Mikki Auld built a seven-figure salon - and then she did something most owners never dare to do.

She made herself unnecessary.

In this episode of Tell Me About It, Cait Muir sits down with Mikki Auld (hair colorist, educator, and founder of Paloma Roan and Mikki Auld Education).

Her story starts with just $300 in the bank and it ends (so far) with three salons opened, two sold, and a seven-figure salon business that runs without her - all while she lives on the other side of the world.

Mikki shares the systems, structures, and mindset shifts that let her step away from the day-to-day grind, and even move to the USA.

She also gets real about starting again in a brand new country, building a client base from scratch, and why she keeps betting big on herself, both in business and in life.

If you feel chained to your chair, this episode shows you another way.

Tune in to hear:

💜 The real story behind building a seven-figure salon from a $300 start
💜 What it takes to create a salon that runs without you
💜 One hire that finally let Mikki step away (It’s NOT another manager)
💜 The surprising reason Mikki took her own name off the salon
💜 The “major retail store” secret she used to operate her salon from day one
💜 How Mikki went from knowing nobody in the US to fully booked in 12 weeks
💜 The old-school marketing move that built over 50% of her US clients
💜 How she landed features in Goop, Marie Claire, and InStyle without paying a cent
💜 How one online course launch made $30,000 overnight
💜 Why every salon owner needs more than one income stream
💜 The link between entrepreneurial brains, creativity, and anxiety

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:01:00 Meet Mikki Auld
00:04:40 Planning the secret move
00:10:20 Skin in the game
00:15:00 Think bigger early
00:21:50 Breakdown after London
00:31:45 Giant Post-it goals
00:40:31 Thirty grand overnight
00:44:12 Old-school flyer marketing
00:59:30 Freezing her eggs
01:16:43 Start again anytime

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👉Connect with Mikki:

https://www.instagram.com/mikkiauld

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👉Learn from Mikki:

Stand Out Salon Academy - https://www.mikkiauld.com/standout-salon-academy 
Stand Out Stylist Blueprint - https://mikki-auld.myflodesk.com/cv6574io8i
Free Guide For Salon Owners - https://mikki-auld.myflodesk.com/jlobaaxqxg

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

My viral clip made 18,000 people furious, so I brought in the one man they can't argue with - My husband.

Twenty-one weeks ago, one 60-second clip, from my podcast, about healthy relationships and undateable men exploded.

It got 4.6 million views, 500,000 likes, and over 18,000 comments.

My business grew, my podcast listeners quadrupled, and the manosphere lost its mind.

So today, my hubby Cam sits on the couch with me to answer the incels, the "not all men" crowd, and every man baby in my comments.

In this episode, we cover:

💜Why my viral dating and relationship clip caused such a huge reaction
💜Healthy masculinity vs toxic masculinity
💜Why “not all men” can miss the point of conversations about women’s safety
💜Why men need to hold other men accountable
💜How misogynistic behaviour becomes normalised in male friendship groups
💜Why women are increasingly choosing to be single rather than settle
💜How financial independence has changed modern dating and relationships
💜What women are actually looking for in relationships today
💜Men’s mental health and the male loneliness conversation
💜Online misogyny, incel culture, red-pill ideology, and the manosphere
💜What respectful, equal and healthy relationships can actually look like   
     
Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:04:20 The clip that exploded
00:08:55 Men must call it out
00:14:20 Therapy changed both of us
00:22:30 Four days of headlines
00:29:21 The prison code
00:36:44 Insults with no substance
00:44:40 Women buying homes
00:54:01 Stop blaming mothers
01:03:13 The real numbers
01:11:16 What feminism actually is

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

I’m sharing the honest reason I’m taking a short break from the podcast - and why stopping before you burn out is not failure, weakness, or quitting.

After 40 episodes, 14,000 listens, millions of social media views, a viral podcast clip, chart rankings, business growth, and a whole lot of life happening behind the scenes - you’ll hear season one has really meant to me.

You’ll hear everything, including scaling Iconic Coaching, finishing a house, navigating pregnancy loss, dealing with online trolls, going viral, growing a personal brand, and learning to listen to my body.

