Meet Heather Mogel: Stylist & Salon Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Heather Mogel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Heather, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I pursued an artistic and creative career because I wanted to bring beauty to others and I wanted more than anything to help women feel beautiful. There is a difference between looking beautiful and actually feeling beautiful… and it has nothing to do with ones actual features. That was my initial motivation behind trying to be the best artist I could be.

However, I realized very quickly that I didn’t feel creative enough, I didn’t feel artistic enough. I almost left the industry more times than I can count. And as I was trying to navigate my way through feeling like I didn’t fit in to this uber artistic career, I realized that everyone is creative. Humans are creative, period. It doesn’t matter if you are a file clerk, a scientist, a school teacher, a landscaper, a front line chef, a programmer, a mechanic… we all bring creativity to our jobs and careers. And what do most people have in common? They don’t feel creative…. They don’t feel creative enough….

This is what truly inspired me in my career. When I realized I wasn’t alone in feeling like I wasn’t creative enough I knew I wanted to create a space where I could help stylists cultivate and own their creativity. I realized that teaching was my ultimate calling. I wanted to teach and share everything I had learned. And so, my business was born.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a stylist, hair stylist, hair dresser, cosmetologist… who knows what to call us anymore ( just not beautician!)! I have worked my entire career to become the best I could possibly be when it comes to my art. I was absolutely terrible at my craft when I first started. I just couldn’t figure it out.. and most days I ended my shift in frustration and even tears! I knew I had to figure this out if I was going to build a career out of doing hair!

Slowly I started looking at my art differently and worked at figuring out ways of approaching my craft from a very mathematical and scientific standpoint so that I could create amazing hair and then can recreate my work. Hair Stylists are one of the only artists who have to create art and then recreate that same art 8-12 weeks later!

As I listened to clients, one of their number one complaints was that they would find a stylist they loved and then when they’d go back for their next visit, their hair would come out totally different. I realized that there was a need in the market for creativity that was a little more structured and that could be re-created. This allowed me the freedom to be creative, tweak things to change up their look when they were ready, and do so without damaging their hair because I had written down their color history. My clientele loved it!

But that isn’t what I am most proud of! What I am most proud of is that in creating these systems for myself I was able to design a training program that would allow me to teach brand new stylists how to do amazing hair and build behind the chair quickly. It has been a 15 year journey but I am so excited to finally launch a digital training course to bring my method of doing hair to more new stylists and apprentices! It will be launching this summer and I am so stoked!!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, a great friend took me on a little road trip years ago and it was awesome! So I’d have to create a similar experience for my best friend!

We would probably start up in Ventura and visit their little downtown area, their little museum and of course the first Patagonia store! From there we would head down to the PCH with a stop in Santa Barbara. With no specific places in mind we would stroll up and down State Street and find a café for a quick snack, maybe even stay the night in one of the adorable boutique hotels!

Back on the road we’d head down PCH to Neptune’s Net in Malibu. It’s just fun! And definitely one of those places that everyone should try at least once!

Next stop might be Long Beach, Huntington Beach or Newport Beach. I’m always down for a typical touristy adventure so I’d probably force her to do a bay cruise or something…. I mean… who doesn’t want to see Shirly Temple’s house from the bay in Newport, amiright?

From there it would be tough to decide… do we head down to San Diego and hit up all the fun beach towns? Or do we head inland and drive through Oak Glen and head in to Palm Springs?

Depending on the time of year I’m thinking Oak Glen! Enjoy the beautiful, fresh mountain air, enjoy a stone fire pizza at Wilshire’s Apple Shed (there is a super cool cigar shop located in there, too), grab a coffee and head to Palm Springs to enjoy an amazing lunch at Lulu’s.

We’d finish out our trip by staying in a hotel in Palm Springs, maybe The Renaissance, and finish our last day with some amazing spa treatments and lounging by the pool…. Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Absolutely! All of our success comes from standing on the shoulders of others. Whether its learning from their successes or their failures! I’m a Christian so I believe my ultimate support comes from above. Next is my husband… he is my number one supporter. And of course every stylist I’ve ever trained under and every person I’ve ever worked with has helped me get to where I am today. I am beyond grateful for all of the above!

Website: www.crehairstudio.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crehairstudio/

Image Credits
Colleen K Photography https://colleen-k.com/ https://www.instagram.com/colleenkphotography/