Professional Nail Products being sold over-the-counter!

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Mrs Geek

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I've always been of the opinion that as nail teks, we use Professional products as opposed to consumer based products such as Sally Hanson, Rimmel etc.

As professional nail teks, how do you feel when you see your 'professional' lines being sold in chemists (drug stores for the USA gals), on TV or in supermarkets etc :?:
 
:? :x So annoying that these things are now sold willy-nilly practically everwhere.

Here we are training to go into a new proffession and here's the girl down the road buying stuff from the Chemist or off the shopping Channel on TV ... and as one girl said to me "Only cost me £3 to do my own - they're easy"

One girl I know said she'd done her own Gel nails from a kit from the chemist - I asked about the light box aspect of it and she looked vacant for a moment and had no idea what I was on about. I explained, whereby she explained that "Oh no - none of that - just a liquid you spray on which cures the gel immediately"!!!

Does your head in, doesn't it - how are we expected to make a living out of it if its becoming so wide-spread.

As a new tech I fear that I may never get clients - if these unqualified girls can do nails for £3!!!!

Love
Sue
xxxx
 
Sue said:
:? :x So annoying that these things are now sold willy-nilly practically everwhere.

HowdA Sue,

Personally... I'm not quite as bothered about these types of systems... just as most hairmessers are not bothered about do it at home colours.
On the other hand... being able to buy real pro products willy nilly... that tweaks my bootie.

:idea: Actually, I guess it doesnt tweak my bootie... I guess if they sell straight to consumer... they are not a pro company... I guess that makes them a non-pro company... if I were using their product... that would be like me using the willy-nilly ones too :idea:

Just my personal thoughts.
 
well im not yet a professional so i guess i could give a consumer opinion on this!!!
I think it good that I can get hold of things like this! It gives me plently of practise for when I become professional

I bought some of those gel nails you are talking about, they look no where NEAR as good as professional ones. They look cheap and tacky. If anything, that certainly put me off wearing extensions.And made me realise that the only way is having em done professionaly.

I have a good collection of nail products and varnish, some is professional.
 
Sue said:
"Oh no - none of that - just a liquid you spray on which cures the gel immediately"!!!

Forgot to add Sue... This product she is speaking of isnt a gel anyway... it will be a cyanoacrylate resin that will have been cured by activator. Some companies sell real thick viscosity resins as 'no light' gels... they are not the types of gels we are used to and will dissolve very quickly in solvent.

nJoy
 
Whilst I do not agree with the sale of professional items such as gel and acrylic kits over the counter etc. I see no reason why professional nail polishes, nail treatments can not be sold openly on the market. There is nothing in these particular products that is any different from the nail polishes you can buy like Rimnel, No. 7, Lancome etc. I believe in fair, competitive trading.
[/quote]
 
... when a nail tek opens a salon, or is mobile or whatever, she chooses a 'Professional Line' (more often than not, the one she has trained with) and this could be anything - CND, OPI, NSI, Star etc etc. To invest in her business, she will have to to spend £/$ 's. :rolleyes:
Some companies are now selling some of their 'Professional line' in places such as chemists, supermarkets etc; because these places buy such large quantities, the prices tend to be much cheaper than salon prices. :evil:
Where does that leave the professional who chose that line for their salon? :hit: Persoanlly I think it is a fine line as some of these places are putting nail bars on their sites but I do feel it can 'cheapen' the range a little and make it less attractive to your client... example "Here Mable, try this fabulous new colour bla bla, it's only £8.50" Mable says "really, but I can get it for £4.50 in ????" Do you see where I am coming from???
On the other hand, it's gotta be difficult for a pro nail company who is offered £$£$£$ for their products to go in all these outlets, to turn around and say "sorry but we only sell to the professionals" - I would die if we had CND in Boots or Superdrug purely because it is too good-a product for that type of market..... I'm blabbing, I will shut up for now ;)
 
I do not mind if consumers can go into a beauty supply store and buy polish, top coats, cuticle oil, etc. I do not like it when a consumer is allowed to buy acrylic and gel products.
But once in awhile when someone does get ahold of it I do not say anything. I just wait for them to even try to do their own nails. It is a guarantee that they will be back once they realize how difficult it really is. It just makes them appreciate me even more.
And now once again I will show my American ignorance...
Samantha, does chemist=beauty supplier or drug store or something like that??? :?
 
