Home salon - male clients?

[applepie]

Hi
I need your advice!!
I have recently opened a Beauty Treatment room at home after long break out to have children. I do all the usual beauty treatments including massage and as my room is at home, I decided not to take male clients.

I have had a couple of calls I had to turn down (one was a female enquiring for back massage for her boyfriend & the other a man but I didn't ask what treatment he was interested in). I just explained I did ladies only but am worried I am turning down clients when I really need to be building some up!

I'm not sure what to do. I have looked at my ad again and feel sure it is clear I am only offering regular beauty treatments so assume these are genuine clients but I don't think I am really comfortable with the idea of male clients coming to my treatment room, upstairs in my home.

What does everyone else do? If you only treat ladies do you state this in your ads? Do you get many approaches from male clients?

All views would be much appreciated!! Thank you x

 

[*Garfield*]

Hi hun, I have a home salon and I dodnt do male clients either. I dont put in on my adverts, but on the odd occasion I get a man wanting a tratment I just explain that I am a ladies only service. I'm not too bothered about missing out on that bit of money as I really would not be comfortable doing treatments on a man when I am here on my own 90% of the time. I think you have to do what feel right for you. I do have the odd one or two boyfriend/hubbys of clients that have brow waxes but they have to come with their partners.:hug:

 

[sj1973]

i dont do beauty so cant really comment although i would not like strange men coming in my house upstairs alone either.....what bout taking another female on and both you and her treat people same time in house so your not alone?? xxxx

 

[~Emmsybabes~]

I wouldnt do it, and I wouldnt worry about not doing it ,and I wouldnt miss the money either,
Nope Not a chance
I am sure there are plenty of genuinely lovely males out there genuinley wanting a relaxing treatment...but it only takes 1 weirdo,
If your gut instinct is telling you not to do it ....dont do it hunny xxxx

 

[sprinkles]

Hi,
I work from home and offer male manicure and male pedicure, I haven't had any calls for it as yet but like you I didn't want to be turning work away. If I do get a call for either of these I will only offer an evening appointment, when I know hubby will be home. hth x

 

[leah82]

Erm ok I'm a bit on the fence with this as I see no problem if the client is someone you know will be ok, so I wouldn't say no. But even so my hubby is usually in the other room anyway when doing massages, etc.... so its not really a problem as I just arrange those appointments round when he will be there, problem solved!!!!

The thing is people comment on the fact men are two scared or shy to have nail, beauty & holistic treatments, as its a girl/woman thing, well just having female only salons will not help this. I know your safety comes first but we should also encourage not just dismiss. There are weirdos in any profession, tattooing, piercing etc.... but if you have your doubts about a client just say no!! Men are genuinely more interested in this industry now, I have to say I've converted a few & they benefit just as much as we women do!!

 

[fozzyo]

This is something that is one of my passions, both as a male therapist and client. I find it so hard to find decent therapists at times! First thing to remember by working Ladies only you are immediately cutting down your potential client base by over 48% (according to the 2001 census).

I know of a lot of therapists who make this decision, to only treat female clients. I understand the reason for treating ladies only, but I would suggest you explore options for expanding your client base. Quite a few therapists treat male clients by referral only, from known & trusted friends / clients. A panic button the rooom is useful, or if you want something to shock & dissorientate a rape alarm / air horn would do the trick nicely.

On another forum I will always remember a comment by one of the highly respected female members that all to often articles about this subject always "see all men as predators and all women and defenseless victims."

When taking an appointment discuss it with the client, you will soon tell how genuine they are. Don't take appointments within 24 - 48hrs of the call, take a contact number and call back the day before / on the day to confirm the appointment.

If coming for a massage go through part of the client consultation, why do they want it, what do they want from the treatment, how would they like to feel at the end etc.

These few minutes will help you decide if your comfortable with this person as a client. If not or your instinct says no don't book them in.

Mat xx

 

[Tracey Park]

I agree with mat on this one.

I would say 70% of my business now is male based and i work from home.

I was turning so many male clients away and to be honest if I cant do them someone will and im turning business down. Its not good to do that. Male or female.

Yes at first I felt very vunerable but I follow the following rules and they work fine.

1 - New clients - evenings and weekends only for first 2-3 months. Hubby is always home and if not I have a chaperone in the house not in the room. None of my clients mind and I email them with a letter stating this.

2 - New Client - Never book a client on the same day or at short notice.

3 - Once a rappor is built up then they can come during the day if you are happy with this. Only when you are ready though. If in doubt stick to evening and weekends.

This has worked for me but may not work for everyone and my business has built through this. I advertise on the web only and have had plenty of male business though this. It helps as well that im the only one in my area that does offer a full male waxing menu. Am currently doing my level 3 in holistics so this will be added to my service menu from December.

Hope this helps,

 

[amirose]

I work from home and as said by someone else, I will accomodate male clients but at a time when I know my partner will be home. I do have some male clients who I do mobile visit for all who our reccomendations. And no i dont feel afraid why? well ones in a wheelchair, anothers in his 80s ... lol
I also think if they come with thier wife girlfriend etc your pretty safe too.
Personally I wouldnt advertise I dont because at the end of they day the appointments at your discretion - if you dont feel comfatable you wouldnt do it - regardless of wether they were male or female.

