Disillusioned with the state of the Nail Industry? - here's one for us ALL to debate!

[Bev Rose]

What a brill thread Sassy!

All i can say is that from original cr*p training I went along 2 yrs later & did a Creative Foundation & spent the hard earned on that, when I could of quite easily 'got away' with an 'induction'.
To me, if I was going to get some proper training, no matter how much i gleraned from my original cr*p course & The Complete Nail Technician & Encyclopedia of nails & this FAB FAB site, I still needed the certificate for me to look at and my clients!
As soon as I changed over to Creative I realised it was money well & truly spent! My clients noticed the difference and I eventually put up my prices from £30 - white tip & ovelay!!!!!! To £35 P&W (acrylic btw).
Because i learned how to create a smile line, sculpt a strong nail that looked fab and lasts so much longer..
I'm just trying to save up the cash to take it a stage further......

One of my clients who works in an office who is quite happy to use me as I'm 'Creative' and that's whats she's used too coming from Pickering, has 2 other girls training/trained in nails working full time in her office. It's annoys me a bit too as these people are slapping nails on people and giving them a false idea of what a professionally applied nail enhancement should be! (They have a full time job, which pays the bills - my bill paying job is my nail job!)

 

[fifitrix]

Funnily enough I agree with you Sassy - if you believe in yourself then it does wonders for not only yourself, but also gives confidence to your client, in return the client responds confidently and positively to you as well. I have been shocked by some of the nails which have been enhanced by techs, I can remember one tech saying to me that I was better than her and she had loads more qualifications than me - she runs her own salon but does not update her skills

I agree with this, the girl who used to my nails, does not update her training at all, she put me down quite a bit when I said that I had signed up for a nail course, telling me I chose a c**p system, fair enough at that time I didn't know one system from another, so the product names meant zilch to me.

Anyway, I done my own infills today and I got the biggest kick when my hubby asked if I had been back to my old tech!

Therefore, I agree with what has been said already and totally think that you have to constantly have to update yourself and keep the ever changing knowledge, that is available well available to yourself.

 

[Bagpuss]

such a brill thread and as always its the same passionate, serious and dedicated geeks who work hard that have contributed to make this one of the best threads i have read in ages.

well done sassy and all of YOU x

 

[Sassy Hassy]

such a brill thread and as always its the same passionate, serious and dedicated geeks who work hard that have contributed to make this one of the best threads i have read in ages.

well done sassy and all of YOU x

It's been a breath of fresh air Angie. I can now come clean and say that in the past few days I have come so close to quitting nails altogether. I'd just had enough of people belittling it and thought that there was no passion within the industry anymore, or within this site.

This site has always inspired me and pushed me to do better, today it did that and I thank all of you who have participated either actively or by reading and learning.

But sadly it also raised my worst fears that many members just don't give a fig and are here for the beer and nowt else - shame really!

 

[pippadoodle]

No way are you to give up, you are passionate about the profession, hard working, great with people, a good mentor..do I need to go on. THIS INDUSTRY NEEDS PEOPLE LIKE YOU.:hug: :hug: :hug:

 

[lovenails1]

Good morning.

I looked quickly at this thread last night and was just too tired to get into it, so here goes now.

Firstly, we can do everything right, and have all our training perfect etc, but unless the CLIENT is educated in nails, it won't help.

At my Physio, every client is required to go to "Information Evenings" regarding back care and what is expected from the Physio etc,. I went to a couple of evenings and I have to tell you, it changed my whole perception of going to a Physio.

I have since seriously considered having these evenings myself and trying to educate the public. I could offer light refreshments, some fun and some great info on what a good Nail Tech should offer and what the client should do to be a good nail wearer.

Another comment I want to make (and when I'm fully awake I might think of something else) is that I totally agree with the Insurance thing, we should pay premiums like we do with car Insurance, based on our skill, length of time working and if we've had any prior problems etc, this could make a difference.

PS. A single mum/housewife who only does nail part time could actually be an award winning one, I should know. :wink2:

 

[chantell simone]

great thread don't want to repeat so i will keep it short

i was told by alot of my tutors that it can take 2-3 years plus to built a good client list and its hard work and you need alot of determination

on the teaching side i agree that being a good thearpist or nail tech etc doesn't make you a good tutor and i have first hand experience of that

people have no idea how much hard work you have to put into your studies and doing treatments is not as easy as it looks

 

[paris]

As an independant individual, and based on my own training experiences with various companies both VERY expensive and not so expensive - I have already written a two-part article which is coming out in Professional Nails (first part in March I believe) on the minefield that is education.

The second part will cover my own experiences and thoughts on how this whole industry can benefit by certain changes.

The only thing that I ask is that when (and if) you read it, it is not mis-quoted. And I welcome constructive comments too.

 

[ValencianNails]

That's excellent Sue perhaps when it comes out you could start a thread about it, maybe print the contents for those members who don't get Professional Nails so we can all get involved with it.

 

[joe90]

Up to a certain point I agree with Joan (Pennijar) about differing levels of insurance but... you can also get a nail technician or beauty therapist who is relatively new who is a much better nail technician or beauty therapist than a salon owner or someone with more experience (personal experience here - beauty therapy though and not nails).

It all comes down to training and I for one want to do as much training as possible as I am another "so called" trained technician - albeit only at foundation level, but I also turn away nail clients as I do not feel sufficiently trained to offer this service.

My first course into rectifying and improving on my skills is this weekend. This will only be the beginning of my training with this company.

I was initially trained in nails at college and if it looked as though you had grasped the basics and were holding your own then no attention was paid to you, whilst the students who really didn't have a clue were given extra help.
Even at the end of our course one student who had not progressed at all during the 16 week course was given the title of "student of the year" WHY????? Is this not encouraging her to think she is better than she actually was. There were so many deserving cases for this title, girls who were producuing set after set of lovely nails.

I think the point made by Sassy regarding the Alessandro nail system is a good one and maybe should be adopted by other educators.

Now I am on my soap box, some of the nail educators and some wholesalers do have questions to answer here as some will and do sell to the untrained. Once I had "qualified" as far as college was concerned I set out to do some research into different companies and was able to purchase L&P without having to show my certificates - this company who by the way will remain nameless are exacerbating the problem of "hobbyist" nail techs. Certificates SHOULD BE PROVIDED AS PROOF OF TRAINING FOR ALL.

But then as I write this, would these companies know that the certificate being shown is actually the person producing it? Maybe proof of ID needs to be shown also.

 

[Lynz]

I haven't read all of the replies on this thread (but I will do!) but as it got my interest I replied anyway!

I know I didn't started off with the "best" training out there and to be honest it did just start off as a "hobby I might be able to make a few quid from". But then I found out about this site and since then I have learned so much more. I know there is still a lot for me to learn and I intend to do learn as much as I can. I could have put myself out there as soon as I'd finished my course, just like I was told, and tried to make money but reading everything on here I knew I wasn't as good as I thought I was and didn't want to risk it. I now want to do this properly - have a real career and to do this I know I've got a lot of work to do. And knowing this is the first step - hopefully!

I take everything on board that I can - I have bought and read the books that everyone has recommended and I will improve my practical education as soon as I am able.

Unfortunately not everyone out there is as willing to take on sensible advise when it's given to them - and I don't know what can be done about it either!!

What have you done Sassy, I'm normally such a quiet Geek and now I can't shut up!

Being an accountant by day, I know the importance of business plans, tax implications etc etc, and when I am ready to change my career I will know exactly how I am going to do it.

This is such a good thread and I'm glad it seems to have been taken in the right way and debated well instead of turning into a bitch-fest!

Anyway, my point was meant to be that you well educated and experienced Geeks have managed to influence at least one budding Nail Technician to approach this in the right way.

 

[CadenceAlex]

Considering this is a Nail forum and it has so many members.... where are their voices?

This thread has had a great response but surely there are more people on this site that care about THEIR industry?

 

[Snugglepuss]

Considering this is a Nail forum and it has so many members.... where are their voices?

This thread has had a great response but surely there are more people on this site that care about THEIR industry?

Some people may not answer because they do not feel they can add anything/time differences etc or maybe they feel that they have to think out what they need to say before responding.

However, you are right I think there are over 12,000 members now on the site and just over 100 geeks have replied (maybe less if geeks have responded more than once) nearly 2,000 views so at least it has made some geeks think - those who are passionate and feel they can add value will respond - those that enjoy nails but it isn't their main career, may feel that they can not add anything, which is a shame because it would be good to hear their opinions as to why they have not furthered their career or want to implement standards across the industry :hug: One thing for sure we all share the same love of nails :hug:

 

[lotus blossom]

im still waiting before i respond!!!
great thread sass!!!
i do agree whole heartedly with ya, but will think of my response over a few days!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Sassy Hassy]

im still waiting before i respond!!!
great thread sass!!!
i do agree whole heartedly with ya, but will think of my response over a few days!!!!!!!!!!

