Beauty Consultant Jobs

Beauty consultant job trends

What entry qualifications and training do you need?

School, college and training

You may not need any formal qualifications to become a beauty consultant, but beauty school qualifications can help you build your technical skills and experience if you’re looking to move beyond retail and into the salon later in your career.

This is mainly a retail role. Having at least three or four GCSEs or their equivalent, ideally including English and maths, will be useful for a retail environment. They could also help you get onto a Level 2 qualification in beauty therapy, which can train you to provide make-up services.

You could also study for a Level 2/3 qualification in sales, although this is not required.
In addition, a diploma in retail business could be useful – but you don’t need one.

Apprenticeships

There are lots of beauty apprenticeships and hairdressing apprenticeships out there if you want to improve your practical skills.

You can also apply for retail apprenticeships which aren’t specific to beauty but can train you in everything from consumer behaviour psychology to visual merchandising and in-store displays.

Career progression and further qualifications

With time and experience you could move into beauty retail management.

You could also be a self-employed beauty consultant if you are at least 18 years old.

If you can prove you have the required skills (e.g. by completing a beauty therapy qualification) you could also move from the department store to salons and spas to work your makeup magic. Your understanding of retail sales and customer needs could be a big plus to a salon.

What experience do you need for beauty consultancy jobs?

Work experience

Aim to get retail or sales experience, and experience in customer services. You could look for Saturday or summer retail jobs while in education.

You can set up a social media account (e.g. Instagram) where you trial and display a range of looks. This can demonstrate your practical skills in hair and beauty styling, as well as your self-motivation and active interest in this field.

Examples of relevant work experience include:

• Work shadowing (even if it’s just for a day)
• Work placements in a company
• Work placements on a college or university course

What skills do you need for beauty consultancy jobs?

Useful skills to highlight to your employer when applying for beauty consultancy jobs include:

• Communication skills – you will be advising customers on the products which most suit them in a diplomatic way
• Sales skills – you’ll be working in a competitive environment with brands in competition with each other, so you want to attract people to your counter and persuade them to choose the products there
• Presentation skills – as an ambassador of the brand you need to look clean and tidy in your appearance, with well-styled hair and makeup if you’re wearing any.
• Beauty and retail experience will help your CV stand out.

Vocational qualifications and work experience will help you build these skills over time.

What does a beauty consultant do?

You’ll normally work in a busy department store during typical working hours. You may be on your feet a lot, especially when it’s busy. You may be expected to work weekends or late night openings. You may get a chance to work overtime and earn more money around the extra-busy Christmas period.

Example job responsibilities:

• Selling the brand and products you represent. You may be set sales targets, and be able to earn commission on meeting those targets.
• Giving makeovers – sometimes the best way to show off a brand is to let a customer see what it can do for them personally! So you may give customers free makeovers to show how the products can be used and how well they suit the client.
• Giving advice – as a beauty consultant you’ll know your beauty brand inside-out. You’ll be able to advise a customer on a skincare regime that meets their needs, as well as cosmetics that best suit their skin type, skin tones and personal style preferences.
• Keeping the counter stocked – you’ll need to keep an eye on stock levels so that your counter doesn’t run out of products. You’ll also make sure all the products are displayed in an attractive way.
• Handling money and transactions – you’ll be handling sales, taking payments, wrapping products as gifts if needed, and handing out gift vouchers and trial samples.

Your first steps into beauty consultancy jobs

To find jobs for young people in this role, search on job boards with these words in the title:

• Beauty consultant
• Beauty advisor

Useful organisations and links

• Find an Apprenticeship
• British Association of Beauty Therapy and Cosmetology Ltd (BABTAC)
• Hairdressing and Beauty Industry Authority (HABIA)
• Register of Beauty Professionals