Today we’d like to introduce you to Mirela Sabanagic (Mujakic)
Hi Mirela, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hi there! My name is Mirela Sabanagic (formerly Mujakic) and I’m the proud Director of Education and Marketing for Beauty Craft, an incredible pro beauty distributor headquartered in Minnetonka, MN. I started my journey in beauty like most, in their mom’s vanity looking for makeup and hair clips as a young girl. I was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. My parents and myself were lucky enough to flee to America (Chicago, IL specifically) as refugees and start a new life. My father began a career in construction and my mother started a cleaning service while I dreamt of doing hair and makeup.
I started beauty school at the age of 16 and landed my first job as a hairstylist shortly after graduating at 17. I had a passion for making people look and feel beautiful, but also growing the business. One year into my dream career, I received a promotion to manage my first salon at the age of 18 and enrolled into business school.
Though it felt as though my career and education goals were at their prime, my health unfortunately began to decline. At the age of 19, I was diagnosed with stage 1c Ovarian masses. While my biggest fear in life was not being able to have children, I was determined to beat this awful disease and continue moving forward. During treatment and constant follow ups and surgeries, work and school were the primary reason I was able to get through those tough 2 years.
Helping others grow and helping people look and feel their best truly took my mind of off what I was going through. After a few long, yet hard-working years, I reached remission, graduated with 4 associates degrees in business, received 2 multi-unit promotions and was on track to get through every life-checklist item I had set in my early teen years.
One year in remission, I graduated with Bachelor of Science at DeVry University and gave birth to my first miracle baby and daughter. From there, after many years in various roles, companies and levels of leadership in the beauty Industry, I began my career at Beauty Craft.
Fast forward to 2024, I’ve now graduated with a Master’s in Business from Keller Graduate School, had 2 more beautiful miracle children, I’m a spokesperson and leadership member of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (a nonprofit helping survivors and women in treatment for Ovarian Cancer) and learning new skills daily in my role overseeing marketing and eduction in over 45,000 salons.
While my story is a little out of the ordinary, I think it’s a different perspective of optimism and driving factors. I hope for it to be a reminder that it’s the individuals that are behind the wheel of their life. Going through health challenges and major life traumas doesn’t mean your American Dream isn’t achievable. My goals are to make my children, parents and home country proud – while hoping to continue feeding positivity, drive, and hope, to anyone going through a tough time.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
While no road worth taking is a smooth one, I think reminding oneself of their “why” is what makes every bump on the road a little less bumpy.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Beauty Craft is a professional distributor for licensed salon and spa professionals. I get to manage the education and marketing in all 14 of our states, alongside approximately 40 professional brands.
I’m most proud of the people I get to work with. From our amazing brands, to top notch pro education teams, not to mention our hardworking sales team (who I’m learning from each day), and our owners, especially.
What sets Beauty Craft apart from any other company and corporation I’ve known of or worked with, are truly the people. Not only is Beauty Craft family-owned in Minnetonka since 1928, the owners and team built are some of the most humble, understanding and growth-focused individuals I have ever encountered in the beauty industry. Everyone truly cares about the growth of their team, salon partners, and maintaining loyalty with the brands we work with. It’s truly a big, happy family, focused on providing quality hair products and education to every salon and stylist we partner with.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Yes! Stay focused on your goals and ALWAYS remind yourself of your “why.” Whatever your dream and passion is, make that passion your “work,” and it won’t feel like Monday is the worst day of the week.
I truly believe that if your “why” isn’t in what you do, and your passions aren’t aligned, that is when work feels like hard work.
If I could change anything when I was first starting out, I would have instilled more confidence in myself. When I was a brand new hairstylist and received my first management role at 18, I wasn’t taken very seriously and I let that affect my confidence, and in turn, my performance as a leader.
If I could turn back time, I would remind myself, not only of my “why,” but also reassurance of what I’ve earned and why, whether it be a promotion or a new client referral, and to always keep strong connections with those who’ve helped me grow into who I am today — both personally and professionally.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.beautycraft.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mirela_beautycraft?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
- Facebook: Mirela Sabanagic (Mujakic): https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003712901367&ref=xav_ig_profile_web
- Other: https://l.instagram.com/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.24-7pressrelease.com%2Fpress-release%2F510558%3Ffbclid%3DPAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZ2_rDWrd1UWhGQCHLtUSLU715lWASk_r_or3BPuDIHDSZ9NCAL92TRgiQ_aem_wROMAbOEiv7aYcPN8aLjQw&e=AT3VdoXpHCMtr-XmPBNotazHVkJeh9jhDwkOIPDZsABF7F0_XpsYSnGwEIqCy0uU2pwdw6bZVvq0o5KOZ02lfLoVxXUS6YAYtq0sKceDwxpCCLoCkOVN7Q
