Hairdresser to personal stylist
A hairdresser already meets 39% of what the personal stylist role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
61.8/ 100
1 How much of what a personal stylist is expected to do is already part of a hairdresser’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the personal stylist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A personal stylist role treats 7 of its required skills as things a hairdresser already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on hair style
- identify customer's needs
- maintain customer service
- offer cosmetic beauty advice
- recommend cosmetics to customers
- satisfy customers
What stands in the way is 11 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 13 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A personal stylist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a hairdresser background worth leading with.
- already held advise on hair style communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held stay up-to-date with hair style trends information skills
- already held style hair assisting and caring
- already held offer cosmetic beauty advice communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held satisfy customers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers communication, collaboration and creativity
All 13 carried skills, including the 7 the personal stylist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn advise customers on clothing accessories required
- still to learn advise on clothing style required
- still to learn teach fashion to clients required
- still to learn advise customers on jewellery and watches required
- still to learn advise customers on usage of cosmetics required
- still to learn develop professional network required
- still to learn listen actively required
- optional, not held network with store owners optional
- optional, not held assist clients with special needs optional
- optional, not held perform services in a flexible manner optional
- optional, not held teach communication to clients optional
- still to learn assist customers required
- still to learn assist with dressing required
- optional, not held accompany people optional
- optional, not held give advice on personal matters optional
- still to learn apply fashion trends to footwear and leather goods required
- optional, not held control of expenses optional
- optional, not held keep personal administration optional
- still to learn trends in fashion required
- optional, not held assess character optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a personal stylist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 advise customers on clothing accessories practise this
- 02 advise on clothing style practise this
- 03 apply fashion trends to footwear and leather goods practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 13 skills that carry over
- already held advise on hair style skill
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held offer cosmetic beauty advice skill
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers skill
- already held satisfy customers skill
- already held stay up-to-date with hair style trends skill
- already held administer appointments skill
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held maintain professional administration skill
- already held manage a small-to-medium business skill
- already held manage schedule of tasks skill
- already held style hair skill
9 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held accompany people optional
- optional, not held give advice on personal matters optional
- optional, not held network with store owners optional
- optional, not held assess character optional
- optional, not held assist clients with special needs optional
- optional, not held control of expenses optional
- optional, not held keep personal administration optional
- optional, not held perform services in a flexible manner optional
- optional, not held teach communication to clients optional
25 held skills the personal stylist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply hair cutting techniques skill
- not needed by the target role curl hair skill
- not needed by the target role design hair style skill
- not needed by the target role dye hair skill
- not needed by the target role hair knowledge
- not needed by the target role hair colouring knowledge
- not needed by the target role hair products knowledge
- not needed by the target role help customers with hair problems skill
- not needed by the target role issue sales invoices skill
- not needed by the target role maintain equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- not needed by the target role maintain wigs skill
- not needed by the target role maintain work area cleanliness skill
- not needed by the target role monitor stock level skill
- not needed by the target role order supplies skill
- not needed by the target role organise product display skill
- not needed by the target role process payments skill
- not needed by the target role sell hair products skill
- not needed by the target role supervise staff skill
- not needed by the target role train employees skill
- not needed by the target role treat facial hair skill
- not needed by the target role treat scalp conditions skill
- not needed by the target role use equipment for hair care skill
- not needed by the target role wash hair skill
- not needed by the target role work ergonomically skill
1 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn trends in fashion required
Common questions about this move
Can a hairdresser become a personal stylist?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A hairdresser already covers 39% of what a personal stylist is expected to do: 13 skills carry over, 7 of which the personal stylist role treats as required.
What skills does a hairdresser need to become a personal stylist?
11 required skills are missing, plus 9 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is advise customers on clothing accessories.
How hard is the move from hairdresser to personal stylist?
Its learning distance is 61.8 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.