Soraya Villalpando Hair Stylist and Colorist Albuquerque, 87106, United States [email protected] · (505) 555-2132
17 September 2026
Ms. Adaeze Okafor Owner Silverbell Salon & Color Bar Albuquerque, United States
Application for the open rental station, Silverbell Salon & Color Bar
Dear Ms. Okafor,
I am applying for the open station at Silverbell Salon & Color Bar, and I would be renting rather than working on commission. I hold a New Mexico Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists cosmetology license, number NM-CS-118472, current through 2028, and I have been behind a chair for nine years, the last four of them paying my own station rent.
My book is 310 active guests, built from 90 over four years, and 62 percent of the new ones came by referral from existing guests rather than from advertising. Rebooking runs at 71 percent at the chair. Corrective color and balayage make up about half my service revenue at an average ticket of $210, and retail runs about $19 a ticket from my own shelf. I buy my own color and backbar, carry my own liability insurance, and file as self-employed, so the only thing I need from a salon is the station and a clean color bar.
I have watched your color work for a while and the reason I am asking about your station rather than one closer to home is the corrective work you post. Albuquerque does not have many chairs doing that at volume, and I would rather rent next to people who do it than be the only one in a building. About two thirds of my guests already drive past two salons to see me, so I expect most of the book to move.
My license is current, I carry my own insurance and I can provide the certificate, and I could take my first guests within three weeks of signing. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely, Soraya Villalpando
Summary
A hair stylist cover letter names your state license, the arrangement you are applying into, the services that make up most of your ticket, and one client number with a period attached. This guide gives you a full adaptable letter, what changes between a commission chair and a rental station, and the openings that get a stylist called in the same week.
Hair Stylist cover letter examples by experience level
A hair stylist cover letter is a short, one page letter that tells a salon owner what you are licensed to do, what arrangement you are asking for, and what happens to a column when you stand behind it.
In practice, salon owners do not read many cover letters, which is exactly why a good one works. After all, most applications in this trade arrive as a portfolio link and a sentence.
Guide to a hair stylist cover letter
To help, this guide and the corresponding hair stylist cover letter example will cover:
- First, how to structure the letter, paragraph by paragraph
- Next, why the pay arrangement belongs in the first two sentences
- Then, which client numbers to use and how to state them honestly
- Also, how the letter changes between a commission chair and a rental station
- Finally, the openings that get a stylist a call back in the same week
How to write a hair stylist cover letter
| Paragraph | Its job | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Opening | The chair you want, your license, and the arrangement you are asking for | 2 to 3 sentences |
| Evidence | Service mix, one client number, and the period it covers | 4 to 5 sentences |
| Fit | Something specific about their salon, and what you would bring to their floor | 3 to 4 sentences |
| Close | License currency, availability, thank you | 2 sentences |
Say which arrangement you are asking for in the first two sentences
An owner reading your letter has one opening to fill and a specific shape in mind. They need a commission stylist who can take walk-ins on Tuesdays, or they have a station empty and need rent covered.
Applying for the wrong one politely wastes both of you a week. So write it plainly: "I am applying for the commission chair you advertised" or "I am writing about the open station, and I would be renting."
Then, if it is true, add the sentence that closes the question behind the question: "My book is 310 active guests and roughly two thirds of them already drive across town to see me."
A hair stylist cover letter example you can adapt
Dear Ms. Okafor,
I am applying for the open station at Silverbell Salon & Color Bar, and I would be renting rather than working on commission. I hold a New Mexico Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists cosmetology license, number NM-CS-118472, current through 2028, and I have been behind a chair for nine years, the last four of them paying my own station rent.
My book is 310 active guests, built from 90 over four years, and 62 percent of the new ones came by referral from existing guests rather than from advertising. Rebooking runs at 71 percent at the chair. Corrective color and balayage make up about half my service revenue at an average ticket of $210, and retail runs about $19 a ticket from my own shelf. I buy my own color and backbar, carry my own liability insurance, and file as self-employed, so the only thing I need from a salon is the station and a clean color bar.
I have watched your color work for a while and the reason I am asking about your station rather than one closer to home is the corrective work you post. Albuquerque does not have many chairs doing that at volume, and I would rather rent next to people who do it than be the only one in a building. About two thirds of my guests already drive past two salons to see me, so I expect most of the book to move.
