I think I need a bit of advice

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jurate

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 16, 2011
Messages
915
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Location
dublin, ireland
Hi all,

Ive been keeping a bit quiet here lately as ive had a lot to think about.

I think ive put myself in an awkward situation, where i feel im stuck in this ruthless circle that is actually destroying me , ill try to make it short, but heres the story:

I started in this industry in 2011. I was really, really lucky that i secured myself a room at the salon just before i even finished college. The initial agreement was 30/70 split with me providing all my products. It got changed to 40/60 split before i even had my first client. To which i agreed anyway as i was desperate to start. It worked great at first considering i had my full time job and this was just a little extra . I was very keen to learn everything so i didnt mind helping the salon owner with everthing - i set up her facebook, email, i wrote her promotuonal emails, set up her client database, did her books, cashed till, helped her design her website, i constantly kept my eye on new trends and informed her off them, i kept training in new treatments, helped her promote the salon any way possible, i didnt min working from 9 am to 1 am on my days off, basically i gave up my life for the salon that is not mine. It worked well while i wasnt too busy.

Fast forward to 2014, im booked up morning to late night, ive quit my full time job to pursue carreer in beauty, ive become an educator as well. Ive covered everything single bit thats required to run a salon i didnt mind looking after it when the owner was on holidays, shes been on four of them over last year , and she still charged me full rent for that time that she was away.

My problem is i have no full time job to fall back to, ive separated from my husband, i live and pay good rent for my apartment, which is obviously my problem, however, its gone to a point where she is somehow taking almost 50% off all of my earnings, still demads me to do all the extra stuff for the salon, even wash clients hair to help hairdresser when shes busy, she expects me to sweep floors and open up the salon cause shes not bothered to turn up to work before 12 pm when we are supposed to start at 10 am.. ive gotten so busy that the percent i pay (the way she deducts it off me now is my earned amount- electricity (2-4 euro for an hour!!!) - card payment fee if paid by card - vat - the agreed 40%). Its gotten to a point where the more i make the more things she finds to deduct money off me for. Im booked flat out, i work with no breaks for up to 13-14 hour days and sometimes i have to choose wether i should be buying toothpaste or toilet paper ... I can barely afford petrol to go to work!

The amounts i pay her and 50% higher than her WHOLE salons rent, im constantly out of stock because i cant afford it ..

The last straw was when i was on another 13 hour day and she came into my treatment roomand started giving out about me being useless to my client lying on a couch and having her treatment done!!

I know its time for me to move on, ive done some research and a lot of the rooms that are up for rent are at least 8 times less than i pay now but.. ive no savings, i ran out of all the money i had put aside, which means i wouldnt have money for deposot should i need to pay it... Obviously, i have a good client base , ive made my name in the area i work in and it hurts so bad when people praise me and then im stuck in this whole situation.

Ive tried to talk to the owner, however she completely ignores me, whenever i ask for anything reduced she just blanks me, i feel so resentful to that place even though i love my job so much. If it wasnt for the few mobile clients i have i would never even manage to make ends meet. Im self employed so obviously im not entitled to any support and am so busy that i qouldnt have time for any part time job.

Its scary, cause i am afraid to loose clients when i move on, but ive bitten the bullet and have arranged a viewing for one treatment room that is 7/8 times less than what i pay now so am hoping that if i really have to i will manage to borrow money for my deposit for it and will grow from there. I just hate admitting defeat, but this whole situation is destroying my life and i honestly cant take it any more. It was my own fault that the situation has become what it is simply, because ive done too much from day 1 , however my jntentions were to learn thinga, not to become a slave - this is how i feel at the moment.

The funny thing is that i am the only person that brings in money to the salon. And the day when i leave the owner will be loosing up to 1500 euro a month - thats her rent, electricity and haordressers wages paid for ... But she does not seem to appreciate or understand me ...

Am so sorry for such a long rant but even as i type this ive a pounding headache thinking it all through and just needed to vent and maybe some of you will have a wise wprd of advice xxx
 
If you've built her business up do well you can do it again....many clients will follow you, but get out now before she brings you down any more, she doesn't appreciate you. X
 
If you've built her business up do well you can do it again....many clients will follow you, but get out now before she brings you down any more, she doesn't appreciate you. X

I do know she does not appreciate me, the most recent incidents have proven that to me. At the moment shes also 7 1/2 months pregnant as well and to be honest i hope to get out of there as soon as , as i know shell be expecting me to run a salon while shes on maternity. Its funny how i realise now that honesty isnt always a good policy ... As i never tried to deceive her in any sort of way while ive been used and abused haha, well i feel like the joke is on me. Im putting a lot of my hopes into upcoming viewing that ive arranged , its hard but by the looks of it that starting from the bottom all over again is the only way forward to me x just this time ill have to be a lot more ruthless and business minded. The things life teaches us, huh :)

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Tell all your clients your going mobile and offer them 10% off there first mobile treatment a and a free incentive like scalp massage or free file and polish with there treatment and slowly start again you'll pick up fast and be better off x
 
You have single handedly built two fantastic businesses, yours and hers!!!! Ans she is taking th p. Her behaviour will be so ingrained after 4 years, she will see you as a cash cow. I love the mobile idea go do it!
But you need to get out now.
When she goes on maternity leave, she will expect you to run her business as well and still take 50% of you earnings.

To be honest, you should have left months ago.
 
You have single handedly built two fantastic businesses, yours and hers!!!! Ans she is taking th p. Her behaviour will be so ingrained after 4 years, she will see you as a cash cow. I love the mobile idea go do it!
But you need to get out now.
When she goes on maternity leave, she will expect you to run her business as well and still take 50% of you earnings.

To be honest, you should have left months ago.

I know i should have, i kept hoping she'd change. I kept thinking that i cant move on without money behind me, howevee as i was talking to someone just recently i was given the idea that if i moved and even if only a handful of my clients moved with me, id still manage as i wouldnt have to pay these cosmic rates shes charging me so id be even then. This is what put my head into spin.

All of my clients have solely come through word of mouth so im hoping once ive changed my spot even if not all of them would know, the word would spread again ...

I have been working towards moving on for the past short while , i just know i have to kick myself up my a**e right now and bite the bullet x

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If you are self employed, they are your clients so can follow you wherever you move too and you are within your rights to tell them where your moving too, if possible definitely get out of there before she goes on maternity leave, or else it will be harder to leave, best of luck with everything :)
 
Your lashes are amazing and clients will follow you, and there are more clients out there. Do you have a contract at your salon? The joke is most certainly not on you its on her- she will be so much worse off and you will be laughing and earning a load more, plus you have learnt a lot about how to and how not to run a business and salon...or be taken advantage of.

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Sometimes we can be so successful and achieve great things and still do things that are crazy. If someone else posted this and you read it as an outsider you would think they are mad. I don't know what you're waiting for. Get every clients address, either go mobile or move, tell every client what you are doing and GO. I don't think you'll realise quite how much better it can be until you do. You have fallen into the role of this woman's gofer and for as long as you let her she will behave badly.
Take control and start putting your plan together.
Best of luck

Vicki x
 
As the comments above have already said, you have built up 2 businesses - Well Done :D Have you worked out costings for this new venture? After reading your post I do believe you will succeed as you sound a like you are not afraid of hard work. Look into the possibilty of going mobile to keep an income whilst persuing this other premises. I do hope it all works out well for you. Keep us posted. x :)

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Is going mobile a possibility for you, rather than renting out a room which you say that unfortunately you can't pay the deposit for due to your circumstances?
 
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I was in exactly the same position as you (I MEAN IDENTICAL!!!)you have done well to last this long! I'd had enough after 8 months!!They constantly changed the rules to suit themselves, I had no written contract, even though they said they would give me one! The "RENT" was 25% initially (bearing in mind, this was 2001) then they changed it to 30%, then again, when they saw I was doing better than them! To 40% & I buy all my own products (which I was doing anyway!) or 50% & they buy them for me! & they wanted me to use an inferior brand of product too!
The thing I forgot was I NEVER worked for them!! I was only ever self employed, renting a space! They got too involved In what I was doing, equally I did too much for their side of the business! Well I'd had enough, this is what I did....
1. Took MY record cards out of the salon & kept them at home
2. Very slowly over a couple of days(so they wouldn't notice) took my products away
3. Took MY takings & the rest of my stuff & just walked out one morning, saying as I left "have a nice life!!" (Nothing more, nothing less!) I felt sooooo liberated, I know it sounds dramatic but it felt like id just been freed from prison!! After I left contacted all my clients directly just briefly explaining that I had left, (not divulging too much as it's unprofessional & unnecessary)& that I am now mobile & would be able to treat them in their own home, which most were thrilled about! Fast forward 14 years on & I'm still mobile with a fantastic client base, whilst their business funnily enough, no longer exists!! I hope in someway, this may give you the confidence to leave. (I did end up going back in, for one final showdown, but that was for my own closure...... But that's another story!!) GOOD LUCK, keep us updated with your progress! Xxxx



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Lots of good advice.
If you take on a new room, have your own credit card machine, so you are in charge of the fees. I doubt you needed to have been paying VAT on your own self employed turnover?
Keep strong.
 
Go mobile for a while until you have some cash then go back into renting a room again

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