Omg..there's a big recession!!!

[1999judy]

So how is everyone coping with this??
Have you had to lower your prices because the competition is so great?
Are you living on the breadline thinking...."WTH did I open a salon or rent a room etc.?"
What have you actually DONE to market yourself above all others?
Do you actually think it's not hit you in any way?
Are your regulars still AS regular but tending to drag their appointments out a little longer?
In my town I see a lot of competition.....and it's not good for the industry.
Spraytans (inferior products IMO) £10...nails £10....I totally understand that therapists with little experience do this in order to gain the experience and learn from it. But as for the ones who are fully qualified and damn good at their jobs....are your salons selling you a little bit short??
How do you feel? x:hug:

 

[Martin Duffy]

To be honest it's not made an iota of difference to my business - I've retained all my regular clients, they are coming as regularly as they always have & I'm still getting new clients. January & February's takings were the best I've had for years.

I never concern myself with the desperate measures of others - clients can smell desparation & quality will always win out!​

 

[Zo Zo]

Touch wood... I have not been hit by the recession. I do feel for those that have, and constantly count my lucky stars, but I think a lot of it depends on the area where you live, the demographic of your clients, and of course, what you are offering.

Because I don't do enhancements (except an occasional set) I am not competing with the £10 nail bars. My bread and butter is waxing (mainly intimate) and I also do a lot of facials and pedicures. I live in a fairly prosperous area and I don't think my clients have been hit by the recession - in fact many of them are enjoying an increase in disposable income due to low interest rates.

For those that are struggling to survive, I would say, treat your regulars like gems, make sure they really enjoy the time they spend with you and don't give them any reason to try out a cheaper tech or (perish the thought) give up their treatments. I am not sure that lowering prices is the way to go, I would rather give 'added value.' I will happily offer small extras to my clients, such as shape their nails and tidy their cuticles during a facial, or a complimentary eyebrow shape.

I did do a special offer a little while back... £10 spray tans... only because I think it can be very uplifting to wear a tan, and it was a good way for clients who have never had a tan, to try it out, and I got two regular tan clients from it - one weekly and one fortnightly. Because I'm a single parent I don't like working in the evenings too much, but if someone wants to drop by for a tan, it's not time-consuming or complicated.

For those that do want to offer specials, I would say, offer treatments that are quick and profitable, so you are still making money. Avoid those treatments that cost a lot to do, such as facials with single-use masks, or callous peel - these type of treatments need to be charged for.

Good luck everyone. Don't be shy about re-booking clients, and suggesting they try treatments they've not had before.

 

[Lynne Baker]

I've not seen any sign of it - yet. February's takings were a record for me, and March is looking very good so far too. As Zo says, I treat every single client as honoured guests.
Am I scared? Kinda - the economic uncertainty makes me raise my game so that my clients get the very best out of me every time they come.

 

[ch4rli3]

It hasn't hit us yet and we actually seem extremely busy!! The next month of saturdays are fully booked and we have a large waiting list with people wanting appointments should there be any cancellations.

We have remained busy since christmas, which is very surprising as we all thought it would go quieter during Jan and Feb, but in fact we have got busier and busier!!

We moved locations in November and are now located within a gym, so maybe we have gained lots of business from gym members.

We have weekly targets of how much we have to take as a team which includes treatments and sales and each week we have taken a lot more than the set target, which is fab, although we get no 'Well done' for it!!

We do have monthly offers which brings a lot of business in, and since moving locations, we are offering a lot more treatments including IPL, Double Massages, UCWrap's, Microdermabrasion, I think this has brought people in too.

Hopefully it will stay this busy !!

 

[Violet Star]

So how is everyone coping with this??

I havent really thought about it too much, I think im just trying to ignore the fact that we are in recession. But I am not coping too well to be honest.

Have you had to lower your prices because the competition is so great?

I havent lowered my prices ive just been doing more special offers than usual.

Are you living on the breadline thinking...."WTH did I open a salon or rent a room etc.?"

I am currently converting my garage into a salon and hoping that business will get busier, i am living on the brealine a little bit.

What have you actually DONE to market yourself above all others?

