Expensive well known brands or cost effective lesser known brands?

[lianm1]

hi i need some product advise,as i am new to this can someone advise me is it better to use expensive well known products or can you use more cost effective brands and still keep the client happy,are there any brands you can recommend for gel and acrylic that are cost effective but good results

 

[naturalnails]

You need to answer that question yourself really - you train with a particular product and if that product doesnt satisfy your needs then you look at training somewhere with another product.

To be perfectly honest with you the difference between the most expensive brand and the least expensive brand per set of nails is buttons.

I trained with a high end product and decided, armed with my training I would use a lower end/middle end product and I actually had more repairs that it was more cost effective to stick with the higher end product.

 

[CurlyQs]

So often peopel train with the less expensive option, only to end up training with their product of choice afterward, costing even more money in the end. I say go with a product that has a great rep and that you feel confident about. Even if it means waiting a little longer to save for it. Good luck with your choice!

 

[linzi]

I agree with naturalnails, there isn't a huge difference in cost between the low-end products and the high-end products.

You will however, IMO, see a big difference in the education, the research and the customer service of the high-end, well respected companies - they pump money into their products and education to make sure that they (and you!!) stay at the top of their game.

Though it is your salon and you really need to do your own research to see what's gonna work for you - are you going to be prepared to spend more time fixing errors, just to save a few pence?

 

[lianm1]

hi thanks for the replies,i did a nail technician course at a private beauty school the product that i learnt with was fusion by American beauty,i find that i struggle with the product as it dries before i can perfect my smile lines as i am not great at this,i have been told that creative is very similar and dries very quickly so i have not tried it yet,i have been using salon systems as this is the product the salon uses at present and i do find it easier to work with as it seems to stay wetter for longer giving me extra time,but i am worried that this product maybe is not seen as a premier product

 

[sarahpoppy24]

Hey i find creative dries quite slowly so making a smile line is easier with creative than anything else ive tried!!! Have you tried NSI products there a well known brand but are lower price. I find them good they do nice coloured products aswell hope this helpsxx

 

[naturalnails]

It depends on which monomer you use - CND Moxie is fast setting and Retention+ is a slower setting liquid.

 

[AriellaGray]

Well, in answer to your question, I can recommend Young Nails. I think their products are one of the best out there and not super expensive. And if you have any questions from how they manufacture their products to technical issues, they really are there for you.

In addition to their products, their education and especially their customer service is excellent and is becoming widely known and extremely popular. They may not have been around since the 70s but that need not be a consideration - every company has to start somewhere. In ten years, Young Nails has come a long way!

Of course there are other companies to investigate as well, so just do some research, have fun investigating and just see what resonates with YOU. That is the most important thing!

 

[tonitigercharli]

So often peopel train with the less expensive option, only to end up training with their product of choice afterward, costing even more money in the end. I say go with a product that has a great rep and that you feel confident about. Even if it means waiting a little longer to save for it. Good luck with your choice!

Thats exactly what I did and I couldnt agree more!! I have found a company now I want to stay with as their products, customer service are TOP NOTCH. It is cheaper in the long run to go with a decent company & u cant go wrong with Creative xx

 

[deanosnana]

So often peopel train with the less expensive option, only to end up training with their product of choice afterward, costing even more money in the end. I say go with a product that has a great rep and that you feel confident about. Even if it means waiting a little longer to save for it. Good luck with your choice!

Excellent point and I could not agree more! Best of luck to you!

 

[Mieke]

I have to agree with what has been mentioned her above and i have experimented with loads of different brands. but there was one exception though...what i can mention is that allong the way i stumbled on a product called miyoshi. Miyoshi UK - Professional Nail Styling - UV Gels , Gel Nails , Manicures , Nail Colourz it is a gel brand originally from belgium but they have a distributor now in the uk aswell i believe. The prices are much better then moste gel companies out there without compromising on the quality. I think because it is still a fairly new product. The product has a superior adhesion, the color gels cover very well in two layers and they have a huge range of color gels aswell. You can buy a very nice sample kit from them for little money. This is the only product up untill now that i thought mentioning, haven´t stumbled across any l+p brand that was worth it.

 

[Lemmonie]

I have both Creative Products and NSI for acrylics and the cost differance is quite a bit but i find both products superb to work with and both give fantastic results. NSI i would say is a bit "bouncier" which i like but others may not.
Have also used salon systems and millenium both of which i found very poor in comparrison to the above products.

 

[mely-bely]

hi thanks for the replies,i did a nail technician course at a private beauty school the product that i learnt with was fusion by American beauty,i find that i struggle with the product as it dries before i can perfect my smile lines as i am not great at this,i have been told that creative is very similar and dries very quickly so i have not tried it yet,i have been using salon systems as this is the product the salon uses at present and i do find it easier to work with as it seems to stay wetter for longer giving me extra time,but i am worried that this product maybe is not seen as a premier product

Another great product is INM's Out the Door Acrylic System. It was designed by nail techs and has 4 stages of curing, allowing for more time to mold your product. It is very cost effective and easy to use. This way you can use the correct ratio, as using a wet ball can cause lifting and product break down.

 

[xCharlotteBx]

I have both Creative Products and NSI for acrylics and the cost differance is quite a bit .

I recently got this flyer with my order off NSI showing the different in Price with Creative and Entity and there was a big different like with nsi the liquid for 16 fl oz was £xx but with creative the same size was £xx and Entity the same size was £xx.

With the powders 100gm with creative was £xx, NSI £xx and Entity £xx and to be quite fair i dont really find much of a different in quality and my clients certainly dont and i love using nsi products so to no im saving as well is great. they also sent me through their new dvds which i have been waiting for for agessss woooooo

Hope this helps a little xx

 

[lizad14]

I have both Creative Products and NSI for acrylics and the cost differance is quite a bit but i find both products superb to work with and both give fantastic results. NSI i would say is a bit "bouncier" which i like but others may not.
Have also used salon systems and millenium both of which i found very poor in comparrison to the above products.

what do you mean bouncier.... as in you need to pouch on it to move it other than brush it?

 

[The Geek]

Comparing price tags is a false economy. If you actually break down cost per application, you'll find that the difference is pence. If it takes you a couple minutes longer in your maintenance, you will be actually losing money. Remember, it is your time that is your most expensive resource (not to mention client satisfaction).

 

[geeg]

I would like to address a few issues that have come up in this interesting thread.

Firstly, CND has several different monomers in their line. They are all of course excellent. The monomer used in classes is Retention+ which is a slow setting monomer which is very easy to learn with ... It is also the single most used and most popular monomer.

Secondly, although certain items in the CND line are more expensive than other companies (with good reason), the point is that OVERALL on the cost of a service to your clients, the price varies very little between the best and the worst.

If you use low end brands then you will have to put up with more service breakdown problems such as lifting, breaking, yellowing, aging etc etc and this does not make for happy loyal clients (which is what you want). Instead they get annoyed and go elsewhere. THAT will cost you the most money of all.

There are reasons why the most successful techs use the best brand. And the best is affordable and your clients stay loyal to you because they love you for using it.