How to respond?

[Lipstick Kisses]

Just got this message from a client!

Hiya, my nails were done nearly a month ago and are now in horrific condition now. I've never had braking, peeling, sore nails in my life. I took them off as you said with varnish remover. If I'd have known what a state they would be in for weeks after I wouldn't have bothered. My best friend is getting married next week and they are going to look awful for her wedding x

She had Gelish on her natural nails, no extensions. She contacted me a week ago about having them removed but didn't want to pay so rather than have her peel them off and ruin her nails I told her how to soak them off:

Hiya, it's xx for just a removal or xx for a removal and redo. Or if you want to do it yourself you need remover with acetone in, cotton wool pads, tinfoil and an orangewood stick or cuticle pusher. Cut cotton wool into squares to cover your nails, soak cotton wool in remover, place over nails, wrap in tin foil for 15 mins and then gently scrape off the lifting pieces with a cuticle pusher. And just repeat till it's all off =) xx

What do I say?? I've never had an issue before, it must from her removing them as I certainly didn't ruin her nails with the application! I've attached a pic of the nails I did for her so you can see I didn't butcher them!

Please help, I don't want to be rude but it's not my fault!

 

[noreenoconnor]

I think your reply on telling her how to remove them was misleading.

She does not need a remover with acetone in it , she needs pure acetone . By using a weak remover I suspect she had difficulty getting them off and has damaged them but in truth I do think your partly to blame. You gave her incorrect advice.

I would offer her a consultation to assess the condition of her nails and if you do have IBX on your service list I would give her a complimentary treatment

In the future I would only sell removal packs with the correct remover and instructions to people who really don't want to come back, don't leave them buy there own products as they won't be the correct ones and gelish is hard enough to remove even with professional products!

 

[bdnails]

If she doesn't want to pay to have them professionally removed then she will have to suffer the consequences of removing them herself. I use artistic and their remover isn't pure acetone. If everyone knew how to remove them properly then why would they use professionals at all? You wouldn't tell her exactly how to apply it so why teach her how to remove. She has refused your advice. The only thing id say is maybe in your consultation explain that if she's committing to having gelish then it is strongly advised she has them professionally removed or risk damaging her own nails. I wouldn't worry too much. Maybe just explain she should have had you take them off and get her in for an ibx treatment like suggested above or even just a mini manicure x

 

[carlyema]

Theres a lot to be said for offering free removal.

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[EmmaLF]

This is exactly why I offer free removal of any shellac I've put on. I charge to remove shellac that was applied by someone else.
The way I look at it is I don't care if they aren't having it redone, I applied it to their nails and therefore I should remove it without them having to pay more. I'd rather not risk them try to remove it at home and wreck their nails. For the sake of the 15 minutes it takes to remove them I'd rather just do it for them.
Anyway,
The problem here is you've told her how to remove them at home,
She probably didn't do it properly (or it didn't soak off properly for the reason given above by someone else) and now her nails are wrecked. Next time say you wouldn't recommend removing it at home.
If they want to look it up online to remove they can but then if their nails get ruined it's their own fault, not yours.

 

[nailpod]

I kind of agree with Noreen.
Gelish also needs to be or have top layer buffed with file to break the seal, unless you using a soft gel like Calgel or shellac then you just wrap.
So she probably hasn't done it before and did ruin her own nails by removing them.
I think you shouldn't have in the same message given her option to do herself. You should said : it costs x amount bla bla. And let her choose to remove or come to you.
Also clients fault for not following up properly and find out if she been using her cuticle oil regularity ! This works


Beauty at your finger tips!

 

[noreenoconnor]

. I use artistic and their remover isn't pure acetone.

I use the CND nourishing remover which also isn't pure acetone however both of our removers are professional products. To tell a person who has no nail training that they need something with acetone in it , they are going to reach for nail polish remover that just isn't suitable for the job

 

[bdnails]

I use the CND nourishing remover which also isn't pure acetone however both of our removers are professional products. To tell a person who has no nail training that they need something with acetone in it , they are going to reach for nail polish remover that just isn't suitable for the job

True! Didn't think of that lol x

 

[Paige@TheClinik]

I'm sorry but I completely disagree, if she was having trouble getting them off she would have contacted the nail tech or even google!
She hasn't stated she pulled them off she stated she removed with polish remover she has no where mentioned that she pulled them off so you can not blame the nail tech for her possibly removing them with force and not saying she did so.

