We recently connected with Katelyn Minton and have shared our conversation below.
Katelyn, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Right out of high school, I begun working for Chick Fil A. I didn’t go the college route, school was not a priority for me. When I got the job at Chick Fil A, shortly after, I was kicked out of my dad’s house. I ended up living on my sister and brother in law’s couch for a little over a year… I also knew things got serious quick and I didn’t have any option but to figure out how to make more money. I became manager within the first year just by taking on as much as I could. I had nothing to lose so I worked the longest hours of my life & the hardest I’ve ever worked in my life. This became the new norm for me and I found myself always pushing harder and harder to get that next accomplishment. Over the span of 8 and a half years with the company I worked my way up to general manager. I felt so proud of myself and so accomplished from where I started… but it still wasn’t enough. I lost the passion and love for what I was doing. Along the way, while working at chick Fil a, I discovered makeup. I wasn’t a big makeup wearer in highschool, but times were certainly different. I watched some YouTube videos and became very intrigued with all the different ways you could apply makeup. Ways I didn’t even know existed. At this point I worked night shift, so before going into work I’d sit in front of my vanity and practice look after look after look… I remember feeling so challenged and it was so exciting. I had NO idea what I was doing but I knew I loved it. After a year of doing my own makeup and getting pretty good at it, I had friends start to ask if I could do their makeup. That was a whole different world I wasn’t sure I was ready to step into, but they were my friends so I knew if it wasn’t great… it wouldn’t break me as much. In fact I knew it wouldn’t be great lol. They told me they loved it but to this day I believe that was to push me to keep going and it worked!! I just felt more and more challenged and I loved every minute of it. About the 4th year in of practicing makeup, it started to become a pretty busy side job for me. I worked full time as general manager in the mornings Monday-Friday then full time makeup artist in the afternoons and on weekends. 7 days a week I was doing something. I’m young and I enjoyed the thrill of having 2 jobs… until it wasn’t fun anymore and I began to feel overwhelmed and less excited about what I was doing. The work at Chick Fil A required my full attention and I could see my work slipping there. I came to a cross road and it was either stick to what I know, what was financially comfortable… or take a risk while I’m young, single, don’t have to worry about a family and pursue makeup full time. At that point I knew if I quit makeup, I would be so miserable at chick Fil a… I didn’t love working with food nor the job in general anymore. I knew that wasn’t my end game. Now, to quit chick Fil a to do makeup full time was scary since, financially, I wasn’t sure what that looked like. But I also knew I was at a point in my life where I could afford to take the risk. I prayed about it, I left it in God’s hands. I let him determine what was right for me. Something had happened at my Chick Fil A job that I really didn’t appreciate. I didn’t feel supported and I felt like I wasn’t being heard. It was in that moment I knew, it was time. I felt this overwhelming relief when I said “ok this is it, I’m putting in my notice and we’re taking the bull by the horns”. I started my business in August of 2021– I am now fully booked a year out with weddings and I’ve never once had the thought of “I’m tired of what I do”. It continues to challenge me, my passion grows stronger every day, and every time I see a woman look at themselves with joy and confidence I know I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing. I’ve never been a confident woman with how I look, we are our biggest critics. Seeing the response I get from other woman making them feel their best is something I’ll never take for granted. I knew it was my purpose, I just needed God’s help in opening that door for me.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I am a business owner and lead makeup artist for my company, TELL Beauty LLC in Spring, Texas. I work side by side with my good friend Courtney who is the lead hairstylist. When we started the company in August of 2021, we didn’t know each other well. We both just had a strong passion for our artistry and knew we needed to take it to the next level. Both of us were also very passionate about making women feel their best. We wanted women to feel comfortable around us even in their most vulnerable moments… we call ourselves “the beauty BFF’s” because by the end of our session, we want our clients to feel like they just gained a new secure relationship. Obviously with making women feel beautiful, we also want them to feel valued and heard. I believe that’s what stands out most with our company, because we don’t treat our clients as another transaction… we want to get to know our people. We hear all the time from brides that they never met the owner of the hair and makeup company they hired, which some are ok with that, but from day one we’ve always said that will never be the case for us. We are the face of our brand. I want people to know who we are and what we stand for. It’s important for us that people can put a face to the company. I also believe that’s why the business has been so successful in a short amount of time. Word of mouth can be your best friend or your worst enemy, so good representation of who we are is top priority. Something exciting for us right now is booking destination weddings. Starting out, we were just local in the Houston are.. but after getting a couple years in with weddings we’re now comfortable with traveling. We traveled to Belize in April of this year, next year we’ve booked Tulum and Cancun weddings! That is so huge for us and we’re so thrilled to be able to travel the world while doing what we love.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
People management, customer service and constructive criticism were my top 3 areas of knowledge I took from learning at Chick Fil A and brought into running a business. People management is important because you have to learn how to work with others, how to have those difficult conversations when necessary and mainly, earning and having trust in the ones you’re pouring everything you value into. Customer service is big, if not the biggest, piece of knowledge I’ve had to learn. Customer service isn’t just serving with kindness or serving the customer until they’re wrong. It’s about understanding the customer and knowing even when they are wrong, there’s a way to handle a situation without making them feel in the wrong. Without a customer, you don’t have a business and as I said earlier word of mouth can be your best friend or your worst enemy.. so treating every single customer with the same level of kindness and respect is most important for a successful business. Constructive criticism is a difficult one but a NECESSARY one. If I hadn’t been open to constructive criticism I never would be in the position I’m in to run a business. I may be the boss for my company, but I still accept constructive criticism from our clients. That is where you find your areas to grow and what needs tweaking. Business is never perfect, but that’s the beauty in running a business… you’ll always have room to grow.
We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?
I actually love this question. When I first branched off to start this business I thought sticking to what makeup looks I feel most confident doing, is what will work best for me. I couldn’t have been more wrong… not every single person is the same. Everyone’s wants are different. Everyone’s type of look is different. I definitely learned quickly in this industry you need to be versatile. You need to be able to cater to every single clients request. That doesn’t mean stray away from your strength in what makes you most confident, but expanding your knowledge to achieve the best outcome for every single client. Never settle in just one strength. You also never know what you could be great at without expanding those horizons.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.tellbeautyhtx.com
- Instagram: @tellbeauty_
- Facebook: TELL beauty
Image Credits
@abigailcreamerphotography -Abigail Creamer @therosemaryhen- Layne Little