I have been doing allot of marketing online ( this isnt going too well) marketing on facebook, still need to shift leaflets hoping this works better than online.

Do you actually think it's not hit you in any way?

Yes

Are your regulars still AS regular but tending to drag their appointments out a little longer?

I dont have many regulars as i took a big break within the industry and lost most my regulars tried to get them back but only 2 come back.

In my town I see a lot of competition.....and it's not good for the industry.

There is allot of compeition around my town but i know of many who are either too expensive or not really good at what they do.

Spraytans (inferior products IMO) £10...nails £10....I totally understand that therapists with little experience do this in order to gain the experience and learn from it. But as for the ones who are fully qualified and damn good at their jobs....are your salons selling you a little bit short??

Yes i am, last week i done a promotion 10.00 spray tans - worked a little bit. But when i lower my prices to that low i feel as though clients think why is it so cheap is it too good to be true and i think my business loses a little bit respect. So in future i wont be knock off huge amounts i will be offering a small percentage off.

How do you feel?

At the moment i dont feel good as i have a nasty cough :irked:

x:hug:

There's my bit :green:

 

[Lynne Baker]

Can I bang on about networking again?!
There are so many business networking groups out there and they WILL bring you business.
I belong to the following and have had easily 5K's worth of work out of going to them.
Ladies Who Latte (Reading, Newbury and Basingstoke groups)
The Athena Network - women only, uber high end business ladies who understand the importance of looking good for their businesses
Basingstoke Networking - often have just ladies nights - again, oodles of work from this group.
The Wellington Boot Club - held at the Wellington Arms Hotel between Reading and Basingstoke - all ladies, great support, fab group.

I understand that you're not all based around here, but google business networking groups and find the ones in your area. Work ON your business to increase your business!

Learn to become a shameless self publicist too. Never go anywhere (yes, even Tesco) without your business cards.

 

[cabinkel]

I have to say that the first two weeks of Jan were slower than last Jan, and I did think oh god! I am a bit of a worryer, so I did a fantastic Jan special, which included an offer to encourage them to rebook in Feb, thinking that that will see me through the traditional quiet months! Feb then took off with a bang, and march is so far looking great! Im actualy fully booke for the week before easter as well, with a cancelation list!
I do always have an offer of the month, and have found these to be invaluable. I cant say it gets me lots of new clients, but it does encourage existing clients to book more!
As another boost, I am taking on a new spray tan range, so yesterday I texted a lot of my reg spray tan clients an offer of " a pavorotti tan" (tan for a tenner, lol) until the end of march, so that they can give me honest feedback on the new trial spray solution. I got 9 bookings by the end of the day! Im going to do them on my day off so that it dosent interfere with my usual week. Extra money in the kitty, and hopefully, they will buy the retail products!

 

[Violet Star]

Can I bang on about networking again?!
There are so many business networking groups out there and they WILL bring you business.
I belong to the following and have had easily 5K's worth of work out of going to them.
Ladies Who Latte (Reading, Newbury and Basingstoke groups)
The Athena Network - women only, uber high end business ladies who understand the importance of looking good for their businesses
Basingstoke Networking - often have just ladies nights - again, oodles of work from this group.
The Wellington Boot Club - held at the Wellington Arms Hotel between Reading and Basingstoke - all ladies, great support, fab group.

I understand that you're not all based around here, but google business networking groups and find the ones in your area. Work ON your business to increase your business!

Learn to become a shameless self publicist too. Never go anywhere (yes, even Tesco) without your business cards.

Brill advice calla, i will do this thanks x

 

[bexi]

Can I bang on about networking again?!
There are so many business networking groups out there and they WILL bring you business.
I belong to the following and have had easily 5K's worth of work out of going to them.
Ladies Who Latte (Reading, Newbury and Basingstoke groups)
The Athena Network - women only, uber high end business ladies who understand the importance of looking good for their businesses
Basingstoke Networking - often have just ladies nights - again, oodles of work from this group.
The Wellington Boot Club - held at the Wellington Arms Hotel between Reading and Basingstoke - all ladies, great support, fab group.

I understand that you're not all based around here, but google business networking groups and find the ones in your area. Work ON your business to increase your business!

Learn to become a shameless self publicist too. Never go anywhere (yes, even Tesco) without your business cards.

I agree networking can work but have one comment about Athena - our one in Bedford has closed after only holding 2 meetings. Was badly organised, only attracted self promoting ''business'' women who would rather eat their own arm than listen to others!

I am sure it works for some in some areas but its definatly not guarenteed to work.

JMHO

Becki xxx

 

[fifitrix]

So how is everyone coping with this??
Have you had to lower your prices because the competition is so great?
Are you living on the breadline thinking...."WTH did I open a salon or rent a room etc.?"
What have you actually DONE to market yourself above all others?
Do you actually think it's not hit you in any way?
Are your regulars still AS regular but tending to drag their appointments out a little longer?
In my town I see a lot of competition.....and it's not good for the industry.
Spraytans (inferior products IMO) £10...nails £10....I totally understand that therapists with little experience do this in order to gain the experience and learn from it. But as for the ones who are fully qualified and damn good at their jobs....are your salons selling you a little bit short??
How do you feel? x:hug:

Great thread Judy. Tbh, the recession hasn't really affected me at all, I am actually busier now that I was this time last year. I am retaining my regulars and getting more new clients through word of mouth.

I do get people who call me up and ask how much for enhancements and when I tell them, they say, oh I can get them done at whatever salon for £15 or whatever, I tell them that is their choice but I use a high end product etc., unfortunately there are always people who will want what they perceive to be a bargain, usually to their detriment though when the enhancements don't last, or don't turn out how they wanted them to.

:hug:

 

[champagne]

Im getting busier all the time...i think the recession has helped beauty as people get so fed up & think sod it im going to get something done .... All good for me x

 

[VHunter]

So how is everyone coping with this??
Fabulously.

Have you had to lower your prices because the competition is so great?
No, but I have chosen not to raise them this past january as usual, and will wait an additional 6mths before doing so.

Are you living on the breadline thinking...."WTH did I open a salon or rent a room etc.?"
Nope, have had my client base increase, which is in total opposition to what I anticipated back in october.

What have you actually DONE to market yourself above all others?
I haven't changed anything. I still offer unique art not available anywhere else, personalized services, quality products, salon hygiene, etc.... Everything that set me apart from the nss before is the same.

Do you actually think it's not hit you in any way?
Not yet.

Are your regulars still AS regular but tending to drag their appointments out a little longer?
About 2 or 3 have stretched them out. One newbie is making noises constantly about her budget and budgeting in her nails, then in next breath talks about remodelling her kitchen. I think she's looking for a discount that she's NOT going to get.

In my town I see a lot of competition.....and it's not good for the industry.
Spraytans (inferior products IMO) £10...nails £10....I totally understand that therapists with little experience do this in order to gain the experience and learn from it. But as for the ones who are fully qualified and damn good at their jobs....are your salons selling you a little bit short??
How do you feel? x:hug:

It's definately a challenge, because I did want to raise my prices and probably should have, but was afraid due to economics at this time. I figured better keep the little profit, than lose a lot if they can't afford to come at all, know what I mean?
It also makes me question the steps I'm taking and the money I'm investing to make the business grow.... asking myself "is this really the time for it?"...
But otherwise, I'm doing VERY well.

 

[Kim Lawless]

I'm busier than ever with both waxing and training. I've never done special offers as I think they often attract tight people and clients that you'll never see again once the offer is finished. xx

 

[1999judy]

It's so good to hear that so many geeks are doing so well......I'm sure being a member of the site has helped a lot of people with some fab advice available here.

 

[fifitrix]

It's so good to hear that so many geeks are doing so well......I'm sure being a member of the site has helped a lot of people with some fab advice available here.

So true Judy, not only is the nail advice fabulous, but the information in the biz geek is invaluable too.

 

[VHunter]

It's so good to hear that so many geeks are doing so well......I'm sure being a member of the site has helped a lot of people with some fab advice available here.

yes, YES and YES
Without this site, I wouldn't be where I am now. Plain and simple.

so.... btw, thanks again everyone

:hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug: