Feel like a rant - sorry !

[Wonda]

ARGH .... Just need to vent, hope you don't mind.


So, 6 weeks ago i made the decision to start mobile nail & tanning, over the last 5 weeks i have been on a Fake Bake course, Gelish course & am in the middle of my Fusion Acrylic course with my assessment next week.
Due to starting from scratch, once i got the basics covered, insurance, kit & confidence in applications, i posted on Facebook offering half price treatments for the whole of October to hopefully get some clients & spread the word.

I got 1 .......... my mum's cousin who lives around the corner. She had Gelish Manicure & Pedicure, treatments went well, she was happy & so was i in my application.

So today, i hear from my mum that her cousin is saying that i'm apparently charging too much, i'm too expensive for what the treatment is & that you can go into town for the same thing half price.

I'm so annoyed at this, yes i know you can go into town to the market & pay £9 for a spray tan (i've put my price at £18) & that you can get a set of acrylics for £18 (haven't figured out my price yet as i'm not qualified), but this is a young girl with the tiniest little stall who pays pennies for it (i've checked the rates for a stall & it's not much at all), therefore her costs are low.

How on earth can i compete with her prices ??!!!

I've based my prices on other local mobile therapists as i don't really want to undercut them, yet these therapists have been doing it for years & have the client base which i don't.

I've done 5 sets of free acrylics to get practice in, i do my sister & mum's Gelish manicures for free as they're both out & about loads & i see it as free advertising if they're nails are looking nice & can give my business cards out if people ask about they're nails. I've got the website, Yell listing, Gumtree advert, search engine listings, Facebook page, put flyers in my hairdressers in Chester & have done a local leaflet drop yet i still have 0 clients.

I'm to the point where my set up fund is low & my savings which i've been living on since being made redundant in Aug are rapidly running out, therefore i'm now facing having to look for a full time job to bring some money in & only do my mobile stuff of an evening which is not how i planned it.

I knew it'd be slow at the beginning & that all business take a loss in the first year for two, but at this rate i'll be packing up before i've even started.



Anyone else just feel/felt like their heads are bobbing just above the surface whilst trying to swim against the tide ??!!!

 

[Tomme]

Don't get too down. Take flyers to shops, spars have notice boards you can put your cards on, and £18 isn't too expensive, the therapist in my salon charges £12. Xoxo

 

[Glam_&_glow]

Don't get dis heartened! You've set up at the quietest time of year for most places! Give it another couple of weeks and you will see a change! Good luck xx

 

[Tommo]

Hi, just to say, £18 is not expensive! Is tempting but please don't lower your prices to compete. You'll ALWAYS find there are cheap people around but they will only attract cheap clients!

Be proud of your business and price yourself accordingly. You'll get there. Wishing you the best of luck! X

 

[Trollydolly]

Hi
I am in the same situation! I am really questioning if I have made the right decision and if it's even possible to make a half decent living out of this. Disheartened.com xxx

 

[411]

Hi

I'm in same situation, I give my prices and people say "oh but the salon in town only charge so so amount"

I get really mad. Then I go in to tell them I'm starting my business to do quality nail treatments not quantity like the salons in town do. They have walk-ins all day.

I also educate them on the products I use. I don't buy cheap things from eBay, my products are from well known companies, and I tell them to check the websites, find out about them.

Those salons in town don't use any brands,there bottles are plain bottles, god knows what's inside them.
They never talk to you. No customer experience. It alike a factory.

If that's the service they want then go to them, I might be starting out but I ain't going to let people think I'm cheap. Because I feel if I charge what they do, with the products I use, I'd be making a big loss. And customers will compare me with them which I don't want!

I work full time, so my nails business will be evenings & weekends to start off with. As I need my job to fund my business. Once it's picked up then ill go part-time. If it gets even better then career break for 3 years and see what to do from there. That's my long term plan.

 

[Wonda]

Thanks for all the replies, from what i've seen from other posts on here i know it's a slow time at the moment & am really hoping things will pick up on the run up to Christmas. I just didn't think it'd be this slow as in dead, zero.

