go pick them up and it’s so hard. I’m still trying to balance it out.
Starting my business at an earlier age before having kids definitely helped. When I was pregnant, a lot of the girls at the studio were able to help me out a lot. I also have the flexibility to be able to take time off or rearrange my schedule if I need to be there for my kids. I also try to block out my Sunday so I have a day with them to do things together as a family and create memories.
On raising children:
When I was growing up, my mom was always working, working, working - so I didn’t get to create a lot of memories with her. My husband always reminds me that when I’m at home, my girls are my number one priority. Sometimes, I forget, because I want to make all my clients happy, but my girls will remind me. One time, I was on my phone and my older daughter said to me, “Mommy, put down your phone!” I felt really bad and I realized I needed to find a good balance because I want to be there for them when they’re growing up.
One of the reasons I wanted to have kids is because I was at so many weddings and I just LOVED the flower girls. I just thought they were the cutest and I wanted to have one of my own. In a blink of an eye, my older daughter is 5 and y younger one is 2, and there are moments when I’m trying to talk to them and lose my patience – I think, “this isn’t how I sued to talk to those cute flower girls, I was so much nicer”
For my first one, the adjustment was hard. I wanted to be perfect for her. I would try to go to ALL the playdates we were invited to and for a long while I wasn’t focused on anything else but her. I wasn’t at the studio very much but I still had to run the business and realized I couldn’t always be at home with my baby. I had to learn how to balance and not put all that pressure on myself to be perfect, because we’re not perfect. I’m still learning.
Going from one child to two wasn’t a big change for me because I always wanted my kids to have a sibling. I was an only child until my teens, so I always wanted to have a sibling close in age when I was younger. I have younger siblings now that are 18 and 21, so there is a big age gap and I feel like I had a little bit of that parenting experience with them.
Like you, I have two young girls and they are already so fascinated by makeup. Are your girls interested in what you do and what advice do you have on building a healthy relationship with beauty and makeup for young girls?
My girls are definitely girly-girls. They love playing with makeup and I feel like we should let them be creative. As long as the product is safe, I think it’s fine for them to play around with makeup. If they do something ‘wrong’, then that is how they will learn. If you overprotect them, they will always be curious and want to do it. My husband and I are both in the creative field so we always say that we will support our girls in whatever they choose to do in their careers. They don’t have to be a doctor or a lawyer, as long as they both enjoy what they are doing.
When a girl is at an age where they are starting to wear makeup more regularly, I think the parent should send them to a private class like our one-on-one makeup workshop to properly learn how to put on makeup. They can learn basics like skincare and not to over pluck their eyebrows! I wish my mom took me to a makeup class so I would’ve learned not to overpluck my eyebrows. If a girl is going to experiment with makeup, they should be given the foundation and tools to do it properly.
What is one beauty advice you can give to women that they can put into their daily practice?
Sunscreen. Sunscreen always after moisturizer. The brand I like is called Chantecaille that you can find at Nordstrom. It is expensive, but it can last me at least 6 months. A lot of people don’t like sunscreen because it is very oily, but this sunscreen isn’t oily at all and has a good SPF. I feel in order to put on good makeup, you need to have a good base, so taking care of your skin is very important.
Thank you Kelly for sitting down with me at your beautiful studio to chat. We talked about so many things from makeup to business to motherhood and I am so inspired by your passion and influence in our community. Check out Kelly at all her IG handles: @kellyzhangstudio | @kellyzhangmakeup | @studiokhairdesignory | @browbykellyzhang
Studio K Designory
Address: 238 South Arroyo Pkwy #130
Website: http://www.studiok.us/ | http://kellyzhang.com/
Phone: (626) 710 - 4266
Email: kelly@kellyzhang.com
