In this episode of Solo Diaries, Erin sits down with solo aesthetician Brenda Hogsett, founder of Skintastic, to unpack a journey built on perseverance, crisis pivots, smart marketing, and unapologetic financial clarity.

Brenda’s path wasn’t linear. She failed her state board exam three times. Took years off. Came back. Passed. Built a business from the bonus room of her home after her son’s health crisis required her to stay close. What started behind PVC pipe curtains became a 40‑year established salon — and then, intentionally, became solo again.

This conversation is about knowing your strengths. And knowing when to scale back.

Because bigger isn’t always better. Profitable and sustainable is.

In this episode, Brenda shares:

• How a family health crisis sparked her first solo business

• Why managing a large team wasn’t aligned with her strengths

• The decision to return to true solo entrepreneurship

• How Groupon built her entire client base (yes, really)

• Why discounting can be strategic — if you treat it as an audition

• The power of retention (she maintains a 95% pre‑book rate)

• How she uses Square as a full CRM and growth engine

• Her $220K revenue year as a solo aesthetician

• The financial habit she wishes she started sooner

It's all in the complete episode and if it clicked for you, the next step is putting it to work in your own business.

Get the Money Solo course for $97 — 8 modules of practical, industry-specific financial education covering everything Carrie talked about and more. Tax planning, pricing strategy, savings systems, financial roadmapping. Self-paced. Lifetime access. Built for the way you actually work.

Or bundle with the TikTok Shop course for $169 and add a new income stream at the same time.

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