How Michelle Golden Opened a Salon for $35K—and Built a Waitlist in 90 Days

In this deeply inspiring episode, I’m joined by longtime Stylist Soul Tribe member and salon owner, Michelle Golden, for a powerful conversation about grit, growth, and building a beauty business with heart.

Michelle takes us behind the scenes of her journey—from being a shy, self-doubting booth renter to launching Salon Au in Ankeny, Iowa, with only $35K… and filling all five chairs within three months.

We go deep. Michelle opens up about:

• The childhood trauma that shaped her resilience
• What it really took to fund her salon (including a $10K client donation!)
• Why she refuses to operate like a traditional landlord-style booth rental owner
• Her unique “Golden Experience” brand philosophy
• The launch of her Golden Ticket marketing campaign inspired by Taylor Swift
• And how she’s leading with transparency, community, and pure gold-level service

Whether you're dreaming of salon ownership or reinventing your culture, this episode will light a fire in you.

📲 Connect with Michelle:

Instagram: @michellegoldenhairstylist
Salon: Salon Au, Ankeny, IA
Want to reach out or ask questions? Slide into her DMs—she’s an open book!

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Share it with a stylist friend or tag us on Instagram @stylistsoultribe!

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Transcript

Audio Only - All Participants: 1:13

Welcome back to Stylist Soul Tribe Conversations. I am joined today by Michelle Golden. Michelle and I met many, many moons ago, through Thriver Society. We were both pretty, early on members when it was in a smaller group, and she joined Stylist Soul Tribe. I think it was in like 2021. yeah. end of 2020, early 2021. So it's been many years. so Michelle, when I met her was, a stylist, booth renter. Boother, suite Booth, renter booth. she is now a salon owner and it's been really cool watching her journey and watching her navigate all of this over the last however many years. I was just thinking about podcast episodes and who I could have, Anna, I was like, I should really have Michelle come on and kind of tell her story. Talk about, you know, this. Chapter that you're in right now, the lessons you've learned, all the things. So we were chatting before, I hit record and just kind of talking about what we were gonna go over, and she said, how deep do you wanna go? And I said, the more depth, the better. So I think this is gonna be a pretty deep one. I think we're gonna dive into the deep end together. So yeah, Michelle, go ahead and do briefly introduce yourself and then let's kind of start to tell the story. I'll interrupt, I'll ask you questions and we'll just kind of jam. Okay. Perfect. Awesome. I'm Michelle Golden. I am a hairstylist and now salon owner, of Salon Au here in Ankeny, Iowa. this is my 19th year of being a hairstylist. I have an almost 22-year-old and I've been married almost 25 years. Wow. So, a lot has changed, even just in my career. I believe it was 2014. Yeah. Booth rented for a really long time, and then I went to a suite. And then as of May 1st, well, I guess, let me take it back. Actually, as of February 19th, I became a salon owner because that's when I signed my lease. Fair to say, covered all of the bases that this industry has to offer. You are a booth rental salon, so I guess maybe not a commission salon owner. That's the one thing you haven't dipped your toes in yet, but like, wow. Talk about a plethora of experience and things that you, have been through in this industry. So yeah, take us back to, even prior to doing hair.'cause when you said how deep do you wanna go? You kind of said, well, my story is this, kind of talked about the pain points, those like pivotal moments that really kind of shape who we are. So let's go back. To those. Yeah. Awesome. Okay. if you don't know who I am or haven't been around me and you don't know my story, I was always the shy little girl who was scared of her shadow. Mm. I was always told from family members, teachers, just people in my everyday life back when I was a youngster that I was never gonna make it. Hmm. I wasn't worth it. At one point I was being told I wish I was never born. Hmm. So that kind of fueled my fire. Yeah. to do you remember? Okay. So thinking back, you're a young kid, you're very timid, you're very shy, you're very nervous. When did that switch from like nerves and self-doubt to, you know, what? Football, like when did you, like, when did you gain consciousness to think like, oh no, I'm actually going to start using that as fuel. What age