Starting as a freelance makeup artist is exciting and empowering. You get to organize your schedule, make new connections, and establish yourself with your facial works of art.
A freelancer is someone who offers their services as a self-employed person and not under a company. The hours are very flexible, and you can sub-contract to another business. Also, as a freelancer, the work that you do is short-term. Most graphic designers, makeup artists and writers are freelancers.
Where do you start as a freelance makeup artist? Here are some tips for starting your self-employed journey.
What is your target market?
When starting as a freelance makeup artist, one shoe might not fit all. What style of makeup artistry do you favour? Are you good at wedding glam? Perhaps you have a hand for crazy looks for photoshoots. Look back at past work you have done and pinpoint your area of expertise.
Finding out what style you are will help you create your business plan, branding, and expenses. For example, as a wedding makeup artist, you may need more neutral eye pallets instead of crazy outgoing pallets for artistic shoots.
Once you have found out your style and based your brand around it, you can move onto the next step, your expenses.
What sort of expenses will you have?
As a freelance makeup artist, you will have some legal expenses, such as a business registration. Then you will have some costs you may not have thought about, like glitter and crazy lashes. Once you know what makeup style you will be doing, you can fine-tune your business expenses.
Are you willing to travel to the client’s place? If so, you will have to account for travel expenses such as fuel. If you are working out of a studio or your own home, you will have to account for part of your house into your expenses.
Every business owner would need a business name and register their business, which is not free. Other expenses include your phone bill, insurance, supplies, and even childcare while you work.
A good piece of advice is to sit down with a small business accountant and have them show you what sort of expenses to plan for and what you can write off. Learn as much as you can to save you unnecessary costs in the future.
What will your pricing be, and what will you profit from?
Once again, sitting down with an accountant will help you greatly in determining what you make vs what you spend on the business. Be prepared to start off with little profit coming in. Freelance makeup artists can set their prices for clients. Some people charge for the makeup look they are doing, whereas others price by the hour.
When you build your pricing, consider your product and any extras such as travel and fuel, cost of cleaning your brushes and time taken to restock supplies. These work areas benefit by being added to your rate when setting a price for your services.
Starting as a freelance makeup artist takes a lot of research, understanding and work to set the foundation for your business. The outcome and profit you make in the long run are worth it.