In this episode, Ash Fortis, owner of XO Hair Lab and Director of Education at Sharkfin Shears, shares how health challenges, financial pressure, sweat equity, and major business setbacks shaped the leader she became.
From navigating a team walkout during COVID to rebuilding stronger, Ash breaks down the hard side of heart-led leadership: protecting the culture, making difficult decisions, and creating a salon team that can actually last.
🚨🎤Ash will be joining the Owner’s Panel at our upcoming Conference, Beauty Business Brunch 2026 in DC, where we’ll go deeper on leadership, management, growth, and what it really takes to build a strong beauty business from the inside.
👀Learn more and join us: https://www.hairdresserstrong.com/beauty-business-brunch
Key Takeaways:
🔅Build proof before you ask for opportunity - Ash used a portfolio, before-and-afters, and professionalism early in her career to show salons what she could do before she had years of experience.
🔅Sweat equity is part of building something real - Ash’s experience with education, brand building, and ownership shows that many opportunities require time, investment, and unpaid effort before the payoff comes.
🔅Leadership requires hard decisions - Heart-led owners still have to protect the business, the brand, and the team, even when the decision is emotionally difficult.
🔅Culture cannot survive constant exceptions - If one person is repeatedly violating the standards, it affects the rest of the team and weakens the trust in leadership.
🔅Being respected matters more than being liked - Ash talks about having to shift away from needing validation and into stronger leadership, especially when making decisions that protect the salon.
🔅Know your numbers before generosity breaks the business - Supporting your team matters, but Ash also had to adjust commissions, pricing, and financial systems so the salon could remain sustainable.
🔅Recruitment should never stop - Strong owners are always building relationships, hosting education, creating visibility, and staying connected to people who may align with the brand later.
RELATED LINKS
📸Follow Ash on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/xostylistxo/
📸Follow XO Hair Lab on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/xohairlab/
🌱Check out Ash's book "Hair to Dye for" - https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Hair-to-Dye-For/Ash-Fortis/9781681885049
🚨🎤Ash will be joining the Owner’s Panel at our upcoming Conference, Beauty Business Brunch 2026 in DC, where we’ll go deeper on leadership, management, growth, and what it really takes to build a strong beauty business from the inside.
👀Learn more and join us: https://www.hairdresserstrong.com/beauty-business-brunch
🔑BBB is a full-day conference for stylists, barbers, owners, educators, and students who want more than just being busy. We're talking sustainability, money, professionalism, and what it actually takes to build something that lasts.
The Hairdresser Strong Show is all about Salon Owners, Rising Stylists, and Seasoned Stylists sharing their experiences, successes, failures, and advice to inform, educate, and empower their Fellow Hairdresser. We won’t stop until we are all: Hairdresser Strong.
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The views and opinions of our guests are theirs and important to hear. Each guest's views and opinions are their own and we aim to bring you diverse perspectives, career paths and thoughts about the craft and industry so you can become Hairdresser Strong! They do not necessarily reflect the positions of HairdresserStrong.com