 

[noreenoconnor]

I suspect that the client used nail polish remover which did not soften the gelish enough to remove it properly , and roughly scraped the product off her nails . Yes the client has caused this damage, but she was only following instructions given to her by her nail tech

As professionals we are trained to treat the natural nail with respect , and we gently scrape product from the nail. Clients are impatient and she more than likely used strong pressure to remove the gelish causing damage.

I'm not saying it's completely the techs fault but she did give misleading information to her client which the client then acted on.

 

[happyfeet]

Whilst it's not Gelish, I removed my own Shellac with just polish remover bought from Boots as I wasn't at home at the time and it did remove perfectly fine.

You could have explained the removal process better in your text, however the client did not want to pay for removal, so what can you do?

I offer free removal if they are having a redo, I wouldn't offer free removal without it, or if you do, then that needs to be factored in to your costings, so essentially its not really free. I know its 15 minutes but time is money.

As to what you do in this situation I personally would pick up the phone and have a chat with her. Ask her her process of removal. I quite agree, if she was having an issue removing herself, then she could have called you. I think I'd accept some responsibility for not explaining the removal process properly, but I don't think you can be held fully accountable if she's prized them off. I would offer for her to come in, assess the nails and perhaps give her nails a nice tidy up, but I would explain that (if there are signs of forced removal) she should have contacted you. Just keep your conversation light and friendly. That's how I'd handle it anyway. :hug:

 

[NancySyd]

Yeah, I'd have to agree with Noreen, carlyema, and EmmaLF. Your instructions were not clear enough; I doubt that any quick message could be. This is a professional product, including the removers. It was unlikely that a client would have a remover with enough acetone to do the job properly. You don't need pure acetone, but something pretty close. Consumer nail polish remover isn't strong enough - she probably looked at the label and it had some acetone - who knows how much. And she probably didn't buff the top coat, soaked her nails too long, and scraped too hard. And then she didn't know to clean them up and apply Solar Oil afterwards. They probably looked a wreck.

Again, she's the one that did it, not you, but you do have some blame in this. It is worth considering whether your pricing structure undermines your goals. You want to make it easy and less expensive for clients to take good care of their nails. Why not offer her a free consultation to see how bad it is, and maybe an IBX or Vitagel treatment?

Rather than play the blame game (which she's already started), treat this as an opportunity to educate a client.

 

[ch-ela]

Just got this message from a client!

Hiya, my nails were done nearly a month ago and are now in horrific condition now. I've never had braking, peeling, sore nails in my life. I took them off as you said with varnish remover. If I'd have known what a state they would be in for weeks after I wouldn't have bothered. My best friend is getting married next week and they are going to look awful for her wedding x

She had Gelish on her natural nails, no extensions. She contacted me a week ago about having them removed but didn't want to pay so rather than have her peel them off and ruin her nails I told her how to soak them off:

Hiya, it's xx for just a removal or xx for a removal and redo. Or if you want to do it yourself you need remover with acetone in, cotton wool pads, tinfoil and an orangewood stick or cuticle pusher. Cut cotton wool into squares to cover your nails, soak cotton wool in remover, place over nails, wrap in tin foil for 15 mins and then gently scrape off the lifting pieces with a cuticle pusher. And just repeat till it's all off =) xx

What do I say?? I've never had an issue before, it must from her removing them as I certainly didn't ruin her nails with the application! I've attached a pic of the nails I did for her so you can see I didn't butcher them!

Please help, I don't want to be rude but it's not my fault!
View attachment 73710

Nail Harmony sell remover packs. Why don't you buy a couple of them and show them to your clients after the service when you ask about rebooking/removal. Include this into your consultation or aftercare advice. The Nail Harmony Gelish aftercare leaflets are super to give to clients too.

So that lets them know their options. That will make it clear to them that if they use any other method, it is their own responsibility if their nails suffer.
Invite her in for a free consultation to assess her nails now and what can be done for the wedding. Use this as an opportunity to educate your client.

 

[Lipstick Kisses]

Thanks everyone. I'm mobile which is why I charge for removal as I have to take into account travel time, petrol costs etc if I was salon based I would probably offer it free. At the appointment she said she would probably want to remove them herself so, although I advised that me doing it would be best, I explained at the appointment how to remove in more detail and told her she needed to be gentle and take her time as her products wouldn't be as strong as mine. The text was more of a recap of what I had already said.

I replied explaining it was probably the removal that damaged them and offered her a complimentary IBX or half price Gelish + free removal but she hasn't replied yet.

Thanks everyone x

 

[blossom]

She's after a free redo for the wedding.

Its really not expensive to pay for a removal and she was made aware when you put them on that they didnt just wipe off like varnish.

I think you've offered her quite enough!

 

[twid]

It sounds like she's angling for a free service for her friends wedding, I maybe being unfair to her but these sorts of texts always set alarm bells ringing!

Have you thought of offering a removal pack? I find then a good aid to clients who can't or don't want to come back. I make them up myself so am in charge of what's in it, there are very clear comprehensive instructions and I also talk them through the process when they purchase it. I find they sell well and clients feel looked after if they can get it from me.

As it's the first instance you've had I wouldn't worry too much but put it down as part of the learning curve.

Karaxxx

 

[nicole333]

I do think she has contacted you now hoping that you can give her a nice new set of nails for the wedding.

There are people that want just a one off service and so have no intention of paying to return for removal (I also charge unless it's a redo). So for those who insist on removing their own I have a logo'd up printed out set of instructions for them to take away as we all know that we forget things when the time comes. They also have the opportunity to purchase a removal kit if they want to. Everything is explained with the written information as a back up. They can also contact me for advice.

 

[Caroline2013]

It sounds like she's angling for a free service for her friends wedding, I maybe being unfair to her but these sorts of texts always set alarm bells ringing!

Have you thought of offering a removal pack? I find then a good aid to clients who can't or don't want to come back. I make them up myself so am in charge of what's in it, there are very clear comprehensive instructions and I also talk them through the process when they purchase it. I find they sell well and clients feel looked after if they can get it from me.

As it's the first instance you've had I wouldn't worry too much but put it down as part of the learning curve.

Karaxxx

Hi Kara can you please explain what you have in your removal packs and how much you charge - mainly how you store a small amount of remover, what container do you use for the liquid? and what do you put the kit in? a photo would be great too if you could I have bought a couple of the Gelish removal kits in the past to try but have to retail them at £10 and people just don't want to pay it so they are gathering dust xx

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[Beau-ty]

On reading this its definately made me realise how i really need to reiterate to clients about removal. I know the best way is always by us but I have found its not always convenient for clients. Some of mine don't have removal and redo they like to remove in between appointments and even though I offer a very small removal charge they like to do themselves. So when i first started i purchased a well known chemist varnish remover with acetone in and tried the removal on myself and it removed exactly the same as NH remover. I did this because i thought it was better than them buying pure acetone and over drying.
Clients however don't always understand instructions I found when one client was having difficultly in removing, discovered she wasn't filing the topcoat and she was using a non acetone remover, which is what I recommend for natural nail and polish.
I find the removal kits are expensive to retail so would be interested to know if anyone puts their own together and the costings if thats what they really want to do. Its been interesting following all your advise x

 

[nicole333]

I put my own together and include a 30ml bottle of either DSolve or NR (charged according to choice) some bandage style wraps from Sally's for ease of application by a non professional so they get the best chance of good contact on the nail. There is an orange wood stick in the pack and I also include a mini Solar Oil.

I'm not comfortable saying what it costs me on an open forum but it's not hard to work out. I buy the acetone resistant bottles from ebay. I retail the DSolve ones for £7 and the NR ones for £8. The liquid will be enough for x2 removals so they have the option to buy extra wraps from me. They also get full printed out instructions and extra advice from me if they needed it at the time.

For them to return to me I charge £8 for a removal appointment alone, including shaping of the nail and a moisture pack of Cuticle Eraser, Solar Oil and hand massage with CND lotion.