Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Nemes.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Hello!
I’m Ashley owner of Beauty by Ashley. My passion for this career started way back when my mom would perm & braid my hair in the kitchen. Both my Mom & my Grandma started their careers as hairstylists, so beauty was always in my life. Fast forward to choosing my career, going to cosmetology school was my first choice! I wanted to learn a skill set but more than anything I wanted to help people feel beautiful inside & out.
I started at Aveda Institute in the summer of 2010, I took both Esthiology & Cosmetology to learn everything I could about skincare, makeup, & haircare. My love for the industry grew there, I knew this was what I wanted to do from day one. Shortly after I graduated I started training for what would become the next great obsession in our industry… Blow-Dry Bars.
Before the salon opened we trained for months, on all textures, lengths, & styles of hair. This prepared me for the 6 years I would work, educate, & manage The Wow Bar in Edina. Styling hair & doing makeup was my all day, every day & I loved every minute of it.
When it was time to move on, I decided to get into full services again. I worked at another salon for 3 years re-learning all the new techniques & trends in hair color, cutting, & extensions. I decided to open my studio suite in Sola Salons in the West End almost 2 years ago now & I couldn’t be more proud.
I now specialize in Bridal Hair & Makeup, Blondes, & Extensions. I love that I have maintained so many great relationships with my clients over the years & continue meeting new people all the time. Making people feel & look their best is the most rewarding feeling & I get to do it every day.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Learning any new skill is never easy – it was a lot of long days, cuts on my fingers, & shoulder cramps at first.
Formulating color is a mixture of using the color wheel & chemistry – where a lot of things can go wrong.
Once you establish your technical skills, then you learn how to communicate with all different types of personalities & meet their expectations. It takes years to learn & you never stop growing.
Going out on my own as a business owner has also been challenging. Learning how to build, market, & run a business in addition to working with my clients means I always have lots to do, but I wouldn’t change it for the world!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My studio is located in The Shops at The West End in St. Louis Park where I offer a variety of beauty services.
My specialties are Bridal Hair & Makeup, Blondes, Extensions, & Styling. These are the services that light me up the most!
I have been working with Brides for over 10 years, I truly enjoy creating a look for them & getting them ready to celebrate their big day! I do onsite services as well as small groups in my studio.
Being a Blonde myself, I have grown to love working with clients who want to go brighter while keeping their hair as healthy as possible.
I offer Extension methods to my clients which help solve their hair problems & give them their dream hairstyle! Extensions are a speciality service that truly make my clients feel amazing & I am so proud to provide that for them.
Lastly, I am definitely known for my styling work, since I have been doing it the longest. I am currently accepting new clients with open arms for all of my services including my specialties.
I think I stand out because I really love what I do & I care about my clients. I want to provide a relaxing but fun experience along with helping them feel beautiful.
Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I would consider myself willing to take a healthy amount of risk after weighing the pros & cons.
I think when you own a business you have to be willing to put yourself out there which can be risky. When I opened my business it was a risk to leave the security of the salon I was at, after a pandemic, without knowing everything I know today. But I would have regretted it if I didn’t take a chance.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.beautybyashleysalon.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beauty_by_ashley4/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beautybyashley4
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/beauty-by-ashley-salon-minneapolis?osq=beauty+by+ashley
- Other: https://www.google.com/search?q=beauty+by+ashley&sxsrf=AJOqlzWHHbQTDr6qFuZLjW9gmkObW2wXLw%3A1675808108455&source=hp&ei=bM3iY5XmGPSC0PEPhsC0sAI&iflsig=AK50M_UAAAAAY-LbfMT9ZMPZytjBYyzGFELGbZOFcFhd&gs_ssp=eJzj4tVP1zc0LEpLyTAzMswyYLRSNagwNUoyNjZNS02xME00NDJOsjKoMDFPTE1OMTZNNDdNMjNITvISSEpNLC2pVEiqVEgszshJrQQA4TIVmA&oq=beauty&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAEYADIKCC4QxwEQrwEQJzIECCMQJzIFCAAQgAQyCwguEIAEELEDENQCMg4ILhCABBCxAxDHARDRAzILCAAQgAQQsQMQyQMyBQgAEIAEMgsILhDUAhCxAxCABDIICAAQgAQQsQMyCAgAEIAEELEDOhEILhCABBCxAxDHARDRAxDUAjoLCC4QgAQQxwEQ0QM6CAguELEDEIMBOhEILhCABBCxAxCDARDHARDRAzoICAAQsQMQgwE6CwguEIAEELEDEIMBOgQIABADOggILhCABBCxAzoLCAAQgAQQsQMQgwE6CAguEIAEENQCOggILhDUAhCABFAAWPEFYLoQaABwAHgAgAF3iAHqBJIBAzIuNJgBAKABAQ&sclient=gws-wiz
Image Credits
Colette Rochelle Photography, Sassy Pants Photography, and Katie Tola Photography