My license is current, I carry my own insurance and I can provide the certificate, and I could take my first guests within three weeks of signing. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely, Soraya Villalpando
Openings that work
| Instead of | Use |
|---|---|
| I am passionate about hair and making people feel beautiful | I am applying for the open station, and I would be renting rather than working commission |
| I am writing to express my interest in a stylist position | I hold a New Mexico cosmetology license, number NM-CS-118472, current through 2028 |
| I have a loyal following and strong client retention | My book is 310 active guests and rebooking runs at 71 percent at the chair |
| I would love to be part of your team | I have watched your corrective color work, and that is why I am asking about your station |
What counts as evidence behind a chair
| Kind of evidence | What it looks like in a sentence |
|---|---|
| Book size | 310 active guests, built from 90 over four years |
| Rebooking | 71 percent of guests rebook at the chair rather than being chased later |
| Referral | 62 percent of new guests arrived by referral from existing guests |
| Ticket and mix | Corrective color and balayage are about half of service revenue at a $210 ticket |
| Retail | Retail averages $19 a service ticket from my own shelf |
| Coverage | Worked every Saturday for four years and covered the color bar on short notice |
Commission chair or rental station, and how the letter changes
For a commission chair, write about the floor: walk-in conversion, coverage on the days they are thin, service mix that fills a gap in the price list, and how quickly you work. For a rental station, write about the book: active guests, how much of it travels, what you carry yourself, and that your insurance is current. Name one real thing about their salon taken from their own pages. Keep it to one page and four paragraphs.
Do not describe yourself as a contractor if a past salon set your hours, your prices and your product line, since the IRS decides classification on behavioral control, financial control and the type of relationship rather than on a label (IRS, page last reviewed 19 May 2026). Do not promise a percentage of your book will move; give a reason for your estimate instead. Do not name a guest. Do not attach a portfolio of work you did not do, since it comes apart in the working interview.
About half of this occupation is not applying for a job at all
Among hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists, 48 percent were self-employed as of May 2025, with 45 percent in personal care services and 5 percent in retail trade; barbers were 80 percent self-employed (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, published 27 August 2026).
The occupation held 670,800 jobs in 2025 with about 80,300 openings a year and 7 percent projected growth through 2035 (same source).
So there are two readers for your letter and they want opposite things. An employer wants coverage, speed and a service mix that fills their price list. A landlord wants rent covered by a book that travels. Decide which one you are writing to before you write the first sentence, because a letter that hedges between them reads as a stylist who has not decided either.
Length, format and sending it
For length, aim for one page, four paragraphs, 250 to 400 words. Send a PDF named for yourself and the chair, and put the portfolio link in the signature block rather than the body.
Address a person. In addition, almost every salon site makes its ownership public, and "Dear Hiring Manager" on a letter that is otherwise specific looks like it went to eight salons.
Use the same numbers your resume uses so the two agree. Our hair stylist resume example is written with the figures used here.
Key takeaways
- To start, say which arrangement you are applying for in the first two sentences.
- Then give the license, the board and the number, with its expiry.
- Similarly, pick one client number with the period it covers, not three vague claims.
- Name your service mix by category rather than describing yourself as versatile.
- For a rental station, however, say what you carry yourself: product, insurance, booking.
- Also, name one real thing about their salon, taken from their own work.
- In short, one page, four paragraphs, addressed to a named person.
Write your hair stylist cover letter in 10 minutes with our AI cover letter builder.
Hair stylist cover letter questions, answered
How long should a hair stylist cover letter be?
One page, four paragraphs, 250 to 400 words. Salon owners read these between clients. Length does not read as effort in this trade, it reads as somebody who has not worked out what they are asking for.
Do salons even read cover letters?
Independent salons do, because the owner is usually the one reading. Chains often route applications through a portal first, in which case the letter still matters at the second stage. Either way, most applications arrive as a link and a sentence, so a real letter is a genuine advantage rather than a formality.
Should I put my client numbers in the letter or save them for the interview?
Put them in the letter. The owner is working out whether a chair pays for itself, and every week they spend not doing that sum is a week you do not get called. One number with a time period is enough; the rest belongs in the conversation.
What do I write with no experience behind the chair yet?
Write your license first, then your school floor work as a job: the services you performed, how many guests a week, and what you were trusted to run alone. Then say what you can do unsupervised today and what days you can cover. A new stylist who can run a color bar on a Saturday is worth interviewing.
How do I write to a salon I do not know?
Spend ten minutes on their own pages first. The price list tells you their service mix, their social account tells you what the floor actually does, and the staff page tells you who owns it. One accurate sentence about their work is worth more than a paragraph of admiration, and it is the part that cannot be reused in the next letter.