Today we’d like to introduce you to Ardree Merriweather.
Ardree, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Hair has been my passion for as long as I can remember. At ages three and four, my mother would come home from cosmetology school and I would run to her school bag and play with her hair styling supplies. At the age of five, my family and I moved from my birthplace in Jackson, Tennessee to the Washington D.C. Metro area. I would go to the salon almost every day watching my mother and other stylists transform people while I swept and cleaned. I earned my own money around the salon, which was a great way for my parents to teach me about money management. My mother educated me on hair color and gave me the opportunity to color her hair every two weeks to cover her grays. That was the moment I realized I loved hair. I can remember the excitement I had when those days came. While in high school, I got my first job as a Shampoo assistant for Olettia Plater who is a well-known hairstylist in the area. She is one of the many hairstylists who have helped build the foundation in my career.
After high school, I worked at many salon suites where I was able to assist some of the greatest stylists in the area. I became a sponge soaking up all the knowledge I could from over 30 hairstylists. In 2011 I enrolled in The Hair Academy of New Carrollton where I was able to master cosmetology. One of the highlights that come to mind while in school was when I won the 2011 Weave Master of the Year. It was an award hosted by The Golden Scissors which is a huge hair show that allows hairstylists in the industry to compete and display their most innovative talents. This moment was so magical to me because in 1999 my mom and I watched the exact show on television and I can remember me telling her that I wanted to compete and win one day.
After graduating and receiving my cosmetology license in 2012, I worked in two salons to build my identity in the industry without having a clientele or portfolio. While sometimes only taking one to three clients a week, I decided to find ways to grow in my career by using all the resources I could find. I lived on Craigslist where I would find gigs for photoshoots and shows which I was pretty successful at doing. Even though a majority of them were free, I still used the work to build my portfolio.
While struggling to stay afloat I finally came across an ad for Drybar on Craigslist where they specialized in blowouts. I made it a goal that I would work for this company for a couple of months until I figured out what I was going to do with my career as a cosmetologist. I started working as a hairstylist in Drybar Bethesda Maryland in 2014.
Has it been a smooth road?
In chasing my dreams there aren’t many smooth roads but great destinations, there will always be ups and downs, tears and fears. Other than my mother, I felt that there weren’t any other hairstylist I could look up or relate to. That is until I was introduced to the work of Barry Fletcher and Vidal Sassoon, some of the greatest male hairstylists who have helped shift and shape the cosmetology industry. Learning about these great artists helped me with the confidence I needed when I felt insecure about being a male hairstylist. I struggled a lot trying to find my identity in this industry.
I grew up in a city where the more clients you had the more money you make and the more successful you are. I knew in my heart I didn’t want to just work behind a chair in a salon from sun up to sundown. I wanted to do more! Sometimes I felt that I may be dreaming too big. There were times I only had $100 dollars to my name and spent $80.00 on hair supplies for a photoshoot. There were times where I wanted to give up because I wasn’t at the level in my career that I thought I should because I was comparing myself to other hairstylists on the internet. Later on, in life, I learned that what is meant for me will happen with hard work and dedication and to only focus on my own road.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
Almost six years later I am Currently the lead educator of Drybar Los Angeles shops. I am in charge of recruiting, hiring, training and upholding the Drybar standard in education. One thing that I am most proud of about working with this amazing company is that they took the time to take a young man with no experience and invested to help grow me into the hairstylist and educator that I am today. In 2014 I started as a stylist in Bethesda, Maryland. In 2015 I was promoted to Shop Educator, where I had the opportunity to open two new stores in Washington D.C. In 2016 I was promoted to Education Manager and relocated to Las Vegas to open the largest store in the company. While living in Vegas, I spent some time to support the opening of Drybar Miami.
In 2017, I was promoted to Lead Educator and relocated to Los Angeles where my career and dreams exploded. After living in LA for less than three months, my work was published in Glamour magazine, Teen Vogue and Vogue Taiwan. The past couple of years has been amazing. In addition to education for all of the Drybar LA shops, I have also represented Drybar on Access Hollywood Live, working on a set of our major shoots with H&M or occasionally styling Drybar Founder, Alli Webb. While doing this amazing work with Drybar I still have the opportunity to work freelance on sets of Reality shows, Movies, music videos and major publications such as The New York Times. I am definitely living my dreams traveling the world and doing what I love.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love this city! I love having the opportunity to network and build relationships with so many creative people who are strong go-getters! To me, L.A. is the land of dreams and opportunities. I just hate the traffic.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ardree/
Image Credit:
Cam Webb
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