Fear I'm about to go under, trying to do way too much with no cash flow

[sarahc]

hi

bit of background first .. got married at 16 as pregnant, husband soon became violent and posessive .. spent the subsequent 17 yrs trapped, not able to go out, no money, no friends, no dreams, then ..

my gt aunt died and was kind to me in her will .. i left my husband with my 3 daughters, rented a nice house and started to re-build my life - this included finally realising my dreams of becoming a make up artist and beauty therapist

embarked on all the training, bought the amazing make up kit and worked as bridal make up artist for a while .. then decided to train in nails as thought i could do this when makeup was quiet, then the lashes (although never mastered as lack of practise) knew no one in my new locality so could only really practise on my daughters

had to give up the bridal makeup as my sister moved away and couldnt look after my youngest when had early saturday start, sold off my kit and re-invested in polish, and more training

obviously made a loss and looking like making another loss, i keep telling myself everything will be alright and you have to speculate to accumulate but think i have tried to do way to much, too soon when still not having broken even .. i have no cash flow, just seem to bumble along putting money made from nails into petrol, basically robbing peter to pay paul

have minx party booked, and have had to borrow the money from my daughter to buy minx up front thats how bad its got, also recently turned down booking for glitter toes as basically despite advertising it found ran out of the shellac top coat and couldnt afford to buy any more!

this is sooo embarassing, i clearly have no business sense .. have done all the training because wanted to offer wide variety of services, instead concentrating on one then when in profit investing in another, i think felt had wasted enough years in marriage just wanted it ALL (success) now and its kind of backfired

do you think i can salvage anything, turn things around somehow .. never really got on with shellac so thinking selling lamp etc and investing in more lash supplies and practising until become cofident

really need business advise, hope someone can help

 

[persianista]

I am gonna try and answer without being harsh.
Would it not be better to actually really master something rather than jumping in? Investing in shellac if your nail skills are not great is folly, doing lash ext when you cant practice or are not great at fiddly work is folly.
Trying to launch a mobile business with no money is daft.
Can I suggest you get a job for a while to get some cash behind you, and give you time and space to work out what you can do, given that you have childcare issues too.

I'm sorry that sounded mean, but I really don't believe there is a magic wand to give you business funding. Nor would it be money well spent if your business is not properly thought through.

 

[amys-beauty]

So if nails and lashes aren't up to scratch and you've sold your make up kit, what can you offer that you are confident in? I have to agree with above sorry. I would get a retail job or something to get a bit of cash flow and on the side I would get back into your make up (sounds like you were good at) all the while practicing Shellac as you have all the equiptment. Lashes are a long hard process to master, lots of practice and you won't make good money for months. I've done about 6 sets for £10 and I am no where near the standard I should be, thats £60 for 12hours practice... I hope things start to look up

 

[sarahc]

hi thank you both .. not harsh at all, i appreciate yr comments i guess ive been blind to how been running the business

just rushed in with no real plan, because for once had freedom and money to do so .. i am naive as have not had access to business info, didnt even occur to me to do a business course :o

im good at shellac, just never really taken off for me - also get lots compliments about minx just havent got the money to buy decent album of designs

work pt time also, but seem to keep ploughing money into training and keeping business afloat

 

[sarahc]

see you have already helped me to figure out what to do..

invest in minx sheets instead of the lashes as am good at this, and summer on our doorstep then just keep practising the lashes and marketing shellac, perhaps adding few new colours when minx taking off

i need someone to help me plan and set goals - short and long term, ive had all the decisions made for me in the past (marriage) and now im on my own i guess i need to find the confidence to make the right choices and decisions

 

[Roxie]

You cant offer everything.

I have taken it step by step in my mobile business. Starting off with only the treatments i was NVQ qualified in.

Then i felt spray tanning was called for so SAVED UP for my kit and training.

Really wanted to do intimate waxing trained by kim but couldnt afford to do so. Again SAVED UP to pay for training.

I also want to do eye lash extensions and offer shellac. But i ask myself what has the most call for in my area, what do people want. I dont want to be jack of all trades, i would rather offer a good service on what i can do now.

Business is hard work, you have to put money by from treatments to buy materials. As you have found out NO MATERIALS = NO WORK.

Start saving, keep away from the credit card. I havent got one and people think im mad not to being in business. well i could train for everything i wanted and also have all the materials i want but the money on credit cards isnt real and has to be paid back.

Save hard, work hard at what you are good at then reap the rewards.

 

[hellishbellish]

In terms of practice too, is there anyone in your current job you could offer a discount to and practice on? They'll probably have friends too, who if they aren't interested might be. Just a thought. Good luck my dear, don't give up - you have to go through the bad to appreciate the good.