was that? gosh, I don't remember exact age, but it was probably, I would say like. Out of just outta high school. So 18, 19, just like finding yourself becoming a human in this world. Yeah. What is this going to be like? And that was'cause I met my now husband to where it was, he was very supportive. And so he helped you find your voice. Yeah. Yep. Loved. But also too, I did. So long story short, I was 14 and I was sexually assaulted by a family member. And back then when all that happened, I realized that okay, I'm the only one that can protect myself. I'm the only one that can, I am trying to think of the word and now I'm drawing a blank. It's okay. Yeah. But protect yourself. Yeah. that no one's gonna, you know, you can't really trust maybe the people around you. Yep, yep. I know just the damage that comes with that as well. I mean, the trauma response that comes with that. What would you, did that turn into like anger? Like what would you say that turned into when that kind of shifted from this like shy, timid to like. More like I'm gonna prove to you that I'm worth more. Yeah. Interesting. So, and I would say probably even from that point on, you tell me I can't do something, I'm gonna turn around and show you I can. So then as I got older and more people were like, oh, you suck. You're never gonna make it. I'm like. Like even opening the salon, I had some people come out of the woodwork and go, Ugh, why? Why are you doing this? You're never gonna make it. You're gonna close in six months. I'm like, we just got voted top five of the best salon. And we haven't even, but we've only been opened three months. So I'm like, watch me, watch me. You're very much like the haters are my motivators, kind of. Yes, exactly. Yep. It's one of those things like, and a lot of people like, oh, don't tell her no.'cause she'll turn around and do it. And I'll show you how I did it. Yeah. And that's like with these girls that I am helping support, even though we are booth rent, like I told them at our first meeting, like. You can ask me anything. I've been there. you're the salon owner, you're the leader. when you're booth rental, sometimes you think of almost like a landlord, but you're also a mentor to these girls that are in your space. that's the whole package deal that comes with this. Okay, so let's go back to when did you get your cosmetology license? What was that journey? How did you know that this was like the space for you and. Tell me how that all kind of Yeah. Awesome. Came to life. okay. So I went to school, may of 2006. Mm-hmm. Graduated in oh seven. Okay. when I first went to the school, it was, the Salon Professional Academy. Yep. tpo? Yes. And I was ju Tpo. Mm-hmm. I was only supposed to go for a meeting and I was actually gonna go for massage therapy. Okay. And the lady that I had the meeting with was like, oh, we're, you know, that's not gonna be open for another year, but we're open a really small cosmetology class. There's only gonna be 10 of you. Would you be interested? I'm like. Blonde box bobbed hair. Mm-hmm. My mom used to cut my hair, you know, like I used to go to Great Clips. I knew nothing about hair, all the things. And I was like, sure, why not? Amber was, isn't that crazy? The butterfly effect of that. So crazy. Like one person says something and that just changes everything. Yeah. And Amber was maybe three going on four at that time. Yeah. And I was like, okay, I want something that I could still be a mom. But have a career, have in this work. And so I get home. I wasn't supposed to sign anything. I was just supposed to go to a meeting. Mm-hmm. And my husband's like, how'd it go? And I'm like, I start class in May, and I, it's not even for massage, it's for hair. Yeah. Wow. And so after that I was like, I really honestly, like, I try to think back to my Cosmo Day like school days and I don't. This sounds weird. I don't remember a lot. You know, in 19 years, I'm like, that was just a small glimpse, a glimpse of my life. Yeah. so yeah. So graduating seven. When you think back, do you remember like enjoying it and being like, oh yeah, this is definitely for me, or did that come later? Yes and no. Okay. I was one of the older ones in that class. Yeah. So I didn't necessarily. feel like I fit in with them. Okay. You were just there to get your degree? Yeah. I had a kid. Yeah, I had a kid. but I also had that small anxiety of, well, I've been told my whole life I'm never gonna make it. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And so I'm not gonna get close to these people. Because I don't wanna get burnt. And so I kind of put up that wall and I just like kind of focused. School, just get through school. I want a career. I want something that I can still be a mom and Yeah. it was one of those things like, you know, it was just a moment to get me where I'm at now. Totally. Totally. And you said you started as commission, went to Booth Renter Rental, went to your suite. Any like major moments that you think of during that time that were really shaped you? When I moved from Ames to Ankeny, I lost half my clientele'cause it's 30 minutes. And that's when I, and that was what year? 2018. Okay. It was right after I joined Thrivers.'cause I was being bullied in the, that salon that I was at, I was chair rental there. And I was just like, I can't do this. I'm not in high school anymore. This is stupid. This is. Not what I thought it was going to be. How can I shift? Yeah. And then the suites in Iowa started to ramp up. that's when I moved. I was like, you know what? I'm just gonna put my faith that I can do this. I always tell myself, failure is not an option. So what do I need to do? And with knowing what Thrivers did for me and Ames, it took me three months to. build that right back up. incredible love. And then from 2018 to just now, you were in the same spot? Yes. Amazing. So when did you start to feel discontent within your suite? When did you know you wanted to grow beyond that? How did the opportunity present itself for the salon? Kind of tell that story. Yep. so I didn't actually, I still loved my suite very much. Okay. Yeah. I took on an apprentice. Mm-hmm. So Iowa is, associated with, and I'm gonna totally screw up the name. Okay. Ashanti Apprentice program. Okay. I think is how you pronounce it. But, so Shay, who worked down the hall for me, who is a licensed aesthetician mm-hmm. We were having lunch together'cause we kind of bonded, when she moved into the suites that where I were at. She joined Thrivers and so that's kind of how we connected and yeah. she would help me with makeup for weddings and we were eating lunch one day and she's like, I think I wanna go back to school and do hair. Yeah. Because I wanna do the head spas and in order to do the head spa, I need a cosmetology license. And I went, hold on. We could do this under me with this apprentice. Four, and it takes a half a year and a half to two years. Amazing. And it's on the job training. She still has her bookwork. I pay her as an employee. So an hourly employee. And then, so we started that. We couldn't figure out who to talk to. We finally got it figured out, Like a week before Thanksgiving. and then with all that, we were like, okay, we're in our holiday rush. Can we wait till January? So this is kind of how this. Whole salon thing kind of happened. Okay. So January I took her on as an apprentice. We started that. It was going so good in my a hundred square foot room. Yeah. It was her, me, and my client. And I was like, I. We're running out of room. It's tight. Yeah. Really fast. For what we wanted to do. And so it started like, Hmm, I wonder if I could do this. Like, could I find a space that was already a salon? That wouldn't cost. You know, a hundred to$500,000 to do. and so I started looking, I looked at a couple places and then I came here and I was like, instantly seeing all these different signs. How did you find the space that you're in? it, he had posted it on Facebook marketplace and Amazing. And how far was it from where you were? It's four minutes. Incredible. I mean, you're like, I, that you just can't beat that. And we actually were closer to Des Moines in our old place than we are, than we were in Ankeny. And now we're like in the heart of Ankeny. Wow. So, so yeah, I, so I took her on as an apprentice in January. February 19th, I signed the lease for this place. We opened May 1st, and it was fast. So you didn't have to do a ton of renovations because it was already a salon. Yep, yep. Yeah. So the plumbing, the electrical was here. It had been sitting open for a while. Mm-hmm. So I did negotiate a couple things with the landlords, like, Hey, like this is not my first rodeo. Mm-hmm. Can we work this, this, and this? So I think, tell us the details of that. How long was it sitting like available that nobody was biting on? Five years. I thought you gonna say five months. Whoa. Okay, so you're like, there's definitely negotiation power here. They haven't had anyone in here. Nobody is interested you. Wow. Well, it was a complete empty space. When I came, could've had the plumbing. Well, yeah. I could've had the plumbing. Yep. Okay. But, but anyone could've gone in in the last five years. Yeah. Yep. Was