Hair Salon Business Plan

salon executive summary and HELP! Salary the same or declining despite experience and additional skills..?

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hair salon business plan

Question by BunnyMoon: HELP! Salary the same or declining despite experience and additional skills..?
I don’t know what’s going on.. Here’s a basic summary.

I’m originally from the Northern Virginia area. I started my first job when I was about 14, part-time working at a tanning salon cleaning tanning beds. (Glamorous, right? Hey, I was 14 and didn’t care, I just wanted some pocket money for the cinema!) After that, I worked at my dad’s office answering telephones, running errands etc.

When I was 17, I started waiting tables part time and working at a mortgage company part time as a receptionist and putting information in on loan applications.. I was making about $ 10 an hour, entry-level. I did this until I was about 19.

After that, I did some work in basic procurement for the government, U.S. department of the interior.. I got paid about $ 15 an hour there and worked for two years.

When I was 21, I moved to Philadelphia.. That’s when it started going downhill.. For a long time I couldn’t find ANY work. When I did, out of desperation, I took whatever pay I was offered, which wasn’t much. I started working as an administrative assistant and temping for about $ 10-12 an hour WITHOUT benefits. Less than I got in Virginia and as much as I had without any experience.

Fast forward a few years. I’m 25 now and turning 26 this week. In the past few years I’ve progressed from receptionist, to administrative assistant, to executive assistant and office manager. I’ve basically ran the whole office but my highest salary now has been $ 14.

I have a college degree (bachelors in business administration with a minor in humanities) and about 8 years of experience in what I do. I come to work everyday, I’m well liked, dependable, loyal, score in the top levels of any testing done at temp agencies as far as typing, MS Office skills, etc.

I write fantastic letters, have written up HR documents, done hiring, firing, warning letters, made spreadsheets, bookkeeping, I know QuickBooks, created PowerPoint presentations, went to conferences, trade shows, done nearly all the business correspondence for my bosses, done procurement, worked directly with clients, created marketing campaigns, designed post cards, brochures, mailers, updated websites, excellent at troubleshooting, basic computer repair, customers love me, well-versed in any manner of things around the office.. Basically, I’m a Jill of all trades.

So why am I not getting PAID more? I go on interviews and everyone is wanting to pay less than $ 30k a year, usually with no benefits. Needless to say, I’m struggling financially and the lack of health care or any money going into retirement is a big weight on my shoulders.

My one friend back in Northern VA with NO college and less experience, (and she even says she’s not as smart as me, which is mean, but she’s not generally as well-read, that’s true, I wouldn’t say “smarter”), recently got an entry-level job in HR with no experience and is being paid 45k.

My little sister who also had no experience got hired for a dentist’s office as an assistant and is getting paid the same as me.

I don’t get it.. I’m really getting frustrated. I need to make more money. I am looking into going back to college to get a different degree in the future, but how can I up my earning potential?

I’ve already tried taking additional classes in QuickBooks, Excel formulas, etc..

I’m just really disheartened. My husband gets annoyed that I come back miserable from every interview.. I feel totally devalued. I’m torn between being insulted at being offered $ 10-12 with no benefits and needing the money. I feel like I’m in a vacuum where I’ll never escape. I don’t want to be 30 and making under 30k, it’s a joke! Is it common nowadays to earn less even with more experience?

HELP!

I’m also worried about my resume. It is starting to look shady with my work history.

I’ve worked two places in the past twelve months. The first one was an IT company where I worked as an office manager for a year and then I had to be let go due to financial reasons where they had the operations manager do double duty.

The other place I worked as an office manager for a small construction company. That woman almost went bankrupt due to having too many credit card bills and not enough customers coming in. She let me go so she could hire her daughter who needed a job.

The economy is so bad around here and I’m struggling to find a job to pay the bills. I’m just worried about my recent job history and how people will perceive it.

I’m also worried if I keep taking low paying jobs, if I’ll ever get a job that pays me enough because they always ask how much you got at your LAST job and base salary from there. I don’t want to LIE even though many do as far as salary but I have to work!

Best answer:

Answer by kd s
Your job history should not be a mark on you. Those are circumstances that you can not control. If you are asked about the time spent at those jobs, just tell the truth. I agree that with your skills listed and experience you should be making more – WITH benefits and some sort of retirement package.
Keep plugging away at the interviews. The economy is not the greatest right now, so businesses are looking to get the most they can for the least amount of money. Don’t take it to heart. Its the business way of survival. Pay may be negotiable. If a low ball offer is made to you, just ask if it is negotiable. If not, move on if the offer is too low.
If they are willing to negotiate, make sure you have your numbers ready and your experience to back it up – that you are worth it.
Maybe span out your search wider. A little longer commute may pay off.
Look at manufacturing, machine shops, job shops, engineering firms etc… Something outside of what you are use to. They need your skills as well.
Revamp your resume. Make an impression with it. There are services that will review it for you and make recommendations.
Keep up to date with all the software and hardware that you have experience with.
Good luck to you.

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hair salon business plan

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