A 'Chemist' is the equivalent of your 'drug-store'. You can buy medicine, the cheaper make-up lines, toothpaste, baby stuff etc but we always call them 'Chemists'. :?
I'm sure there is a good reason but it will be something tradionally British from the 1500's that noone will be able to remember!!
 
true true

i do feel there should be a limit to what is available to the consumer.

The only 'public' place iv seen creative nail varnish is in toni and guy hair salon...
 
Yes, I see where you are coming from but take for example my parents who owned a small grocers shop for 23 years. To begin with, business boomed in the late 1960s, then gradually as supermarkets sprung up all over the place and then opened Sundays and then opened extended hours my parents small business struggled to survive. Luckily they retired before they went out of business! What I am trying to say is that we live in a competitive, cut throat world and whether it be selling Calvin Klein jeans at T J Hughes (discount store) for half the RRP or selling nail products such as nail varnishes etc at below RRP - we either have to stop selling that particular product or carry on regardless.
 
..... I think about grocers and butchers and what they have had to put up with and thank goodness some have still survived - it certainly is a cut throat world out there, I guess I just try to consider our customers and assume that they would be really naffed off to find CND in Sainsburys or something like that, I am positive we would loose a lot of valued customers if we went that route over here! ;)
 
LayStar said:
true true
The only 'public' place iv seen creative nail varnish is in toni and guy hair salon...

Toni & Guy is a 'professional' hair salon - very acceptable to see any type of Pro nail companies products in that type of venue! ;)
 
If other companies are selling retail products similar to or the same as mine because they can not educate the client in the way I can, face to face. I educate every client about *MY* nail care products, services, and techniques.

Therefore, the type of client that I have does not purchase products to do their own nails with or products that are cheap or gimmicky, "will grow nails overnight" type of thing. They come to know and trust me as a professional and they ask for advice before purchasing a product or receiving a service.

Anyone who is "doing their nails" at home and is getting the results they want, then I say GREAT, good for them, but most of them usually end up in my chair complaining about their nails. And that is when I gain a client. So, I say, keep selling those products so I can gain more clients! WOo HOO!

Leigh Ann
 
To be honest the fact that clients can buy acrylic and gels doesn't really bother me. They can also buy a scissors, but are they gonna cut their own hair?
Same with perms and colours...I can buy it too, still I go and get my hair done!
I can buy coffee and make it myself but I still go to Tim Hortons (you canadians know what I mean) and buy one.
I can make my own clothes, but I buy them (and pay ridiculous prices sometimes ;) ).
Same with restaurants...you get my drift....

For goodness sake people come to me to change their polish, they CAN do it themselves, but we do it BETTER :D

If any of my clients wants to try to do their nails..I'll GIVE them the stuff, sit back and enjoy the show :D
 
Ditto, Anna
Well said.
 
LOL!!!!!!

Tis so true!!! ;) My college is swarming with people wearing nail extensions and stuff....but they all get theirs done at Hollywood Nails *hmpf* Grrrrrr!!

xx layla xx
 
Christie's Nails said:
Ditto, Anna
Well said.

Thanks Christie,
Same thing with the paints, sure the clients can buy it. Do you feel threatened? NO!
Because you have to be an artist to make designs like you..I don't even attempt to try ;)
 
Hollywood nails in Lakeside i presume u mean LayStar ???????
 
....listening and reading what you all have to say. My position is different as we are the 'sole' distributors for CND in the UK. Our customers would not like us to sell direct to their clients, they like the exclusivety of the product. If their customers WANT CND products, they have to buy from the salon.
We have what we call One Stop Nail Shops in various locations around the UK, but the ONLY people who can buy, are the trained professionals (they even have to prove they are certified, to buy).

I know for a fact that if we allowed 'anyone' to come in and start buying 'Solar Oil, enamels' etc, our customers would want to move to something they would consider more exclusive (and there isn't anything more exclusive than CND in the UK)!
It's obviously a lot different in the states..
hey at least I got a good coversation going though!!! :D ;)
 
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