& i get the quality & not quantity, as i'd prefer to spend a little longer to get the best results than just to knock cheap treatments out just for the sake of it, i just got really upset at this family member putting her 2 penny worth in when what she thinks is constructive criticism is actually not what you want to hear rather than her promoting you cause she's family.

It's not raining here today, so am going to do another leaflet drop & pop some in at the local shops & see if they'll put it up on their notice boards.

Thanks for letting me vent .... it's helped.

 

[tjmadmum]

I think there's a few of us on here who are in the same boat Hun, so don't despair! If you have a search on here there are loads of topics on how to market your business. Lynne Baker seems to be a real whizz with some fab ideas! I am ill with the flu this week so am taking the time to do some reading on posts. Keep at it, you will get there. Christmas is just around the corner so now is a good time to start a promotion. Good luck cx

 

[beautyathome]

You don't want them types of clients anyway, keep your prices as they are the market girl will always get the client who isn't bothered about quality and once another offer comes past her way she will go somewhere else as for you once you build your clientele up you will have a loyal client. X

 

[Holistic2010]

Your prices are not expensive at all!! Very reasonable actually, but yes it all depends on your area. As one of the OP has said you will ALWAYS find cheaper, but don't cheapen yourself lovey. See yourself as a John Lewis, not an ASDA :wink2: you don't see John Lewis dead do you?? I know your starting out, but don't despair, lots of salons are quiet at the moment, and don't forget were in a terrible recession too, doesn't help....

Stay strong, stay focused and please don't give up on your dream!! Xxx

 

[LieLash]

Iv have had to leave my job due to bullying, luckily I had my mobile beauty business as a second business but I'm not busy enough yet to support myself.
I will have to get another job to help support myself but that's life, it won't be forever but it will take the pressure of whilst trying to grow my client base. I have leaflet dropped, had offers, done magazine advertising etc - u name it I've done it!!!!! But it's all word of mouth and quality of the treatments you offer. But if it is what you really want to do then stick with it.
And don't lower your prices. My business is about caring for my clients and using the best quality products on my clients and not damaging them. If they want to pay cheap and get shoddy treatments that's up to them, however if you educate your clients as to these cheap places you will find that most will suddenly realise why these places are cheap. The ones that don't care well good luck to them because they will end up with bad nails, bald lashes and wax burns probably.
I see soooooooo many ladies that have the most damaged nails from bad nail treatments and for me I love working with them to get their nails back to good condition yet still giving them shellac or l&p.
It will just take time so stick with it, practice practice practice and be the best that you can at what you do and you will get more and more clients.

 

[Dream Nails]

Don't get into a price war it will not work.

Price what you are worth do fantastic work and people will come.
It takes time to build up your business, 6 weeks is not long and as has been said it is a quieter time of year.

The clients that want cheap are not loyal and you want loyalty. Clients that don't look elsewhere as they have you and don't want anything else.

Have you a website? If not get one. Also a free ad on Yell.com is brilliant. You can put pictures ect in there. Most of my business come from yell.

Get you business cards out there in the local shops and hairdressers without nail techs if course.

While we still have a few sunny days left (I know it's cool but its worth it). Do you nails fabulous and make your toes sparkly then get out and about. Go into shoe shops and try fab open toe shoes on (your not buying but no one knows) and see how many notice and ask about your nails. It's great I've had so many ask for my card when they have spotted my toes and nails and I say it's my job. Also make up counters or anywhere people will see your hands. It works honest.

Don't be too disheartened keep the drive for success and you will get there

Vicki x

 

[Wonda]

Thanks again ladies, your words are very reassuring.

I've decided to see if i can get in a salon & get doing some clients to bring some money in, as starting out just mobile alone is not working at the moment.

I based my prices on a friend who is mobile, so went on a fact finding exercise, driving around town & the outskirts looking at all the hairdressers which have posters advertising nail services & comparing prices.
I drove passed a salon where my friend used to rent in & they were offering Gelish Manicure & Pedicure for the same price we charge for a Manicure, £25.

So am thinking when i manage to get in a salon (am looking at one on Wednesday next week), i may have to have 2 price lists, a mobile one & a salon one depending on how much my rent will be !!

