Hi all, I'm looking for some advice

[mike b]

I wish to start a small nail station business. Ill pay the set up fees and rent etc, and pay employees to do the nails.

I am a man, i know nothing about nails! haha, but I will get my girlfriend involved too, she knows about nails, but not as a business.

The advice I am looking for is, what kind of qualifications (if any) should I require from prospective staff? Is there a recognised one?

Also, will I need a license, or just some public liability insurance?

Im in the UK by the way.

Some extras I am considering: I have seen nail courses available for about 500 pounds, so its entirely possible that I can send good potential staff on one of these intensive courses if a qualification is necessary. I might even send my girlfriend, as she wants to do this already. And also, if I am unable to figure our all the details myself, I will likely approach an established nail salon in a far away town (so they dont fear my rivalry) and pay them a consultancy fee to explain to me the ins and outs and necessities that I might not/probably dont understand.

any opinions about what I should be looking for in regards to getting good staff?

 

[hair_addict_extensions]

There a NVQ nail courses, I would say all staff would need relevant qualification in order to retain insurance. Intense courses are great for getting a qualification you need, but with nails there is more to this than just having the qualification to do nails. You need to be good! It takes weeks-months of doing set after set, even then your set may look good but there are points to consider like lifting & nails coming off. You have to be prepared for clients to return if any of these issues arise. Your business will build on reputation so you need to ensure your techs know exactly what they're doing. Personally I would start out employing or self-employing an experienced nail tech & have her train the others even if you need to send them on an intensive course just to get them insured, another thing to consider is fairly new techs will take longer to complete there work as there learning, some clients can become fed up not all but some aren't so willing to be patient. It took myself a good 6mnths to perfect my application/timeing/ lifting issues & retain clients & become fully booked.

 

[mike b]

hi

thanks for your reply. i agree that hiring staff who are already competent will be essential. just obviously im not sure yet how many people are looking to be employed in this biz yet. is it easy to find staff with the necessary skills?

yep, i am sure there is a lot i have to learn about this first. i will likely go the consultant route and hire someone for a day to teach me everything they know about running nail salons.

might even try recruiting someone for the job off this site? im gonna be starting up in london area, so someone from up north with a chain of salons, fancy consulting, then let me know via pm and we can discuss details

i literally want to visit your shops, see everything, get supplier lists, costs, prices, margins, staff, equipment, tea Vs coffee, and so on.

 

[Sam.hop]

There are quite a few intensive courses out there and are great for learning the quick ins and outs, but trust me, it does not make you a particularly great nail tech!

I would definitely look to see what qualifications they have .ie. NVQ Level 2 or 3. Diploma. - Personally I would be looking for City & Guilds recognised qualification as they have a permanent recorded database, should you feel the need to contact them regarding the authenticity of the certificate.
- It's also worth asking them to provide any additional training they may have with specific brands .eg. CND, NSI.

* Just as an add on, it would definitely be worth spending some time to see what brands, regarding nail systems, that are already used in your area and are popular .eg. Gellish or Shellac? (Just have a google of those)

I would also ask to see whether they had a portfolio or book of work to see what they can do, or else you could every Tom, Dick and Harry who can 'paint nails' applying for the position.

When I very first joined the industry I seeked out the advice from an establish business. Some were happy to help. Some were not, so I feel it's karmic justice to help you. If you'd like anymore specific help, feel free to PM me. Good luck!