Don't worry hun, sometimes it takes me that long to get the words clear in my head before I post a reply ... let's face it this thread has been buzzing around in my mind for weeks now, but I had to get the words right - otherwise I might have been banned!

Looking forward to it, but so much has been said already that maybe an "I agree" is enough to show that you care :hug:

 

[lotus blossom]

Don't worry hun, sometimes it takes me that long to get the words clear in my head before I post a reply ... let's face it this thread has been buzzing around in my mind for weeks now, but I had to get the words right - otherwise I might have been banned!

Looking forward to it, but so much has been said already that maybe an "I agree" is enough to show that you care :hug:

ok then i agree with you!!
no i really do, lol!!

 

[fifitrix]

Some people may not answer because they do not feel they can add anything/time differences etc or maybe they feel that they have to think out what they need to say before responding.

However, you are right I think there are over 12,000 members now on the site and just over 100 geeks have replied (maybe less if geeks have responded more than once) nearly 2,000 views so at least it has made some geeks think - those who are passionate and feel they can add value will respond - those that enjoy nails but it isn't their main career, may feel that they can not add anything, which is a shame because it would be good to hear their opinions as to why they have not furthered their career or want to implement standards across the industry :hug: One thing for sure we all share the same love of nails :hug:

I felt at first that I was not qualified to respond, but then I thought, eh naw this is what I want to do, as a living, I am not qualified to comment on certain things on nails but I AM qualified on my thoughts on my nail career, come on you other members, tell us what you think, stop lurking and become a vital contribution to the site....

 

[Brandywine]

Hi,
I'm not a nail tech, but I do complementary and some beauty therapies, so understand whats being said.

I have to say I agree with people saying their jobs are not taken seriously when they work from home, this really irritates me. As for the money side of it, I may charge £25 for a one hour massage , but obviously I don't get all of that (or even 1/2 of it at the moment), with tax, products, equipment, advertising, training etc and finally wages to be taken into account.

Extra time is added for paper work, cleaning, preparation, extra training, not to mention client forms and the client undressing, so that one hour appointment may really take me atleast 1 and a 1/2 hours. People don't think about this and it can be frustrating.

I also agree that you can't possible learn everything you need to know on a 1 or 2 day course, but I can see it might be tempting and I could be used as a taster (although this would be expensive)

 

[phoebe_cat]

But sadly it also raised my worst fears that many members just don't give a fig and are here for the beer and nowt else - shame really!

Oooh.... Is there beer here too! I knew there was a reason I stuck around:green:

Just to add to my earlier post, I am currently in the process of putting together my business plan with help from TEDCO (don't know if this is nation wide or just North East) They have been so helpful and will continue to support you.

At my interview with them, I put my proposition forward, then obviously was asked various questions. To nearly everything I was asked I could reply hand on heart, "I've done that" "I knew that" "I've got that" and that is down to my spending so much time researching in books, the internet, local press and of course on this site

The woman was very impressed and said that a lot of people go there and when it is all explained to them, they don't see them again cos it's all too much like hard work! (obviously, I'm not just talking about the nail and beauty industry here)

Months and months of reading the threads on here and some of your journals have put me well and truly in the "real world" I think I've got a very realistic idea of what to expect, but I think to some, "having your own business" seems like so much fun! No nasty boss, all the money you make is yours, fancy business cards with your name on them etc, etc, etc.

If this thread makes just one person think a little harder about their career choices and possibly stops them making a mistake that could be very costly, both financially and emotionally, then it has been well worth it!

Well done Sass:hug:

 

[Cathie!]

I believe that the nail wearing public needs to be better educated before we can take steps to improve the industry......how we can do that is another question all together which has been debated here from time to time.

The HABIA code of practice doesn't seem to be coming in the twinkling of an eye and will it ever really be enforceable unless local H&S teams get out there and enforce it?

I have been thinking about the people who come into the salon asking questions and as soon as price is mentioned back-off...unless they have been referred...and I'm going to display my certificates on the wall and see if that makes a difference.

I'm not making much money out of nails at the moment....time of year for sure has a bearing on this...I'm relying on my regulars.....but I have felt like jacking it all in too.