This is not goodbye. It’s a short pause, reset, and a promise that season two is coming back bigger, deeper, and stronger.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

💜 Why I'm taking a short break from the podcast
💜 The real-life pressure behind business growth and scaling
💜 Why stopping before burnout matters
💜 What season one of *Tell Me About It podcast* achieved
💜 How one viral podcast clip changed my reach, audience and business
💜  The hidden emotional cost of going viral online
💜 Why women in business need to listen to their body, not just their calendar
💜 What’s coming in season two
💜 How podcasting can build authority, trust and business growth
💜 Why rest is sometimes the most strategic move you can make

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:03:40 Stop Before You Break
00:05:20 Season Two Is Coming
00:09:00 The Guest Lineup Teaser
00:11:00 Season One By Numbers
00:13:00 The Top Three Episodes
00:16:00 Going Top 34 Nationally
00:19:00 Listeners In 95 Countries
00:22:30 The Viral Reel Numbers
00:27:00 The Real Cost Of Going Viral
00:30:40 Reading Eighty Thousand Comments
00:35:00 When Jameela Jamil Comments
00:37:30 The Lesson To Take With You

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

Are you blaming the algorithm, the economy, your clients, or your marketing… when the real problem is what’s broken inside your business?

In this episode of Tell Me About It, I sit down with Chrissy Alger, founder of Freedom Mastery and Beast Mode Marketing, for a brutally honest conversation about building wealth, scaling beauty businesses, and creating freedom without burning yourself into the ground.

Chrissy shares how she went from having zero experience in the skin industry to scaling a skin clinic to seven figures, nearly going broke multiple times, pivoting during COVID, building a multi-seven-figure coaching business, and becoming one of the most polarising truth-tellers in the beauty industry.

If you’re building a beauty business, scaling a salon, or trying to create more freedom as a business owner - tune in to hear the “tough love” you might just need:

In this episode, we cover:

💜 Why your marketing might not be the real problem
💜 How low barrier entry marketing exposes broken business systems
💜 The truth about discount clients, bargain hunters, and client conversion
💜 Why salon and clinic owners need better consults, follow-up, and retention
💜 How psychology can improve sales, consultations, and client trust
💜 How Chrissy scaled a skin clinic with no industry experience
💜 What nearly going broke taught her about business, risk, and resilience
💜 How to work less, make more, and build a business that supports your life
💜 Money mindset, rich shaming, tall poppy syndrome, and female wealth

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:02:40 Polarising truth teller
00:04:00 The psychopath mentor
00:05:20 Low barrier marketing
00:08:40 Stop bamboozling clients
00:10:40 Three businesses, zero clue
00:14:40 Council DRAMA
00:19:00 Broke to bougie house
00:24:40 COVID cash machine
00:30:40 Backstabbed
00:43:00 Work addict in recovery
00:47:00 Rest unlocks the money
00:51:00 Schooling that crushes kids
00:55:00 Saving Trevor the greyhound

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👉Connect With Chrissy

https://www.chrissyalger.com.au/
https://www.instagram.com/chrissyalger_freedomcreator/

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

What does it really take to build a beauty business from the ground up? 

In this episode of Tell Me About It, Cait Muir sits down with Tash Rowe, founder of Lash Baby Australia.

Tash opened her first salon at just 20.

Today, Lash Baby Australia includes multiple salons, an online lash supply store, and a lash training academy that helps new lash artists raise the standard of the industry.

But her path has been anything but easy.

Tash has lived through flooding, COVID shutdowns, supplier scams, toxic workplaces, and the weight of leading a team in her early twenties.

She also shares the real story behind her successful beauty business - not the highlight reel.

This chat goes deeper than business, too.

Tash opens up about leaving a toxic relationship, healing from anorexia, finding her strength again through MMA and the gym - and learning what it feels like to be backed by a partner who actually celebrates her wins.

If you’re a salon owner, beauty therapist, female entrepreneur, or a woman rebuilding after a hard chapter, this episode is full of real lessons on client care, resilience, and self-worth.