 

[Beansy]

In addition to all the ideas above, can I suggest that you get yourself a business mentor. A mentor won't give you advice or chastise you for mistakes, their role is to offer support, provide focus and help you realise your potential.

I would Search online for 'support for self employed', 'women entrepreneurs', 'business mentors', 'business start up' etc etc There is a lot of free Support out there that I'm sure you could tap in to. Good luck

 

[sarahc]

thanks everyone, lots of food for thought
love the idea of a mentor .. i think lot of my confidence issues could be resolved, i was put down for 17 yrs so i guess i find it hard to believe in myself and that can make success of it .. i was panicking almost, when something didnt seem to be working, went and booked training in different area
just re-read my original post, would like to poing out to my 3 girls with me .. reads as if i left them with my ex husband!
thanks again x

 

[squeakydee]

Ahh, honey, I sympathise so much and if I lived anywhere near you I would spend a day with you to help you perfect your skills and help you get some direction. I know what its like to offer so many treatments but still no clients and no money to invest - I was exactly the same when I began my career in nails and beauty. The posts above are spot on; don't be a jack of all trades, be a master of one to begin with, then your clients will come.

 

[MisstyB]

Sarah,
Isnt there somewhere local that you could work, maybe a hairdressers where you could set up a table? Or could you work in a salon for a while just to build up your confidence? Dont give up though, its sounds like you have had to work really hard to get where you are so keep plugging away.
Good luck babes tinaxx

 

[crazybek]

Hey.
Didnt want to just read and run.
I too was pregnant at 17 but continued working my butt off with a child as a single parent etc to build up my client base and knowledge and experience.
Just because it didnt work out for you the first time in regards to setting up shop doesnt mean it wont work again.
Hmrc offer free day courses in managing businesses and money and there are also many other colleges that offer day courses to help you get started.
Chin up and fingers crossed for you.

 

[Lady Murasaki]

As people have suggested before, maybe you could look for a part-time or full time job to bring some extra money in so things will wont be so tight financially and so that you can invest in your business a little more?

I recently moved counties from Somerset as my partner got a new job in Hampshire.

As all my work is mobile I'am having to start again building up my client base and forking out for adverts in wedding mags, local press etc which very expensive and financially draining, and caused a lot of arguments between me and my another half.

so I decided to go back to nursing part time (which I really missed anyway ) and now i have the best of both worlds as i'm doing 2 jobs that love, plus i'm not having to working about my business costs as much.

Hth

Natalie xxx

 

[Tigan]

Hi Sarah, it can take a long time to re-build your confidence, it doesnt happen overnight, it sounds like you had reached the stage where you felt like you couldnt do anything right and you are clearly still feeling that way by what you say about your skills, well, i think you have made a great start, what you've done is youve found something that gives you total independance, where you have to do everything by yourself, in time it will give you strength and total confidence.
So you are already on your way, now youve really got to start thinking that your good at them too, so, if you think of all the bits you do well and keep that in the front of your mind always, then just work on the bits that youve not got the hang off yet, thats just a question of practice isnt it.
Do as many clients as you can with what youve got and then put it aside to buy more stock with
Good luck, i bet if you think about it, your doing alot better than you realise

 

[nicole333]

I agree, stick with the systems that you know you can do and then push yourself out there!!

How are you marketing yourself? Are you getting your name out there in as many ways as possible? Shellac is massive, so no reason why it wouldn't take off for you.

There are ways to get yourself known that don't cost any money. Make a facebook page, Shellac your daughters and photograph the result, putting the pics on your page.
If you already have business cards, keep them with you to hand out when people compliment your nails, give them to your daughters to hand out too.

Keep your facebook page up to date, giving snippets to your likers once a week. Advertise on it, ask for models on it if you want more practice (don't forget to charge).

Lastly, take a good look at yourself in the mirror every morning and remind yourself that you are a strong and confident person (you have to be to survive what you have been through). No negative language allowed!!

Go for it!

 

[souz]

just to re cap what everyone else has said....keep going......

try not to buy anything else, do a deal on anything you have got that you no longer want to offer just to get some money in,

if you are good at make up, look at going to wedding shows, hook up with a hairdressers that will recommend you to their clients for weddings/proms, do a prom offer, if you get daughters thru the door the mums come with them, more clients!! you dont need masses of make up to do this!

if possible extend your part time job to get more money coming in?or take on extra work??

i know its hard...i have been a single parent too, and even tho in new relationship its still hard...but try to keep going!!it will pay off!

a friend of mine opened her salon and offered half price treatments for a week, she was fully booked and most ppl that came rebooked for couple of weeks time....any money coming in using what you have got may be worth it??

even offer a whole day or weekend of file and polish at silly prices just to get pplk in door without losing loads???

hope this helps xx and chin up, at least you are carving your own future, whatever that may be!!