it overpriced? Why do you think that they Not really. I don't. so I think what happened,'cause the girl that was here before in 2020, I think she had moved. Mm-hmm. Or stopped doing here. I'm not sure. Yeah. 2020 probably shut her down maybe. Yeah. Who knows? Uhhuh. That's what I'm thinking. I don't know for sure. So, yeah. and I just think. That nobody could get in and Oh,'cause COVID did a lot of damage. So, and not just like with the health, but like business wise, a lot of people were scared. I was scared. Mm-hmm. Totally. Yeah. For was, and it took a long time to, to recover and you're Midwest like me, so I don't think we were quite as affected the same way that like California and Canada and things like that were, but yeah. Wild. Okay. So it was sitting open for five years, so you're like, I definitely have negotiation powers. Share as much as you feel comfortable with how you negotiated that? Yeah. so let's see. I negotiated, they pulled the carpet out of Shay's facial room.'cause I had asked, I'm like, if I do this, are you coming with me? Mm-hmm. And then, yeah, for sure if I do this apprentice thing, you're not gonna leave me later on. Right? Mm-hmm. Yep. And we both had an agreement. And so, so is she an employee of yours then? She's an employee, yes. Okay. Okay. And she's gonna stay an employee or once she graduates, she'll rent. Maybe we ha we're, we're talking about it. it kind of depends on space-wise and how mm-hmm. And our negotiation with her and I with the other room.'cause we, so we have two spa rooms. Okay. She's taking one, the other one still has carpet. Okay. and so. I told her, I was like, we could pull that carpet and you could do your hair in one and your facials in the other. Mm-hmm. But we need to talk pricing wise, you know? Yeah. So we still have a time to do that To where, you know, it's not gonna happen tomorrow by any means. For sure. For sure. with the carpet. putting new floor in, because it had sat open for a long time. I had them look at my water heater, the furnace, the air conditioner, the plumbing, and there was one other thing, and now I can't remember. Anyway, so I got all the major things that could have went wrong. Fixed. Okay. and then, which is pretty standard, did you negotiate cost quite a bit or not really? I was able to get 50%, of the rent for the first four months off. Okay. Okay. And then they didn't charge me until May. So like a grace period? Yeah. Cool, cool. and then, so yeah, all I had to do is just come in. I did a deep, deep clean. Yeah. Because you can only imagine the spiderwebs and stuff. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. and then I just repainted two of the walls, painted Cha's room, painted the shampoo area, and then just by the decor, the stations, all the stuff. I have. Tried to open a salon once before. Mm-hmm. this was pre pandemic. And I'm glad I got out of that because then the COVID happened. that was kind of like, do you wanna talk about that story a little bit or it's not really worth it? not really. it was a full on build out, like from floor to ceiling, like brand new. How far did you get into it? I almost signed the lease for them. Okay. But their realtor was like, ghosting me. Okay. And so I was like, I don't know if you remember this, it's been a while. Yeah. I kind of talked about it in s Soul Tribe, but Uhhuh, I was like, I need to know what's happening. And she just would never answer me. So I was like, okay, bye. I do remember that. But now you're looking back and you're like, that was such a blessing. Like it was annoying at the time, but you didn't push it and it was such a blessing. Yeah. And that was gonna cost me 500 grand. I. Yeah. From complete build out and you like got pre-approved for all of that and all of it. Are you comfortable sharing? You don't have to. We can cut this part out Absolutely. What this salon is, because I think a lot of people like to know that. Yeah. so I'm, I'm very thankful, grateful, blessed, all the things, and I'll tell you why here in a second. Mm-hmm. I've only spent maybe 35,000 incredible. And I had a client, a couple clients who donated some money towards it. Mm-hmm. And then I had one client, and her name is Nikki. I'm sure she won't care that I've mentioned it. Yeah. But yeah, I wanna shout her out to Good talk about her. Yeah. she donated 10 grand. Wow. And so, I mean, no strings attached. What did that look like? No strings. Because I knew you were looking for investors, but I didn't know exactly how that all happened. Yeah. So what I had come up with, I came up with like memberships. Mm-hmm. because it. That first time I wanted to do a pre pandemic. I had a lot of clients who like, I wanna help you, I wanna help you. And I was like, mm-hmm. I don't wanna take your money. That's weird. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So then I was like, with this, I was like, okay, I still have them wanting to help me. How can I make it beneficial for both of us so I don't Yeah. And tons of businesses, good investors and like, you just have to do it appropriately. Yeah, exactly. So I came up with a couple membership, like basically it was like. If you donated$500, you got an extra a hundred dollars credit. Kind of thing. And then there was one 600 in services. Yeah. I see. Okay, cool. Yeah. and then there was one that like if you donated a thousand, you get like priority booking for like six months, a retail package. how'd you present that to people? I just made a graphic and I posted it, sent it through my email blast. I knew you did like an email asking for investors. Yep. And I think that, that is so creative. Yep. And so how many people did you end up having take you up on that? I had two do two big ones and four, like smaller amounts. Wow. Talk about the power of networking and having a community around you that's incredible. Exactly. Yep. That is incredible. And like a ghost to show of like, what's it her to ask like exactly the what she can get us. No. Wow. Exactly. Yep. So, wow, that's incredible. Yeah, and I feel very blessed that they support me and saw that vision. The little girl in my head's going. Wait, when's the season? Or some people turn to their family, maybe to help them do these big things or something. Yeah. That's really incredible. And yeah, for real, shout out to Nikki and whoever else that was because that's just amazing and, and beautiful. And it just really goes to show, again, the impact that I think the hair that us as hairstylists make on people. Absolutely. Like we don't realize. you get to a point and you realize that Like you get to a point where you are looking to invest, you know, and like as, an investor, she was probably more than happy to give that to you. Yeah. She's gonna spend 10 grand with you over the years. She has no doubt in her mind she's sitting on extra capital that helps things out with her, taxes and finances. I mean, talk about like a true angel investor. That's incredible. you're not giving up any, equity or anything in your business whatsoever? No, no. This just, they get, so, like Nikki gets free haircuts for, I think it's two years. I mean, what, but damn near maybe for life.'cause Nikki, yeah, she's got a short haircut. She takes me like 20 minutes. Incredible. Incredible. Yeah. I gave her a really good retail package. We are gonna do like a, a friend's day Where it's just her and her friends and me where we pamper them as much as I can. Yeah. I think that's gonna be in October, I think is when we decided. And then, There was something else. I can't remember. No, that's incredible booking. Like she, she gets to book out however many she wants. No, I can't help but ask, is this just kind of like, oh, we know each other, we trust each other. She was happy to give that outta the kindness of her heart, or was there like a contract involved with that? Did you have like lawyers look out, or not necessarily a contract? Nobody signed anything. Yeah. But I did have like my. Membership written out. And so like I handed that this is going to, and you have all intents to follow through with that. Yes, absolutely. I, but she was at the point where she was like, I would give you this even without all of that. She still, she still tipped me for her, for her haircuts. I love Nikki, so I know Nikki's amazing. Wow. You know, one of my favorite clients is named Nikki as well. That's really funny. There's something about them, Nikki. That's incredible. Yeah, she is awesome. Mine is as well. So yeah, shout out to all the Nikki. That's amazing. I think that made her feel really special too.'cause like when she came in. Like for her first I had made it. So she was the first haircut ever in the salon as she should be? Yeah, like before, before we even had opened. Like I had her come in days before. That's precious. so that way she could feel special. Oh, the weight of gratitude that you have. Exactly. Yep. Yep. Wow. So I know. Wow, wow, wow. It's crazy. So. How many chairs do you have again, Michelle? I have five. And then Shay's in the back room. And you are officially full, right? I am. Which is wild. Four people on a wait list. Wow. Okay. Let's talk about that. So I obviously know Maddie Maddie's, Dotie