In this episode, we talk about:

💜 The accidental ‘sandwich shop’ moment that pulled Tash into the beauty industry at 16
💜 How Tash opened her first lash salon at 20 (and what she wishes she knew first)
💜 The simple shift that took her from one rented room to multiple lash salons
💜 How Tash launched a lash training academy and supply brand without a perfect plan
💜 What collapsed ceilings, floods, and forced moves taught her about staying in business
💜 The supplier scam that wiped out thousands overnight (and the warning sign she missed)
💜 What actually beats chasing new ones every time… if you want to maximise profits
💜 How MMA, gym training, and a trauma-informed coach helped her feel strong in her body

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:01:20 Meet Tash, lash empire builder
00:04:00 Sandwich shop to salon
00:07:40 The 10-page resignation
00:11:30 Falling for lashes
00:16:50 Becoming the lash fixer
00:18:30 First ceiling crack disaster
00:22:00 Second salon collapses
00:27:30 Training academy launches
00:29:30 The vanishing supplier
00:33:00 Truth about lash damage
00:42:00 Anorexia behind the success
00:44:00 Leaving the toxic relationship
00:45:30 MMA saved her life
00:50:00 The rescue dog story
00:55:30 Finding a real partner
01:00:30 What's next for Tash

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👉Connect with Tash:

https://www.instagram.com/lashbabyaus/
https://www.instagram.com/lashbaby.salon/

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

What does it really take to build a profitable business, lead with confidence, and stop letting fear run the show?

This episode is a repost of a podcast I did with Michael McNish on the Balls Deep podcast.

We had such a raw, funny, and honest conversation about business growth, salon ownership, and leadership - that I wanted to share it with my audience too..

We talk about the real side of entrepreneurship: the mistakes, the uncomfortable money conversations, the fear of raising prices, the pressure of managing staff, the importance of systems, and the courage it takes to confront what is not working in your business.

If you are a salon owner, hairdresser, barber, beauty business owner, coach, entrepreneur, or service provider who wants to grow a profitable business without burning out, this episode is for you.

In this episode, we talk about:

💜How I built a multi-million-dollar salon business
💜The biggest mistakes salon owners and service business owners make
💜Why pricing is one of the most important parts of business growth
💜How undercharging can quietly destroy your profit
💜Why business owners need to understand their numbers
💜The fear of raising prices, leading staff, and making hard decisions
💜How to build a business that can run without you
💜How content marketing and podcast clips can generate real business leads
💜What it means to use masculine and feminine energy in business
💜Why doing scary things is essential for growth
💜How business coaching helps owners face the truth and take action

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
03:00 How one podcast clip pulled 1.2M views
04:30 Masculine and feminine energy in business
12:00 Sales, leadership, and showing up
16:00 Public speaking and confronting fear
22:30 Why Caitlin became a business coach
27:30 The two biggest business mistakes she made
35:00 The biggest fears salon owners face
42:00 The free, cheap, and committed client framework
48:00 How to raise prices without losing clients
1:02:00 Time audits and outsourcing
1:08:00 Outgrowing your partner
1:15:00 The simple steps to get unstuck

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👉Connect with Michael McNish

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAp09ZrcqwJL8Nisxn9w3792CtydL5Q6t&si=6brI-3vb5bJnB8q-

https://www.facebook.com/michaeldavidmcnish

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

How did one woman build a successful salon, hair extension brand, and hair loss business from the ground up - whilst raising kids?

In this episode of Tell Me About It, I sit down with Meghan Hayden, the founder behind Plushlocks and Skalp360.

Together, we talk about hairdressing, business growth, motherhood, burnout, hair extensions, female hair loss, and what it takes to keep evolving in the beauty industry.

Meghan also shares her journey from not loving school, starting out as a hairdressing apprentice in the “savage era,” moving from Ireland to Australia, and growing multiple businesses.

This conversation is for hairdressers, salon owners, beauty business owners, hair extension specialists, and anyone who wants to understand the real behind-the-scenes of building a business in the hair industry.

Tune in to hear about:

💜Meghan’s journey from apprentice hairdresser to salon owner
💜Moving from Ireland and the UK to Australia to build a new life
💜The reality of old-school hairdressing apprenticeships
💜Starting a hair extension wholesale business from home
💜Growing a salon team and learning how to manage money
💜The emotional reality of female hair loss
💜Why hairdressers need better education in advanced hair loss solutions
💜Balancing motherhood, business, maternity leave, and burnout

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:04:00 School misfits win
00:07:20 Earning your spot
00:10:23 Moving across the world
00:13:36 Living on nothing
00:17:11 Demoted after maternity
00:22:15 Testing every hair
00:25:40 Falling for numbers
00:28:42 Into hair loss
00:43:42 Hitting burnout

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👉Connect with Megah Hayden

https://www.instagram.com/meghan_plushlocks
https://plushlocks.com/

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

The messy middle of business growth can feel like chaos, but it is often where your next level begins.

In this episode, we explore why female entrepreneurs outgrow old business models, relationships, routines, and identities - and how to stop shrinking yourself when you know you are meant for more.

If things feel uncomfortable, uncertain, or heavier than usual, it doesn’t mean you’re failing. It may mean you are being pushed into a season of growth, clarity, and serious business transformation.

So if you are ready to stop apologising for wanting more, start listening to your intuition, and move through the messy middle with more confidence, this episode is for you.

Tune in to hear about:

✅Why everything can feel like it is falling apart right before a breakthrough
✅How to reframe chaos as renewal instead of failure
✅Why female business owners often feel guilty for wanting more
✅How to recognise when you have outgrown a business model, job, routine, or relationship
✅The truth about brutal honesty and how it helps you reach your next level
✅Why gratitude and ambition can exist at the same time
✅The simple way to trust the messy middle of personal growth and business growth

Key moments:

00:00:00 Intro
00:03:20 What Chaos Really Means
00:06:40 Relationship Shake-Up
00:11:00 Inner Whisper
00:15:20 Hating What You Built
00:18:40 The Era of Brutal Honesty
00:22:40 How Honesty Attracts Abundance
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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

After surviving chronic illness, leaving a 25-year marriage, losing her salon business, and coming out later in life - award-winning hairstylist Megan Evans completely rebuilt her life from the ground up.

In this episode of The Tell Me About It Podcast, Megan joins your host Cait Muir to talk about a huge range of topics, including:

identity, burnout, queer love, salon ownership, chronic illness, the future of hairdressing, and what it really takes to choose yourself.

Megan also shares powerful insights into salon culture, client experience, leadership, creativity, and why authentic connection matters more than ever in the beauty industry.

Tune in to discover:

✅ What it feels like to come out later in life after years in a traditional marriage
✅ The sneaky signs of burnout and chronic illness - and how it impacts your life
✅ What Megan believes the future of the hairdressing industry depends on (do you agree?)
✅ The unexpected way a FaceTime relationship turned into marriage during COVID
✅ What happened after Megan stepped away from the salon she built over 12 years
✅ How EMDR therapy can impact someone after years of stress and survival mode
✅ The industry that hairdressers are really in… this will surprise you

Key moments:

00:00  Intro
00:01:30 Long-awaited reunion
00:05:30 Nearly dying from Crohn's
00:09:20 The perfect day vision
00:12:30 Coming out at 40
00:16:00 Mum chose her ex
00:19:30 FaceTime love story
00:24:30 Letting the salon go
00:43:00 Facing real homophobia
00:49:30 Industry in crisis
01:14:20 Bring back rock stars

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

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👉Connect With Megan Evans

https://www.instagram.com/meganevans_creative/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au

You can journal about wealth, repeat money affirmations, and visualise millions… but if your money mindset and money habits don't change, you'll stay stuck. 

This episode reveals how to ACTUALLY build a wealth mindset that works - and why most manifestation advice keeps you broke.

If you've ever avoided your bank account, felt suffocated by credit card debt, or wondered why manifesting money isn't working for you - you’ll hear exactly how to turn it around.

You'll also hear the messy, uncomfortable, but life-changing reality of going from financial chaos and drowning in debt to financial confidence, freedom, and rich woman energy.

Plus how combining money mindset + action + self-trust is what actually creates lasting wealth and abundance.

Tune in to discover:

✅ Why avoiding your finances is keeping you stuck in debt (and how to fix it today)
✅ The first step to getting out of debt fast… most people avoid this for years
✅ The truth about manifesting money and what manifestation actually involves
✅ How to rewire your relationship with money for real wealth creation
✅ Why "buying before you're ready" can level up your income and business
✅ The psychology behind paying in full vs payment plans
✅ How setting higher standards forces your life, income and lifestyle to rise

Key moments:

00:00  Intro
00:01:00 Manifestation Skeptics
00:03:20 The Debt Diagnosis Moment
00:06:40 Buy Before Ready
00:09:40 Pay In Full Energy
00:13:20 Living As If
00:15:00 The Business Class Standard
00:19:00 Clout vs Soul Spending
00:23:00 Reward Yourself Like Staff
00:24:40 Setting Non-Negotiable Standards
00:27:20 Manifesting Plus Action

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👉Find out more about how we can work together:

https://iconiccoaching.com.au/coaching/

Support the show

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👉Here’s how to connect:

https://www.instagram.com/tellmeaboutit__podcast
https://iconiccoaching.com.au