Today we’d like to introduce you to Marques Scholten.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I jokingly tell people that the hair business chose me not the other way around. When I was younger & in high school the thought of becoming a professional hair colorist never entered my mind.
I was lucky enough to be invited to a high end salon in Grand Rapids Mi, by some friends. I immediately felt the connection & felt like I belonged in that environment.
The energy, the music, the people. It all had such a strong impression on me. A career that I could be creative, meet new people, and a future to grow as exactly what i needed. I immediately enrolled in cosmetology school.
When I started school I had no actual hair experience, but I still had big dreams & high expectations of where this would take me in the future. I would tell everyone who would listen, that one day I will be a color specialist & I would work for a big hair brand.
It didn’t take long for me to realize I had a natural talent when it came to hair color.
After school I tried a few different salons around Grand Rapids, I enjoyed the experience of each salon but wasn’t nearly as successful as I had hoped. So I ended up being a barber at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans for the time being.
I realized I needed to get a lot better & had a lot more to learn.
Which is what drove me to move to Florida. When I was in school, I had really taken interest in TONI&GUY. The were the best in education, they had such a cool energy, they were leaders in the industry. I saw them as rock stars doing hair.
I moved to Florida to work at their Tampa salon. I started as an assistant & learned in their education program.
After a couple years, I had become very successful & got an opportunity to help as an educator.
Later I moved to Ft Lauderdale to work for a new Ted Gibson Salon that would be opening at the W Hotel. I quickly became to color educator there and gained a lot of experience working with high fashion & learning a lot of the business & set the foundation for my upcoming partnership with L’Oréal.
Unfortunately the salon closed, so I tried a few different salons & had a hard time finding the place where I belonged. Eventually I ended up in Boca Raton & it has been everything I could have asked & more.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The process was anything but easy. I was 1200 miles from any family or friends, had no clientele, serious financial hardship, and nothing to fall back on. In the beginning I probably failed many more times than I succeeded.
But every win, I gained confidence, & every failure showed me how much better I could yet become.
Looking back on it, as difficult as it was I’m glad I went through the experience. It made me mentally stronger, gave me thicker skin & made me appreciate the journey.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a luxury hair color specialist at Gramercy Salon in Boca Raton Florida. My specialties include blonding, grey blending/coverage, color correction & really anything hair color related. At Gramercy, I also am Director of Color education, where I mentor & educate newer stylists on techniques, products & theory.
I also am a L’Oréal Professionnel Artist, I travel around Florida & other parts of the country teaching hair color techniques & L’Oréal products. In that role I also work at hair shows, marketing events and many other things.
But what I am most proud of is working with the younger generation of stylists/colorists. Watching young people grow & learn is one of the most rewarding part of the business.
What sets me apart from others is my attention to detail & dedication to learning & getting better consistently. As much as I’ve learned over the years, I still feel I can keep improving.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
The only thing consistent in the hair business is change. Things are constantly changing when it comes to trends, techniques, products etc. I don’t necessarily try to stay of trends or changes, but what I do try to stay adaptable to changes. When you get stuck in the same ways & mindset it’s very hard to change that, so I always try to be open minded & learn.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @marquesthecolorist