 

[weezie]

You are obviously not comfortable doing this, so don't stress about it, just don't do it, why put yourself in a position you feel anxious about when you have your own business so can make your on decsions on who you can and can't treat. I only go to male clients houses when a female is present in the house, I have turned male clients away and most understand, anyone with a female relative will understand why. This is what I feel comfortable with :hug:

 

[EMMA AT ELITE]

Hi all,
I can see where applepie is coming from,
But how about slowly starting of with introducing husbands, partners, and boyfriends of clients. See how you feel with them, keep your advert/leaflet worded the same, but just maybe do male clients if they have been recommend to you.
Or better still have a page in your leaflet or separate flyer saying "Male grooming" and just list what you will feel comfortable doing.
I only do back neck shoulder massage on men and not full body as I wouldnt feel comfortable.
I know this might be wrong but, if a bloke comes in the salon asking for massages and i dont like the look of him, i just say sorry its ladies only, (we do get a lot of pervey blokes around, i know you shouldnt judge a book by its cover, but we have to trust our instints!!)
Lets face it, we all love being pampered and I think men shouldnt be left out.
AND BOY THEY KNOW HOW TO TIP!!!!!
The most one man gave me for tip,was for a back massage, and he gave me an etra £20, and thats was the price of the massage. i couldnt believe it!!!

Here are all the treatments I offer men;

• back massage
• indian head massage
• manicure
• pedicure
• ebw
• eye lash tint
• eye brow tint
• aqua detox
• back wax
• chest wax
• arm wax
• foot and leg massage
• hand and arm massage

All are popular and the men seem happy with their choice!

Hope this is helpful to you

Emma

 

[aj1]

I am a home based business as well. I have had a male client that was getting waxing done for a year and a half. The first little while I either made sure hubby or my son would be home.

I have a seperate entrance for the business. After feeling comfy with him I decided to take him whenever as I trusted him. What a mistake that was, you think you know someone well enough but you don't. Unless you have someone there with you, be very careful.

I work by appointment only, I know this hinders me from doing better in my business but I simply cannot take walk in's for fear of the unknown. If I get male's calling I simply book when hubby is home. I will never do it any other way.

 

[fozzyo]

I work by appointment - there is nothing at all wrong with this. Unless you have a Salon with a receptionist it is impossible to do it any other way.

 

[Martigirl]

I advertise that I offer treatments for both males and females. I take as many precautions for my safety as I would with any unknown client, but I am keen to ensure that any male clients I have are put at ease and not made to feel like a predator for requiring a back massage or wax.

I probably feel very strongly about not alienating male clients because I am a mother of 2 young boys and I don't want them to be treated with distrust.

Always go with your gut feeling whether the client is male or female.

 

[Brandywine]

As I work from a home salon I feel that the very people who I attract are people who wouldn't feel comfortable with going to a high street salon. These are very often men, so I would be turning away a large amount of my target clients.
As others have said I only work by appointments, I always have someone else in the house (with male clients), and always give a professional image so people can't possible get the wrong idea.
This works for me, but everyone is different and you just have to do what you feel comfortable with.
I also agree wholeheartedly with martigirl about our sons and distrust.

 

[BABSann]

I treat both male and female clients in the salon,if we are ever alone we wouldn't do any male clients that we had not treated beforehand,this is simple a case of safety.You cannot possibly judge by talking to a male if he is legit or not,panic buttons are imho as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike.Sorry:green:

About a year ago someone(not sure who it was tbh)asked me how I felt about this very same subject and said if I had a panic button at work would I feel differently about doing male clients alone,I replied," absolutely not",reason being that it would be virtually impossible for anyone to get to me or any other therapist before any harm had come to us.

Now I love massage and I enjoy carrying out treatments on both men and women,in fact we have a large quantity of male clients,these regulars I have absolutely no problem with,even when alone,most I have known for over 4 years and I would think if they were going to try anything dodgey it would have happened by now.Hope so anyway,again we can never be 100%.

In the home I would always say make sure someone is in the house with you,for at least a good few times and then when you get to know your client dont make it known you are home alone.Keep a door closed with the TV on quietly but loud enough for the client to hear as they walked by, and think someone is there.

Bring into the conversation how your partner is watching a movie or cooking,anything to let your client think you're NOT alone.

We have to keep ourselves safe,regardless of if the client is male or female.I know it's not fair to descriminate but most men are more than understanding on this very issue,there are ways around this problem just be vigilant with safety,dont say,' no male clients', as already mentioned just, 'male clients by arrangement only'.Men need their treatments the same as women but we need to be safe,sorry but that is the most important issue of all.

 

[applepie]

Thank you so much for all your views.

I agree with both sides of the coin (indecisive always was my problem!!). I will take on all your advice and think I may try booking male clients on a Saturday when I know my husband could be here.

What a fab idea of offering just back, shoulder massage (rather than full body) to start with as this could be good way to build up my confidence without feeling so worried about any 'misunderstandings'!.

I have 2 sons too and know what you mean about the problems for genuine male clients. I think you all helped me see it was only the massage I was concerned about (as well as safety of course) and it does seem a shame to turn away waxing, manicures, pedis etc when I have no problems with these.

Thank you again and if anyone else has any opinions I would still love to hear them! xxx

 

[blossom]

I wouldnt do it, and I wouldnt worry about not doing it ,and I wouldnt miss the money either,
Nope Not a chance
I am sure there are plenty of genuinely lovely males out there genuinley wanting a relaxing treatment...but it only takes 1 weirdo,
If your gut instinct is telling you not to do it ....dont do it hunny xxxx

You summed it up Emmsybabes!!!



I only do nails so hadn't really thought of men booking . . . silly me . . . anyway when one did ring to book himself in for some French extensions I had to quickly come to the decision that I was ladies only . . . hope I didn't offend but not too bothered, I'm sure there's a niche market there somewhere but I don't want it :lol:

Obviously its different with other beauty treatments but basically, your comfort and security should come top of the list babe, if it makes you feel uncomfortable there's no point.