 

[souz]

im just going to say it as it is!

it takes a year for most businesses to break even and 2 years for businesses to start making a real profit and a high percentage of these will go out of business due to cash flow! when you are starting up you need to make sure that you have money put by for all business and personal needs for the first 6 months at least!!

to be honest you should of done your courses, practised like mad and set up mobile eves and weekends until you had enough clients to be able to leave a full time job. as you havent you are putting yourself under pressure and which in turn will make you not enjoy what you do and will reflect on your treatments.

Having said all that you now have to make the best of what you have started. do a leaflet drop locally, call into local businesses, do you have a website and facebook page?? forget what others are charging and know that you are worth what you charge. xx

 

[Belle Vie]

I agree with souz, in all honesty in the same position I would look for at least part time work to tide me over until I got a client base working evenings and weekends, I know that's not what you want to hear, sorry. Starting up is really hard, keeping things going doesn't come easy either, just when you break even you'll need to invest more in product and it goes that way for a while until you're established, you can probably write off the first year unless you are exceptionally lucky. You need to think now about how you are going to get through the next 2 years.

Don't lower your prices, just seek out the clients that want to pay your worth.

Good luck :hug:

 

[classixuk]

Hi Ladies,

Just thought I'd pop in and offer some advice as I am at the other side of your career plan - I haven't worked for anyone else since about 13 years ago and I run 2 salons which are always busy and make me quite a considerable amount of money.

I hope you don't mind me saying, but comparing yourself to a John Lewis level of quality before you've even finished training is a bit naive. It's like a college trained NVQ 2 hairdresser comparing herself to my top artistic directors who have already proven themselves - and the reason their prices are set at what they are is because they are inundated with requests for appointments already. They didn't start their careers charging those prices - when they were fresh out of training they charged a lot less! It's all about supply and demand and there isn't much demand for a newly qualified nail tech or beauty therapist at already experienced prices.

I think it's probably more important that you build on your technique at this stage - good products are wonderful but they don't make you a better therapist or hairdresser - if I take on a junior stylist who is slow at foils she doesn't just become faster and neater because I hand her a bowl of Aveda colour rather than Goldwell. What I do instead is advertise for models and offer the service near cost so that the technician gets the experience, the client gets a great deal and everyone benefits.

If your appointment book is empty it means you're making nothing and gaining no experience or referrals. You may as well make next to nothing and gain tons of experience instead - it's a much better use of your time when starting out. Seriously, think about it a little more.

Good luck!

 

[sandwiches]

I'm coming up to my 3rd year of business in May and I'm still not where I want to be, I still have days where I only have 1 or 2 clients in. It's a long hard slog, you can't rest for a min. I see so many girls leave college, or do a quick course and set up in business just expecting to be busy but that isn't the reality in any industry.

You have to practise practise practise, only your reputation will get you the business not what you charge. :Love:

 

[Xburburyx]

Don't make your self cheap, there not the clients you want. There paying for quality so if you are confident in your application.. Be happy with your price x

 

[fallonst23]

I feel like I'm taking 2 steps forward &10 back :-(

But I'm hanging in there I've moved from renting a room in a tanning salon to a room within my home, I think it's a bad time of year to be starting in a new place so I've decided to wait until feb & start looking for a shop.

Hope everything works out x

 

[Wonda]

Thanks again for all your comments, as i said in my original post, I understand that businesses take a while to start up & always make a loss in the first year or so, I know loads of self employed people so know how to promote myself, with my Facebook page, Yell listing, website & leaflet drops etc.

If I had a full time job & then considered doing a business, I'd have done it evenings & weekends but i made the decision to do this after being made redundant & not wanting to return to the type of work I was doing as it made me extremely unhappy & depressed.
Being made redundant was a blessing really.

Thankfully I don't have a mortgage, rent to pay or kids to feed so the pressure to go into a job that makes me unhappy until my business picks up isn't there, I'd rather spend my time getting practice in, learning & getting experience ready for when I do have clients.

As I posted this morning, looking at a salon on Wednesday so fingers crossed my client base picks up soon.