We recently had the chance to connect with Rebekah Ketcham and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Rebekah , thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What are you being called to do now, that you may have been afraid of before?
I am being called to change my career. I’ve been a hairdresser since I was basically a child (18) and now in my thirties, I feel something akin to the overwhelm many college graduates must experience. What now? I’ve built a clientele and salon in Miami for eight years and feel proud but I want something different. Finally after years of agonizing how to not only pivot but also offer more value in the beauty industry I’ve discovered a new path- Hairitual. The hair industry lacks a compilation of knowledge of what it means to truly take care of your hair. After losing around 50% of my own coveted hair after a health scare and humbly having to grow it back, I realized a daunting truth… I had no idea why it was happening, how to stop it, who to talk to or how to grow it back even though I’d been a hairdresser for a decade already at that point. Hairitual is a resource for hair health. With hair shedding and loss reportedly on the rise, we need solutions. Hairitual offers education and consulting on how to grow, keep and maintain the best hair of your life. I’ve been afraid to create this for many reasons but the demand is high and this is my opportunity to change my life and impact others positively on a bigger scale.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Rebekah Ketcham and I’m from Gainesville, Florida and I have been in Miami since 2016. I started doing hair in 2011 because I love making people feel good and had a talent for beauty since high school. I studied business in college while working in salons and knew I wanted to start my own. In 2017 I opened Full Moon Salon here in Miami and have been tending to beloved clients ever since. After falling ill and shedding over 50% of my own hair in 2021 I had an awakening that there was a serious problem in the hair industry. We are educated and skilled in making hair look good but we generally have no idea how to actually grow the hair, maintain the scalp or truly keep the hair healthy. After years now of research, applications on my clients behind the chair and growing my own back (thicker than before) I’m creating a resource for people to heal their hair from the inside out. I’m currently writing a course that can also be formatted into a book about growing the best hair of your life. I also offer in person and virtual consultations to customize a plan to take optimal care of your own hair. I’m committed to learning as much as I possibly can from a scientific approach combined with my 15 years of experience behind the chair. Hence- Hairitual our tagline is “It can always get better…”
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
The earliest memory I have of feeling powerful has to do with hair. My eighth grade social was my first time styling my hair on my own. I had a Mary Kate and Ashley curling iron that had this unique feature that helped guide how you twist the hair around the iron. I sat at my vanity I still use to this day and fiddled with the iron until my long blond hair had cohesive shape. Our family friend that worked for Mary Kay (extremely popular makeup at the time) came over and applied a simple, appropriate look for a teenager on my face. I put on this silver Y2K look and that is my first memory of feeling beautiful. It makes me tear up as I write because something so simple was so powerful and impacted the trajectory of my life profoundly. From then on I used that iron on myself, my mom and many friends until it rusted and shorted out.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
After getting my cosmetology license at 19, I didn’t want to take the typical apprentice route. Instead of learning under a master stylist and earning my keep in a salon I vehemently wanted to be “thrown to the wolves” so to speak. I started in a little old lady mall salon in North Carolina. The clientele largely consisted of retired women who needed perms and the old fashioned “roller set” and a small stream of college kids as the pricing was affordable. I was decades younger than my colleagues. They probably found it strange a 20 year old wanted to be in this environment but I loved learning from them and just getting to have my hands in hair. I worked there a year and confidently built myself a solid and consistent clientele. Toward the year mark working there, I was applying color one day and my hands started trembling uncontrollably. I was so, quite literally shaken that I had to have another stylist finish the appointment. Thus began a several year struggle with anxiety that almost got me to put away the shears for good. There is much to this story when it comes to mental and physical health but the point is- around 23 I conquered my anxiety completely, persevered in my pursuit with hairdressing and became skilled despite my fear. Being in your early twenties is an agonizing time that I don’t think get talked about enough.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
This is controversial but I believe people are entirely too obsessed with work and money. I have been victim of this mindset for years. Garnering clients in the early days of Full Moon Salon, there wasn’t a job I would turn down. I’m glad to have strong work ethic but the grind can hinder your ability to live a balanced joyful life. Time does inevitably pass and it’s so easy to prioritize the virtue of productivity over everything else. It is so glorified in America to be a hustler. Steve Jobs wrote reflecting on his life nearing his death, that he had nothing to be “happy about except work.” He suggested focusing more on cherishing family, friend, your spouse and being kind to yourself. I myself have experienced much loss and tragedy in my family and feel grateful now for the lessons despite missing my lost loved ones indescribably. I want to be exceptionally successful still but learn to dance with work ethic and truly enjoying life in beautiful harmony.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
If I knew I had 10 years left, I would speak my truth. I would do what I wanted and trust that good fortune is abundant. Most importantly, I would never miss an opportunity to tell someone the beauty I see in them and share laughter…
Contact Info:
- Website: https://hairitual.com
- Instagram: hairitual.miami
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hairitual/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@HAIRITUAL.REBEKAH
Image Credits
Karli Evans
All Seeing Media
@allseeingmedia
