My two professional words collided last week, when my friend Leonard announced the launch of my new PR related blog project on his crazy high trafficked site The Clyde Fitch Report. It was a really nice shout out, and he even mentioned my work over here at BeautyOlogy.
In his comments section, someone disagreed with my post (I suspect without having read it, but I digress). And this person decided that instead of a real conversation an insult would better serve his purpose, as happens all too often in the blogosphere.
The comment was “Methinks the beautician should go back to blogging about nails.”
Ummm, sexist much?
Disagreeing with the post is fine, but with that one sentence he called into question my professional experience not only in PR but also within the beauty industry. To suggest that as a “beautician” (a loaded term already) I had nothing of consequence to say, and that my sole purpose should be to write about nail polish (and let’s be honest, I doubt he was talking about blog posts related to nail health), smacked of both a sexist and elitist tone.
The beauty industry primarily employs women. Hair stylists, nail techs, and estheticians are mainly female. It can be a lucrative industry for many women, whether they are straight out of high school or in a career transition. The fact that our work as professionals is so easily dismissed is infuriating. And would it be if it were an industry dominated by men (on the front lines, at least)?
Glass ceilings abound in loads of industries. And while this industry is not immune to the glass ceiling effect, it is really only within the beauty industry that women have launched multi-million dollar brands–Bobbi Brown, Trish McEvoy, and Sally Hanson are just three of the many names that immediately spring to mind.
Ask anyone doing working in the field, and you will learn that our jobs are not only cutting hair or doing facials. We are also armchair psychologists, our clients often share their troubles when they are in our chairs. We are community builders–at my old spa, countless clients would “drop in” to say hello or share a coffee and a chat, even if they did not have a booking. We are where women can convene, have a laugh or a cry, and feel supported and nurtured. This is something that can not be sniffed aside.
With my own work, I see women’s health as a priority. A high stress lifestyle degrades not only skin but also health. There is also the very real issue of self confidence, which sorry to say, physical appearance does indeed come into play. A teenager faced with severe acne wants to hide her face. Much as I would prefer to fix the taunters, I can fix the acne.
This does not and should not dismiss the harm that the industry inflicts on women–the implication that invasive surgery can fix your all your problems. A face lift, a Botox shot, or a tummy tuck will not make everything OK. And often this sort of invasive beauty definitely undermines a woman’s self confidence. We are told that our bodies need to be “fixed” to a younger, tighter version of ourselves.
And whose definition of beauty is that anyway? Where did the promise of some sort of a youth do over for women come from? And is this not a problem of society on the whole? Where youth culture is celebrated and “the olds” are seen as out-of-touch? Experience counts for nothing.
I get the cosmetic surgery allure, I have pangs of it myself, but these pangs come mainly from my work in the public relations field. In my other career, where I am employed primarily by men, I have lost jobs because I was pregnant, and have been harped on by clients for not losing pregnancy weight fast enough or for going too long between hair cuts and colors. I have been called to task for not wearing makeup. After I was married, I was called to task for wearing makeup, as though I was tarting myself up for a good cheat. And when negotiating my fees, there is always an expectation that because I am married, my husband foots the brunt of the bill.
Like any industry, the effects of the beauty business on women is problematic and often highly conflicted. But there are plenty of smart women doing excellent work, making a difference and earning a living wage by making women (and men) feel good about themselves. The majority of us are not in the field to smack down someone’s physical appearance to our own benefit, financial or otherwise.
But dismissing the workers in this industry so easily needs to be called out. Turning up a nose at the women who populate this “blue collar” industry is sexism. Period.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m very bad at social conversation, so when I go to get my hair cut, I usually ask the beauticians about all the stuff they learned in school (I’m a college student who loves to learn). The amount of work and understanding these women have always lights up my day because I feel like I’m getting a mini Chemistry lesson.
Seriously, you all know your work. People should shut up.
I absolutely loved your article. As a busy feminist entrenched in my senior year and final Women’s Studies courses, I had not until I read your article taken the time to consider the importance and feminist aspect of beauticians.
Even as a feminists I think we are quick to label the careers of Beauticians as superficial and encouraging gender stereotypes then file it away without giving it proper recognition and investigation. I had never thought about the importance of the jobs that Beauticians do through their work directly and through the environment they create for women because of my initial reaction to balk at the legitimacy of the profession due to, at face value it being perceived as only legitimizing self esteem based on outward appearance rather then character.
I’m glad you wrote the article; even though you shouldn’t have to legitimize your profession (which is, as you put, all too common in women-dominated fields) I think it is definatly one that gets pushed aside in the mainstream feminist analysis of women and careers, thus making your analysis enlightening and very needed.
KonKonsn–I do think that what is often forgot or what goes unnoticed is that a lot of us not only have our initial education behind us, but also many many hours of continuing education that keeps us current. I wish more beauty writers at magazines were required to attend courses in even basic cosmetic chem and physiology. One of the hardest conversations I have with clients is when I am told “xyz magazine said,” which is often not the best source for information. Keep listening!
Elizabeth–I agree completely. This is a point that often gets ignored, and thank you for having an open mind about it. I certainly have been sneered at by more than one dude on a blog (though he qualifies for most obnoxious). I entered the field specifically because I saw what the effects of lifestyle and stress on loads of women, including myself.
From the business aspect, when your exams are over, I recommend taking a look at the biogs out there on Estee Lauder and Mary Kay. Fascinating to see what those two women built, and how they built it, at a time when women were not building much of anything in the business world.
And congrats on your upcoming graduation!
I came across this blog by accident! I was looking around for beauty colleges and schools in my area, even though I know I’d never be allowed to go. The problem I feel is and it sounds horrible, but there is such a cliche surrounding these beauticians not being so smart! Which I think is totally untrue! It gives me such a dillema, because I’m choosing my A levels and supposedly a smart girl, I have to keep up with them and not pursue I career I think I would love! I feel like I need to acheive an esteemed career, when I’d prefer something creative- Or at least I think so!
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