How I Got Started in the Lash Industry
Hi, I'm Joy Crossingham!
My career in lashes began back in 2008 as a solo Lash Stylist operating from home combined with offering mobile services that saw me driving all over the city of Brisbane charging $50 for full sets and $35 for refills.
Thankfully, it didn't take me long to realise my worth and charge accordingly for my ability which in turn allowed me to attract the right clients that not only valued my work but enabled me to really grow my business.
After many years of hard work, I'm proud to be able to say that "me" has become "we" and I now lead a team of over 15 highly skilled "lashies" across multiple lash businesses who share my same passion for this amazing industry.
Over the years, I've been fortunate to have won numerous local and international awards for my lash work, spoken at countless industry conferences, my Academy was crowned the 2019 ABIA "Educator of the Year", and my LashJoy business was also officially recognised as one of the Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies in all of Australia, to name just a few achievements.
That being said, the real joy these days is in sharing my knowledge and expertise to empower others. My goal is to help you build your own successful lash business, find fulfilment, and achieve financial independence.
If I were to pinpoint my superpower, it's getting incredible results out of others in a short period of time. Since I began teaching in 2014, I've facilitated 300+ training workshops across the globe, teaching over 2,500 students and creating more award-winning Lash Stylists than any other educator in Australia.
How I Got Into Eyelash Extensions...
So, before I began in the Lash Industry, I was actually running my own Fashion Clothing store in my hometown of Brisbane, Australia.
Things were going great right up until around 2008 when the GFC (global financial crisis) hit and then business got really slow so I decided to take a holiday to visit my family in Thailand and at the same time thought I'd do an Eyelash Extension course while I was there just for fun.
I had always enjoyed making jewellery and other intricate things, so I thought I could take this course and at the very least do my mum's lashes for her (she'd been getting hers done at a local Korean hair salon and they were never that great) and business at my clothing store would bounce back and everything would be okay.
But... as you can guess, it was not okay.
Business at the store continued to decline and in 2009, I had to shut it down. This was a scary but exciting turning point as I decided to focus full time on my Eyelash Extension hobby-turned-business.
And so, "Brisbane Lashes" was born.
I set up a very basic website on Vistaprint and a Facebook page (Instagram didn't launch until 2010. That's how long I've been in the industry!), and I was off and lashing!In the beginning, my business operated the same way many new Lash Stylists still start out today, with a home-based salon as well as a mobile service where I would drive all over Brisbane (and sometimes further) to see clients.
I would literally do my client's lashes whilst they were lying on their couch or bed and because there was no proper lighting or seating, it meant if I wasn't lashing, I was getting massages to fix my neck and back!
But after six months, I realised that by staying in one place, I could see more clients per day and spare myself the back and neck aches from improper lashing conditions. Thus, I bid farewell to mobile lashing and welcomed my new salon!
First, I shared the space with three other beauty-related businesses. As time passed and they moved out, I had to decide whether to take over the full lease and quadruple my rent overnight or find another space. This decision was sprung on me during a holiday in Europe!
After a few sleepless nights and careful consideration, I took the plunge. I signed the new 5-year lease and spent the rest of the holiday brainstorming how I would expand without going bankrupt in the process!
Looking back now, I can see that this was a pivotal moment in me being where I am today because it not only forced me way out of my comfort zone but also to believe in myself more than ever before. I did not have any other choice but to back myself and go for it 100% if I wanted to survive and make "lashes" my thing.
The Start of LashJoy Academy
My training courses first came about after I was interviewed back in 2013 by A Current Affair to speak about the malpractice occurring in the lash industry due to the lack of comprehensive training available at the time.
After the interview, I received a flood of enquiries from people all over the country asking me where they should go for training; the problem was there was nothing available that I felt comfortable recommending. All of the courses back then were a half-day or 1-day course at best and barely scraped the surface of what someone needed to know to safely apply eyelash extensions.
This highlighted a huge gap in the market that I felt I was more than qualified to fill.
This highlighted a huge gap in the market that I felt I was more than qualified to fill.
So, I got to work creating content for a beginner's course that would actually teach someone everything they needed to know in order to be a successful self-employed Lash Stylist.
It wasn't an easy task, but 10 months later the content was complete, and I held my first ever 5 Day Classic Lash Mastery Course!
Ironically, when this course was first released, I received quite a bit of backlash from people in the industry saying it was "too long" and "too expensive", yet today 5 days is the standard for a professional and in-depth beginner lash course, and one of the key reasons students choose this course is because it's 5 days and not 1 or 2! Go figure, right?
As the saying goes, "First they laugh at you, then they copy you!".
I am proof that if you believe that what you are doing is right, have the courage to do it! Don't let others who can't see your vision deter you. Remember, just because it's "new" doesn't mean it's wrong and just because something is "the way it's always been done" does not mean that it is right.
Fast forward, and you could say the "lash life" has kept me busy!
In no particular order...
- I now have a team of 15+ and growing helping me to change the lash world!
- Featured on A Current Affair as an Industry Authority to speak about the Lash Industry
- Won numerous local and international awards for my Lash work
- Facilitated 300+ Lash Mastery events across Australia & Asia
- Taught well over 2,500 students and helped create countless award-winning and successful Lash Artists
- I've been a keynote speaker and competition judge at lash conferences all over the world
- I launched my own eyelash extension supplies company known as "LashJoy" which is now trusted by 25,000+ Lash Stylists worldwide
- I created the most comprehensive online beginner's lash course known as "Classic Lash Mastery Online" with 35+ hours of expert tutorials
- In 2017 I launched Australia's first LIVE Lash Competition, known as the Pro Series Lash Competition
- My business was officially recognised by the Australian Financial Review as one of the Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies in Australia
- LashJoy was crowned the winner of the 2019 ABIA "Best Business Performance of the Year" award
- LashJoy Academy was crowned the winner of the 2019 ABIA "Educator of the Year" award
- I started a YouTube Channel which is now a 2x internationally awarded channel that averages more than 100,000 minutes per month of watch time!
- I developed a world-first online scheduling system designed specifically for the Lash Industry known as "BookJoy" due to launch in 2024!
On top of all this, I still see my regular lash clients weekly and oversee my Brisbane Lashes salon which handles close to 10,000 appointments each year!
So, that's a snapshot of me and my journey in this wonderful industry so far. I look forward to getting to know you better if we get to meet at one of my upcoming training events!
Joy x
- Tags: Awards Business LashJoy Academy
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