Female Fast Risers - Kayla Bramlet

Name: Kayla Bramlet

Brand: Frenchies Modern Nail Care

Title: Director of Education and Training (corporate), studio owner

Age: 23

Years in franchising: 5

No. of units: 30

What attracted you to franchising? As cheesy as it may sound, Frenchies Modern Nail Care attracted me to franchising. I began working for the franchise when I was 17. I didn’t know much about franchising—or what I wanted for a career at that point in my life. However, I had just received my license to be a nail technician and stumbled across Frenchies, which felt like a dream job as a nail technician joining the industry. This salon attracted me to franchising because they have a vision of revolutionizing the nail care industry, and what better way to do this than with a franchise? At the time, a clean and healthy nail salon dedicated to providing an amazing guest experience across the nation did not exist. I have a burning passion for this industry and was so excited about how this franchise is changing—and is going to change the industry. 

What was your first job in franchising? Helping train nail technicians and concierge staff as Frenchies opened new studios. 

What do you attribute your success to? In many ways, I attribute my success to passion. I have a passion to lead, guide, and develop young professionals in the beauty industry. This passion drives me every day and is what has helped me push through difficult times. The passion is what helps me get up every day and lead not only my team, but team members across the nation with Frenchies!

What challenges and obstacles have you overcome in your career? One of the biggest obstacles in my career so far has been my age. I began managing the original Frenchies Modern Nail Care at 19. Many did not take me seriously, assumed I didn’t know what I was talking about, or discounted me as a manager altogether. For many years I felt the need to constantly prove myself as a young woman taking on a leadership role. To this day, my age continues to be an obstacle. As an owner of a Frenchies studio, we do a ton of community networking, where I continue to feel the need to prove myself because of my age. I get questions such as, “Do your mom and dad help you run the gig?” or “You’re just a baby, you’ll see.” But the biggest obstacle is actually when people just ignore me altogether with the assumption that I am not qualified to be where I am. While this has been my biggest obstacle, I want to emphasize “so far.” Covid-19 has already surpassed this obstacle as one of the toughest things I have had to overcome in my career, especially as a studio owner.

Describe your journey to your current position: I began working for Frenchies as a nail technician when I was 17. I have loved doing nails since I was a little girl and had always dreamed of owning a salon. My “plan” was to work for Frenchies as I went to college to help pay for school. Little did I know this is where my career would begin. The longer I worked for Frenchies, the more I became interested in the way the business was run. I started asking the founders for more projects and things I could do to learn more. After some time, I worked my way up to managing the location. During my role as manager, the Frenchies franchise had really started to grow, and I made sure to express my interest in training and developing professionals who join the Frenchies family. As the franchise grew, I transitioned from a studio manager to a training position. I worked hard to grow my training skills and knowledge of franchising to become director of education and training. And in November 2018, I became a studio owner in Lakeville, Minnesota!

What are your future career goals? I have a true passion for the beauty industry and, ultimately, this is where I want to be. I want to expand opportunities to grow individuals in this industry both personally and professionally. I picture owning a few more Frenchies locations for certain, but I don’t know exactly what that path looks like yet. My main goal is to expand my access to individuals in this industry to, again, help develop them. Unfortunately, the beauty industry, nails specifically, is a fragmented industry where employees aren’t treated fairly. I want to change this. Individuals in this industry choose a profession they <love,> care about, and enjoy doing. I believe we need to praise them for this and help them develop this passion and love into a career, instead of looking down on the industry professionals for “not attending college” or “not having a real career.” This multibillion-dollar industry is a career, and a great one at that!  

Advice to young female executives in franchising: When you are passionate about something, nothing can, or will, stop you. Franchising gives you the opportunity to make a huge change in an industry. Light up your passion, show your passion, and allow this passion to lead you. It will get you through obstacles, weeks that feel never-ending, and certainly that voice telling you “no.” Allow your passion to lead you.