is also in SEO Tribe, and she just made the transition to Michelle Salon, and I remember she was so torn, like, one of my clients, don't follow me. Is this the right thing to do? Obviously the feels that come with leaving a place you've been at for years. So there's clearly something happening where people see your vision, they see your passion, they see the mission behind, so salon au. So I guess tell us a little bit about like how that vision came to life, what you think it is that makes you different and makes people drawn to you. How you filled your chairs that quickly and what this wait list situation looks like. Oh my gosh, what a dream. Oh, I know. It's so cra. It's. I still, I honestly, like I was telling Maddie the other day, I don't feel like this is real. I feel like I'm dreaming. I really do. Like, it hasn't, like it's kicked in, but it hasn't fully kicked in. Yeah. If that makes sense. So, So Solana U so if you don't know what the AU stands for mm-hmm. On the periodic table, AU stands for Gold. My last name being Golden. My studio was gold hair studio. So I just evolved. Yeah. Over time the logo is a square, so it looks like the periodic table. Well, with that, it goes into the golden experience. It's been my marketing thing for ever, probably since 2018 when I joined Drivers. that's kind of how it has all kind of shifted in that way. when I first decided to do this, obviously Shay was coming with me. I told Maddie right away. I was like, girl, you were hoping she would, yeah. I'll save you a chair, Uhhuh. because her and I are besties. Yeah. And she found me. And it's so funny because I think it's been, I think we've known each other four or five years. Yeah. Maybe. And she was just found me on social media and sent me a dm. I was like, girl, I see what you're doing. Tell me all the things and that's how we can, and so now incredible we're we go to classes together in and all the things. Incredible. Yeah. So I knew that she was gonna have to sit in that for, and and mentally prepared to decide. Well, and even like when she joined Soul Tribe, I won't say too much'cause she's not here, but like Yeah. She is very known that she was. Thinking about moving locations, like that's been something that's been on her heart for a while. Yeah. But it was where to go and where to move, and so that's why I remember being on a call when she was like, Michelle really wants me to come. I'm like. Dude, literally, what are you waiting for? Like, what are you doing? Like, it's a, could it, could the signs be more clear? but making a jump like that just feels so scary. It's hard, it's fair. And she's 30 minutes from us. Yeah. So I totally get it. I went from means to Ankeny and lost half my clientele. yeah. but she was talking about how many new guest requests she's getting at this new location. Like she's gonna be just fine. Yep. So, so my vision, I. For the salon.'cause I never really wanted employ a true employee. Yeah. Now with Shay it's different because I know it's not, it's only like a year, year and a a half to two. all the while we can check in the growth path can lead to Hering or again, we'll see what happens. It could not. But you didn't wanna jump in head first and be like, now I'm gonna take care of all of you as your boss, as your employee, as your entity. And like Yeah. So for, for me it was, I wanted a safe space for my younger self. Yeah. When you were younger? My younger hair self. Mm-hmm. being bullied by other stylists and the owners not. Stepping up to support to create a culture that was safe to create a culture. Yep. Exactly. Mm-hmm. So, I have an open door policy. I don't have a contract. It's every 30 days. As long as it pay your rent, please. Yeah. If you feel like it's time to go, I wish you nothing but the best. I'll be sad that you're leaving or that it didn't work out. Yeah. But it also gives the opportunity to where, okay, this is not working. Mm-hmm. We've talked about X, Y, and Z multiple times. Yeah, I think it's best we part ways, but I wish you the best. But then you can also know that everyone there wants to be there or else they wouldn't be. No one's waiting for the six months for their contract to come out. You are not over here like, oh, I have to follow these rules before I can terminate their lease. Everyone genuinely wants to be right where their feet are. And that's a good feeling. Yep, exactly. Even Shay, like she, we've talked about her expanding. Like, what if she wants to open her own giant spa? I'm like, okay, tell me what, how I can help you. How can I support you in that? Yeah. Yeah. So love, love, love, love. Anything else that you can think of that makes you guys different? And I know that's like a weird question and like puts you on the spot, so it's okay if nothing comes up. But like obviously you're there to protect your past self. What else would you say it is that is really drawing these stylists to your new space? Should we ask a stylist that's right here? Oh my God. Who is it? Come here. This is my girl. This is Hailey. What makes us different? We're podcasting. It's okay. If you don't have an answer, we can cut it out, but I'd love to know, put you on the spot. do you feel supported? Oh, yes, I do. Bang it. She supported me more than. Somebody else. I know I got you. Alright. Enough said, enough said. No, but honestly, even the amenities, and I know you were like, I, I, I mean it is deeper and it is about the mission, the vision, but I know MAD was saying that too. And I, being another Midwest salon, just kind of not a big. To not a big city, kind of a small town. The bar is very low in those Midwest towns. It really is. So like while to the industry as a whole, warm towels or massage chairs or all these little extra bells and whistles that you have in the Midwest, in a small town in the middle of Illinois or Iowa, that really is setting the bar very high. Yep. and it's not even so much like our amenities. It's like I still do my job form for new clients. And I'm asking very specific questions. and I even say at the top, I understand this is very overwhelming. This is probably not something that you've normally done. It helps me, but this is what makes us different. Helps me. Yeah. It helps me make it so you feel seen, heard and loved. I can't tell you how many times I've had a new client that like, oh, I had a picture and this is what I wanted, but this is what I got. And she didn't listen to me. Or there was a miscommunication somewhere. I've had a new client a couple weeks ago, bless her heart. She almost started crying'cause she, and her first words out of her mouth when I turned her to the mirror was, I feel like myself again. And I was just like. Like I have small snack now. I love that. just that I was, I was able to get what she needed before she even sat in my chair. So I know before she leaves out that door that she's gonna feel like herself. Hell yeah. Yeah. And that's what kind of that golden experience goes into is it's not just about pretty hair. It's not just about telling us, you know, you had a bad day. It's. Everything all together. Mm-hmm. And just the little things that kind of help bring it all together, if that makes sense. Yeah, totally. The customer journey. The customer experience. Yeah. It sounds like it's just as much about the stylist as it is about the client and the customer. I know on our last Soul Tribe Call, I got so lit up and excited. We were even just talking about how to like play on that through marketing and I don't know if you're doing any of that yet. We don't have to talk about that yet if it's not, but like just the creativity that I. Feel buzzing out of you. Oh my God. I was just like, I need you to come on and share. Yeah. if you're ready to talk about it. I got so excited. Last call. Yes. Okay. So, crystal, in My Soul Tribe six group. Mm-hmm. I can't remember if she, it was either during, like one of our Marco Polos, she said she saw. Somebody ask chat. JBT. How can I make my business like the Taylor Swift effect? And I was like. Yeah, so break that down. What does that mean? Chat, GBG said what? The Taylor Swift effect is the Easter eggs. The fan base, the culture, the you are the part of the community. Yes. and so I kind of gave it some. Specific information it needs to do with the Golden experience. I had also been following another social media influencer. His name is Tim, and I cannot remember his last name, but it's, if you just search Love Your Journey, he'll pop up. Okay. And he goes to all different places around the world, and the first person that finds him almost like a scavenger hunt, gets a, a watch that he, his brand. And I was like, okay, how can I pull all this together? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And I had already said that in chat GBT. So then when I did the Taylor Swift effect, I was like, how can we incorporate this? Yeah. Well, with my last name being Golden, hence the Golden Experience Series AKA search for the Golden Ticket Love. So tomorrow is the first day. Amazing. I've already done two clues. The third clue goes out today. The first, ticket will be me with it. They have to come find me and they need to say, what are the clues? Yeah. oh gosh. They're on my social, on my Instagram stories. Just like a gist. Is it like, like are you, where are you? I was gonna say, you can't say where you're gonna be, but this isn't gonna come out for a few weeks, so you can Okay. The clues are like, you have to go to, like, I like if I was gonna be at a coffee shop, you know, smells and beans and something. Yeah. Like what are the clues? Yeah. Kind of vibe. so like, it's close to the salon, and she's sitting next to her favorite. Smelling, blah, blah, like, okay. And t helped me. Yeah. so obviously yeah, it's, it's a coffee shop, so, okay. Love, because this isn't coming out for a while, Uhhuh. Yeah. and it's very close to the salon, so I figured I'll just go sit. I'm gonna have. I have a tablet and then my phone, I'm gonna have Facebook and Instagram lives going love. See if somebody shows up, I'll have the ticket. I'll probably talk a little bit, just be like, come find me, wear me, know that kind of thing. and you're gonna have a golden ticket then. That's like Willy Wonka style kind of thing too. Like if you find Michelle and you play along with the scavenger hunt. Yeah. What do they get if they get the golden ticket? Yeah, so on the ticket there are five, I have 10 of'em that I'm gonna do. Okay. Hopefully by the end of the year, my goal is to be two a month. Love. my original idea was to do also small businesses, like hide it in a small business somewhere. Okay. So it's kind of been like a hit and miss. Yeah. I can hide it in a park somewhere. Totally. And if they find it, then they can bring it in, so on the Golden Tickets, it's anywhere from a service. Shay's gonna do a facial I have a retail package, the chair massage that we have. and then there's one more. they get a special price. one of my branded candles. Cool. Nothing major. we have retail, we have service, we have amenities, we have all sorts of different things. Yep. And then they also get like a, I got these gold swag bags, from Amazon. and they're all pure gold. And I'm gonna have a bunch of goodies in that. So when they come into the salon, they'll get that swag bag. Amazing. All that stuff. Fun. Except for maybe tomorrow's, since I'm doing it myself, I'll do that one with it with the golden ticket, so, it's been so fun just watching you be inspired and like hearing your team just ooze about how good it is. and I just wanted to like capture this moment in time so you can come back to it. You've been open for three months, you're fully staffed, your chairs are full. You have a wait list, almost like double the capacity of your current salon. Like you have a hefty wait list. Yeah. Do you have any, is it too soon to say like what the future looks like or No? I mean, I don't know. You never know what the future could happen. Yeah. We might like, let's go bigger. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. It does feel a little too soon to say you're just kind of riding the high of this moment right now. I love, I'm so happy to hear that. I'm so proud of you. Thank you. It's so fun to watch and I know, I mean, we obviously get to check in monthly with our soul tribe calls, but I feel like from you selling your house to your daughter going off to school, to all the things happening in your life, I just wanna say I'm so genuinely amazed by you, and the way that you just. Continue to keep going. Like you said, failure is not an option. You're just gonna keep doing it. I appreciate you opening up and sharing the deeper backstory, especially like the really, really vulnerable parts. I know the power in like telling your story and sharing that. So yeah, I hope that this inspires someone or helps someone listening today and being vulnerable and just sharing like the numbers, how you did it.'cause there's so many people and you know when you thought like one day I'd love to open a salon, it's like. How do we even do that? Like you said, a full build out, it's gonna be 500 thou, half a million dollars. Where? Where do we even begin? It just took a lot of leapfrog steps Yes. To get there, you know? Exactly. Yep. It's really freaking cool. Yeah. Awesome. Okay, any final thoughts before we wrap up, Michelle? If anybody needs questions answered like how I did it. Shoot me a message. Absolutely, yep. I'm an open book human. Send me a message on Instagram, let's talk. I would love to support you. So I'll have all the information, in the show notes of how to get to in touch with Michelle. Awesome. Thank you, friend. Thank you guys so much for listening. Like I said, everything will be in the show notes and I will talk to you all next week. Bye bye.