Shellac been bitten off!

[CatherstonRose]

Hi Everyone

Just had a client on their second visit that instead of leaving me to remove her Shellac she decided to bite it off!!

Her nails were in a real mess but she did not want me to do anything with them. I hope the Shellac stays on now as they were very uneven but she did not want me to gently buff them.

She said it was because two had lifted after about ten days (last appointment was three weeks ago). She did not contact me even though I had told her if she had any problems to let me know and gave her an aftercare sheet and Solar oil.

I was suprised as none to date have lifted or had problems (although I have not been a nail tech for long) but she insisted she had not done anything to cause it. The only thing I could think of was that her nails are ski jump and fairly long, so thought maybe I had put too thick a coat on and that had caused it?

This time I made a point that each layer was thin, so I know this won't be the reason this time, but very worried that her nails were so bad that it will lift now anyway! Has anybody else had a problem with ski jump nails?


She has promised me that she will come to me to have it removed next time and if there is a problem to let me look at them. She has booked for two weeks so I hope she will come back with her nails intact!!

Any advice greatfully received!

 

[happyfeet]

Hey honey

Your client has bitten off her shellac, refuses to let you rectify any problems and more than likely if the first two factors in this sentence are anything to go by, she possibly didnt follow aftercare. I hope you gave her a polite, kind and firm reminder/telling off and told her that in order for shellac to stay put she has to work with you and that not having her shellac safely removed can wreck her nails- thats not yours or shellacs fault its your clients.

We tell all of our clients that shellac lasts for up to 14 days.

As the phrase goes lovey, you can lead the horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

Don't be so quick to try and establish your fault if you know you have done everything correctly, because once clients leave you, their nails become their responsibility.

Love n hugs xx

 

[CatherstonRose]

Thank you Happyfeet for your kind words x

I politely reminded her that Shellac is not indestructable and to wear gloves for cleaning etc but she insisted she does!

I even offered to make her up a remove pack incase she felt the need to take it off and would not come to me, so she doesn't damage her nails anymore, but she declined it.

I really hope it is OK this time as I am trying to build my business and do not want to be bad mouthed if it was not my fault!

xx

 

[gr8nailz]

...she decided to bite it off!!

No Bueno!

...she insisted she had not done anything to cause it.

That's what they all say! LOL

I agree with Happyfeet here. Don't be so quick to blame yourself...even though you're relatively new to the game. Sounds like you gave her sound information. Shellac is, indeed, durable but not indestructible.

If she's biting off her Shellac, she may be doing some damage to her nails that will prevent future applications of Shellac to adhere well. She may be removing crucial layers of Keratin.

I had a client that was peeling her Shellac off after just 7 days or so because she got sick of the color. No matter what I did as far as her PEP, her future Shellac applications wouldn't last longer than 5 - 6 days.

When I contacted my CND Education Ambassador, I found out that my client was creating her very own service breakdown because of her peeling habit.

 

[CatherstonRose]

Hi Gr8nailz

Do you think it is worth me sending her a message just to let her know what to expect because of her actions? As this might make her think twice about doing it again!

Thanks for sharing that with me, very interesting. xx

 

[gr8nailz]

You said she's booked back in, right? If she's coming back in, that would be the perfect time to educate her. Once I mentioned this to my client, she quit peeling her Shellac. Her nails look great!

My CND Education Ambassador said timing is crucial as far as peeling/biting. If someone is peeling Shellac off relatively soon after a service, it's more damaging because the product is really stuck on. If Shellac has been on for awhile, it's nearing the end of it's "life" and it's less damaging because the Shellac is "ready" to come off.

Makes sense, right?

 

[CatherstonRose]

She has booked in for two weeks time yes.

I was slightly confused as to when it came off as at first she said it was after about ten days but later she said she had put clear nail varnish on for a few days prior to today to make them look better.
Maybe she bit it off in the last couple of days so it was ready to come off, so hopefully she has not done too much damage and saved herself £2.50 removal fee!!!

xx

 

[gr8nailz]

You know how you might be able to stop clients like her from self removal? Build the removal fee into your application fee. Just charge a little bit more for application and tell them it includes removal. This works in your favor for several reasons.

1. Because they feel they've already "paid" for removal, they'll come back = repeat customers.
2. When they come back for the removal, even if they think they don't want an additional service, you know once they get into the whole salon environment, you'll have an opportunity to upsell.
3. Because the removal is already included in their service price, they'll be less likely to improperly remove their Shellac which will result in fewer headaches for you in the long run.

Win/Win!

 

[CatherstonRose]

That is a really good idea gr8nailz and it is true what you have said. I will make it clear in the future that removal is included and hopefully this will not happen again! Thank you for your great advice. xx

 

[CatherstonRose]

So guess what my client is coming back after six days of having Shellac on because one finger is lifting!

I know that even if I try to explain that she has probably caused this because of how she removed the Shellac before, she will still blame it on me!

I have had my Shellac on now for 3 weeks and it still looks perfect and I have not done it any different, so I will show her and see what she says!

Atleast I suppose she is coming back to me and not biting it off again!!!

 

[gr8nailz]

Atleast I suppose she is coming back to me and not biting it off again!!!

I like your positive attitude! :wink2: