sadly, a lot of the time, the perception is that being a hairdresser is a career when a man does it, and a job when a woman does it.

i've had those same experiences throughout the years, when a woman prefers to go to one of the males in the salon rather than a female, regardless of talent, or years of experience. they just think a man will make them look attractive to the opposite sex,or they take the work more seriously, whatever. it'll never change.

don't worry about it, there's enough hair to go around.

as for peers in the profession being sexist, i don't know how you might change that. but we are the worker bees, and the backbone of the salon.i think if you want the prestige etc, you can have it too, by focusing solely on the goal. there are a fair number of women who are platform artists, educators and innovators in the industry. more than there were 10 years ago, and it keeps on growing.just go for what you want, you're more likely to make it in this field than a lot of others,lol.