Offering Shellac & Gelish, a few questions

[Jodmarie]

Hi everyone,

I have had my own business for 11 years and in 2012 I sold my Gelish kit and invested in CND Shellac. I now have the entire kit and every colour they sell, however, as we all know it does not suit everybody and some clients struggle to get two weeks out of it. I also sometimes feel that's I miss the Gelish colours and the glitters and brights that they offer.

Anyway, I have been sat thinking tonight and I am considering investing in Gelish again to offer my clients a choice. However, with shellac my clients return every 2 weeks, with Gelish they will be able to go three weeks between treatments. Do you think it is acceptable to charge more for Gelish?

I was thinking £20 for Shellac and £26 for Gelish. Do you think this is okay or should I charge the same and take on new clients to compensate?

Any opinions appreciated.

Thank you in advance

Jody xxx

 

[squidgernetball]

I'd just bite the bullet and charge the same. We offer shellac and gel ll. Gel ll is cheaper to buy and generally lasts longer than shellac but I find many clients will still return fortnightly with both for removal and reapplication.

I increased both to £25.

Vic x

 

[blossom]

Jodie I'm in the exact same position as you.

I find it embarrassing when new clients get shorter wear from shellac than gelish or gel 2, when they've swapped because shellac as a brand is supposed to be better, the leader, the original ... Then doesn't last as well.

I think I will charge more, maybe offering an intro discount, but otherwise it's like taking a pay cut, and where's the sense in that?!

 

[kirstie1980]

My opinion- charge the same. If clients find out that you're charging more for one because its longer wearing then perhaps you will lose business on the Shellac. Id be sticking to one brand rather than the two and just sell the shellac

 

[noreenoconnor]

Charging more for Gelish just because it lasts longer is probably not wise, However, I used to stock gelish and the service takes much longer than shellac because it's quite difficult to remove, particularly when left on for 3-4 weeks. You also have the dry brushing etc which takes only a few seconds per nail but all adds up. If Shellac takes 45-1hr for removal and reapplication but gelish takes 1-1.5 for removal and reapplication I see nothing wrong with charging more for your time. If they take the same amount of time for you I would keep the price the same.

I would also consider why you choose to stop stocking Gelish the first time around? Have those reasons changed?

For me personally I choose to stop offering it as it took longer to remove, required a light buff of the natural nail on application (I know many skip this step but that is manufacturers recommendation) , requires buffing at removal stage (again I know many skip this step but I could never get it to remove cleanly without buffing top coat off) , Found the colours to be less photo stable - some of the pinks in shellac do fade but I had blues , pinks , purples and red fading with Gelish.

I did find that Gelish did last longer on most of my clients, particularly those with challenging nails such as peeling , thin , weak and bendy nails. But I found that it would essentially work for a while but if continued would make the nails worse, and the client would want to take a break from them .... This was probably the main reason I chose to only stock only Shellac. My clients with tricky nails work with me by following a good homecare program and taking care of their nails, and we work with them to get their nails into a healthy condition where there shellac will then last 2-3 weeks AND their nails will be in good condition when they remove them , if they ever choose to

Of course it really depends on what your clients want, mine definitely wanted both the brand name product and to keep the natural integrity of their nails.... I do occasionally get a client who really doesn't care what condition their nails may be left in as long as it lasts 3-5 weeks..... and to be honest these are usually the type of clients I like to avoid

 

[Jodmarie]

Thank you for all of your responses. They are very much appreciated. To be honest there wasn't a reason for leaving Gelish really, just that I had a few colours fade and that I was focusing more on Shellac.

Gelish do have a HUGE colour range and I think it's only fair to admit that I would never be able to own all of them as a small business (just myself)

All of my clients bar 2, currently have shellac. Gel/power polish is huge for my salon. I do find a few of my regular clients having breaks from shellac though as they struggle to make it last 2 weeks.

I also feel that shellac is really lacking in colours at the moment. We have been asking for glitters and brights for YEARS - and still nothing! Yes they have the additives and lecente but that's an additional step and requires a double top coat. Even my clients are getting bored with the new colour ranges.

As I say a lot of my clients have shellac, usually over their extensions so the soak off won't effect these clients, but I can't help thinking that Gelish would help the clients that struggle to get the 2 week manicure I advertise.

 

[blossom]

Noreen a really informative post ... I'm thinking twice about gelish after reading and may look into gel2, does anyone know if the nails need buffing? Or etching on applicayion? X

 

[cheekychick]

Noreen a really informative post ... I'm thinking twice about gelish after reading and may look into gel2, does anyone know if the nails need buffing? Or etching on applicayion? X

For gelish you don't need to buff the nail. (I personally don't)
Even if you do it's not like you remove layers of the nail plate. And after removal you aren't trained to buff over the whole nail again only the regrowth area.
.
Removal takes me 10 minutes and I don't need to 'scrape' the nail at all.

I switched from shellac to Gelish over a year ago and haven't looked back. My clients love it and so do I and every single one of them has healthy natural nails after removal.

It's a matter of finding what works for you.
Use the Search facility on here and look up the brands you are interested in, you'll find lots more useful information about all of them. x

 

[cheekychick]

Noreen a really informative post ... I'm thinking twice about gelish after reading and may look into gel2, does anyone know if the nails need buffing? Or etching on applicayion? X

For gelish you don't need to buff the nail. (I personally don't)
Even if you do it's not like you remove layers of the nail plate. And after removal you aren't trained to buff over the whole nail again only the regrowth area.
.
Removal takes me 10 minutes and I don't need to 'scrape' the nail at all.

I switched from shellac to Gelish over a year ago and haven't looked back. My clients love it and so do I and every single one of them has healthy natural nails after removal.

It's a matter of finding what works for you.
Use the Search facility on here and look up the brands you are interested in, you'll find lots more useful information about all of them. x

 

[cheekychick]

Not sure why it posted twice [emoji53]

 

[Jodmarie]

Great thank you!! Could I ask what colours your started with when you originally swapped to Gelish? I am looking and getting the big starter kit and I get to choose 12 colours. I will buy the French kit separately.

 

[cheekychick]

Great thank you!! Could I ask what colours your started with when you originally swapped to Gelish? I am looking and getting the big starter kit and I get to choose 12 colours. I will buy the French kit separately.

Red roses - classic bright red
Black shadow- black
Izzy wizzy(looks great over pretty much every colour!)
Pink smoothie - pale pink
Tiger blossom - reddy orange
Sweet morning dew pale coral
Passion - coral/pink
Gossip girl - dark pink
Berry buttoned up - Cadbury purple
Am i making you Gelish - silver glitter
All that glitters is gold - gold glitter

For french I use: Arctic freeze, little princess & sweet dream

If you could stretch to a couple more I'd definitely add these brights for summer:
I'm brighter than you
Brights have more fun
Poparazzi pose

Hope that helps x

 

[Jodmarie]

Fantastic thank you xx

 

[NancySyd]

Charging more for Gelish just because it lasts longer is probably not wise, However, I used to stock gelish and the service takes much longer than shellac because it's quite difficult to remove, particularly when left on for 3-4 weeks. You also have the dry brushing etc which takes only a few seconds per nail but all adds up. If Shellac takes 45-1hr for removal and reapplication but gelish takes 1-1.5 for removal and reapplication I see nothing wrong with charging more for your time. If they take the same amount of time for you I would keep the price the same.

I would also consider why you choose to stop stocking Gelish the first time around? Have those reasons changed?

For me personally I choose to stop offering it as it took longer to remove, required a light buff of the natural nail on application (I know many skip this step but that is manufacturers recommendation) , requires buffing at removal stage (again I know many skip this step but I could never get it to remove cleanly without buffing top coat off) , Found the colours to be less photo stable - some of the pinks in shellac do fade but I had blues , pinks , purples and red fading with Gelish.

I did find that Gelish did last longer on most of my clients, particularly those with challenging nails such as peeling , thin , weak and bendy nails. But I found that it would essentially work for a while but if continued would make the nails worse, and the client would want to take a break from them .... This was probably the main reason I chose to only stock only Shellac. My clients with tricky nails work with me by following a good homecare program and taking care of their nails, and we work with them to get their nails into a healthy condition where there shellac will then last 2-3 weeks AND their nails will be in good condition when they remove them , if they ever choose to

Of course it really depends on what your clients want, mine definitely wanted both the brand name product and to keep the natural integrity of their nails.... I do occasionally get a client who really doesn't care what condition their nails may be left in as long as it lasts 3-5 weeks..... and to be honest these are usually the type of clients I like to avoid

I disagree with some of this. I have found Gelish no harder to remove than CND Shellac; maybe a it longer, but only by a minutes or two. I also do not dry brushing, and find that you only need to dry brush if the base application is not thin enough. A too thick application creates a thicker inhibition layer which needs dry brushing, and also causes longer, harder removals. I also do not buff. And I don't think there is a difference in nail condition, unless tough removals lead to damage. But I definitely agree about the Gelish fading, and changing colors. It is very frustrating and I feel as if Gelish is failing at a very basic quality control issue. I usually wait to buy new Gelish colors to see if they are faders.

That said, I think each product has pros and cons and I would not charge a different price for them. They are both gel polishes and offer different options, and the choice should be based on the client's needs/wishes.

 

[noreenoconnor]

I disagree with some of this. I have found Gelish no harder to remove than CND Shellac; maybe a it longer, but only by a minutes or two. I also do not dry brushing, and find that you only need to dry brush if the base application is not thin enough. A too thick application creates a thicker inhibition layer which needs dry brushing, and also causes longer, harder removals. I also do not buff. And I don't think there is a difference in nail condition, unless tough removals lead to damage. But I definitely agree about the Gelish fading, and changing colors. It is very frustrating and I feel as if Gelish is failing at a very basic quality control issue. I usually wait to buy new Gelish colors to see if they are faders.

That said, I think each product has pros and cons and I would not charge a different price for them. They are both gel polishes and offer different options, and the choice should be based on the client's needs/wishes.

As I said in my post, I know many people skip buffing the natural nail and the top coat, but that is what is recommended by the manufacturer (or at least it was when i was using the product).

I had an awful time removing Gelish, but this is just my own personal experience. I tried everything conceivably possible from heated wheat bags, buffing top coat off , not buffing top coat off, I tried CND nourishing remover , The Gelish Remover , plain old acetone ….. everything i tried didn't seem to make much of a difference, it still took me at least 30-45 mins to remove Gelish , where as it takes 15 mins max with Shellac. Gelish never seemed to flake away like shellac, it was always stubborn and stuck in patches.

I know many people and indeed many salons around me are successfully using Gelish, but for me i didn't think it performed as well as shellac. Each to their own

 

[blossom]

30-45 minutes? i can soak off acrylics in that time, lordy! i might just buy in enough to offer a french, as i have a couple of ladies with weak nails asking me for french but shellac doesnt last on them. and just see how it goes for me.

 

[Pollypocket85]

I love the Gelish colours but I hate removing it. Mine always comes off in patches so you have to scrape the rest off. Annoying!

 

[cheekychick]

Gelish removal takes me 10-15 minutes and I find no need to 'scrape' the nail at all.

I think in regards to gel polish it's about finding what suits you and your clients. I used shellac for a year, was fine at first but clients were always breaking their nails and saying it wasn't strong enough. I tried smoothing gel but still I didn't get along with it so tried Gelish and haven't looked back. Clients come back every 2-3 weeks with perfectly shiny nails all still intact. And have healthy natural nails on removal.
The colour range is also amazing and they have regular 7days + lasting nail polishes to match a large percentage of the Gelish range.
There are about 5 colours that fade out of roughly 200! So it isn't as bad as people make out. And if you do have a problem with fading nail harmony will exchange the colour for you without fuss.
I cannot recommend it enough. It's literally made my business!
x

 

[Jodmarie]

That's great cheekychick thank you. To be honest with you I used Gelish for 3 years before changing to shellac and at the time I didn't really think about running two systems side by side. I agree that the soak off time is longer but I used to be able to do a re-application on approximately 1hour. I have thought about what you have all said and I have decided to keep the prices the same. Can't wait to buy the starter kit now [emoji106]