Today we’d like to introduce you to Liliana Reyna
Hi Liliana, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I went to cosmetology school in 2014 right after I graduated high school. All my life I truly enjoyed all things beauty, something about the way it made me feel as well we making others feel like the best version of themselves. It took me two years to get my license, and shortly after I got my barbers license as well. My friends from barbering school at the time convinced to me to work at their families barbershop/beauty salon. I had never worked on strangers before but I felt ready to take the risk. Starting there with almost no clientele, and no experience was probably the craziest thing I could ever do. I would cry everyday, but my boss(my friends mom at the time) would continuously push me and believe in me. I couldn’t have done it without her. I became popular with other services such as eyebrows, lash perming, brow laminations, but not hair and it was starting to discourage me a bit. So I told myself I came here to do hair and that’s what I’ll do. I started offering my hair services to my current clients, and little by little I started to build up more confidence. One day I had met a client who started as just as a brow client who let me color her hair for the first time, and she loved it so much she started bringing all her friends to me. Slowly I started becoming more and more sought out, then the pandemic hit. I missed doing hair so much, I couldn’t wait to go back to work. Once I went back I told myself, I was gonna make it work. I was gonna get better and get more clients. So I started working on my portfolio solely on twitter and TikTok. No instagram bc I was terrified. In the summer of 2021, my first two videos on TikTok went viral. Since then, I’ve been consistently fully booked.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Absolutely not lol. When I was starting out, my boss and I would struggle to get walk ins in my chair. They would say I’m too young or inexperienced. I would have to prove myself way more than my coworkers. I also barely saw any client retention which was also discouraging.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
So I’m a full time hairstylist. I work inside a swapmeet in midcity. I often get asked when I’m going to leave for something nicer but if I’m being completely honest, it’s not about where you work, It’s about how you work. I want to say I’m known for doing layered haircuts, and cute customized colors but I don’t really like to say I specialize in anything because I feel like it puts me in a box. I’m really proud of my journey. I went straight to work in a walk in commission salon, and I don’t have a single regret. I love creating relationships with my clients. Doing hair for me is such a transaction of energy, and I value my clients so much. Everything I do is made with love. Being one of the reasons that my client feels beautiful after sitting in my chair is such a gratifying feeling that nothing even begins to compare.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I’m not good at it but I love cooking. It’s become such a love language of mine. Feeding the people I love, makes me super happy. If I had more time, I would 100% enter my Nara Smith era.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Colourmelilyrose
Image Credits
@ronderrek
@colourmelilyrose
