New to nails! would you open a shop?

[Martin Duffy]

People aren't being 'negative' to be miserable, its to point out all the additional costs and things that come with a business and that although the rent is an absolute bargain there are plenty of other costs that bump it up.

I'm with Bombini here, it's not out of wanting to be negative, but as is shown by the sheer number of "I've opened a business & am losing money" threads that crop up on this site time & time again, there is a very real risk in opening a business. It would be very inappropriate for anyone to suggest that starting a business is like a hobby, and for every one business that does start like this & does well there are plenty of others on the scrapheap licking their wounds.

 

[gillian w]

It is a good opportunity but i wouldn't want to do it on my own with as little experience as you have.I would possibly look at employing someone with experience already that i could hopefully learn from and that will take the pressure off a bit.
I agree with Martin in that your business head is going to have to be fairly good too.
Yes go for it but be sensible and be sure that your nails are up to it, word will spread like wildfire if they are not, on an airforce base and you will only have so many chances to get things right.
To make a success you are going to have to have many returning clients not just the one offs.
This go for it attitude and advice is only good if you really do know what you are doing and can offer nails that look good and can last.Its a bit different when you are a trainee in a salon people would give you a chance but when its your own business people are going to expect you to know what you are doing and if you only qualified in October 2009 do you ?.

 

[shedunlop]

You will be able to contact Kim Lawless on here, she has a group so you can find her there by clicking on groups above and looking for her. She is lovely!

I am so excited for you, you have an opportunity the rest of us would have loved to have had, and, as Gigi has said you are only going to lose a couple of hundred pounds if things go tits up!

I have lived in married quarters and it would have been wonderful to have someone like you nearby to keep us up to scratch!

Good luck my darling and don't forget to let us know how you are doing and if we can help with any other problems!

 

[Bagpuss]

I say Go for it too....with overheads that low its not much different to doing your training and then going mobile or having a home salon and plenty do that successfully.

Nothing is written in stone and if it doesn't work out then at least you can say you gave it a shot.

You have to start somewhere...at what point do we jump in...after 1 month practicing on a plastic hand...or 6....its real clients that we need to practice on....real feedback and real experiances.....as long as those clients understand that you are perfecting your skills at this stage and are charged accordingly i don't see what the problem is.

 

[suezy]

Thanks for all the positive and encourging comments i also have spray tan quailify and equip i know it may be hard and i may make lots of mistakes but by going cheap and letting my clients know im new then it should be ok?? it is a once in a million chance to do this with such cheap overheads.
Yes there is summer balls and christmas and there is a school on base lots of scope for kids pamper partys? I have spent a lot of money to get to the stage im at and to give up now would be a shame?
Thanks for all the lovely positive messages and im sure i will need your help as i get my business up and running, and if it doesnt work out as some of said i gave it my all!!!

Thank You!

 

[del3]

Thanks for all the positive and encourging comments i also have spray tan quailify and equip i know it may be hard and i may make lots of mistakes but by going cheap and letting my clients know im new then it should be ok?? it is a once in a million chance to do this with such cheap overheads.
Yes there is summer balls and christmas and there is a school on base lots of scope for kids pamper partys? I have spent a lot of money to get to the stage im at and to give up now would be a shame?
Thanks for all the lovely positive messages and im sure i will need your help as i get my business up and running, and if it doesnt work out as some of said i gave it my all!!!

Thank You!

I understand the need to be honest about being newly qualified but be careful you don't put too much emphasis on this and don't be too cheep, you WILL be taken advantage of.
Have confidence in your ability and let this shine through, this way you will gain the confidence of your clients...they are more likely to recomend you to friends that way, rather than 'go to her she's cheap'.
I hope that made sence :lol:
:hug:

 

[Bagpuss]

I agree with Del, Just explain that you are perfecting your skills...instead of newly trained....and state that your charges are a "introductory offer" and not "reduced due to...." state that all introductory offers will end in 6 months times.....this will help get them through the door but also pre warn them that this price isn't fixed forever.....if after 6 months they are happy with the service you are providing they will stick with you regardless of the increase.

Set yourself a target of say 12 months....if after that time you are not making a profit, you can always cut your loses and try being employed at a salon...but in the meantime at least you have had the guts to give it a go.......i think this is alot better then some newly trained techs i hear about who say ..."i did my training 6 months ago but am too scared to work on the public".....at least you are willing and I admire that.

 

[Exquisite Touch]

you have to start somewhere chick, I got a salon straight out of college 5 years ago and it only went from strength to strength.
Go for it what have you got to lose x

 

[geeg]

You know what? It's all to do with whether or not you think you are capable of doing it.

Many on these forums are timid and lack confidence. I would tell them .. don't do it!

Many have no idea about business or running one .. I'd say don't do it!

You sound level headed, realistic and confident that you can turn out a competent job and the financial risk for you is small .. it is for these reasons I say .. do it! I do not glibly pass on advice to people without a huge sense of responsibility so I always make it clear that there are certain prerequisites to my advice, as stated above.

I have never had an unsuccessful business ... or salon and I learned as I went along as everyone does. I started my business the DAY AFTER I finished my course .... I knew that the end result for the client would be a nice one (even if I had to get there by filing .. doing perfect nails with the brush came later :lol But I am smart, level headed, realistic and confident ... it never occurred to me once that I would not have success.

There are a few here on the forums who have lots of experience and who run good, solid and admirable businesses ... it surprises me that such ones should be discouraging. Even the ones 'sitting on high' had to start somewhere and have the confidence to do it and go for it ... maybe those ones have forgoten what that was like?

 

[persianista]

I trust that was aimed at me Geeg. Yes I did start somewhere, however it was NOT straight from college.Those of us already in business know how tough it is. We do it to pay mortgages etc. I would NEVER encourage someone still in training to open a shop, to have a go. For someone who bangs on about being professional, Geeg, I'm surprised at you.

 

[geeg]

I trust that was aimed at me Geeg. Yes I did start somewhere, however it was NOT straight from college.Those of us already in business know how tough it is. We do it to pay mortgages etc. I would NEVER encourage someone still in training to open a shop, to have a go. For someone who bangs on about being professional, Geeg, I'm surprised at you.

My post was not AIMED at anyone .. I was not firing any shots .. and I think this is a one off instance of a good offer and someone who has the confidence to do it .. I'm not advising JUST ANYONE this is ONE person who wants to go for it and seems to think she can. Personally I admire that and usually these types CAN succeed and DO succeed.

The poster's motive for doing this we do not know .. it could be to pay the mortgage or help the household or whatever ... not for us to have to know all her personal reasons for wanting to open a business nor are her personal reasons important. The reasons behind her decision do not make her any less worthy of having a business than you or anyone else. Neither is it always tough to run a business either ... I never found it so ... loved every minute of it.

Why you should be surprised at me or my advise or consider that it has anything to do with my professionalism I can't imagine. I encourage an entrepreneurial mentality .. but not willy nilly or to everyone, as explained very well in my post above. anyone who knows me would not be surprised by my attitude at all ... you do not know me.

Is everything so black and white to you? Well I like grey personally. Black and white may do for a general approach but then there are the exceptions to every rule and why discourage those who may be the exceptions? I think often you give very worthy business advice and I'm sure those who read it appreciate it but there is always more than one way ..........

............. the real entrepreneurs are always risk takers (they risk but with intelligence and belief in themselves and their own abilities). Richard Branson is a prime example .......... his motto? "The answer is YES, now what's the question?" LOve that spirit.

If one is determined then they will achieve what they want to achieve.

 

[suezy]

Thanks again, I have took on all your advise and will let you all know how things go? I would like to say i am a little older and thats why i am not scared of new business venture, but I was worried about my experience, but that will come if i give it a go!
Also the base is 6 miles from the nearest village and nobody does acrylic there, the closest is 11 miles away where i go for mine to be done! (not quite mastered doing my own right hand yet).

I will keep in touch this is a good start, who knows where this little venture may take me?

Thank everyone

 

[thenailangel01]

it does sound like a good idea to go ahead but personally i woudn't just because you are new to it and you only have the clients on the base, you say that most salons dont do acrylics well i would say you have a great opertunity to go mobile or ask a salon if they have any desks to rent and you can offer the acrylics, as for waxing i would get to grips with the nails first.

god my spelling is really bad:lol:

 

[geeg]

If you want to read some inspirational stories then take a look at this:

Ambassadors

It takes a 'certain type of person' one who is bold and determined and believes in themselves (as I think you do). So proud to have a team like this.

Looking at the CND Ambassador bio's it is interesting that so many started out in business within days or just a few weeks of completing their first nail course, just as I did .... We/they haven't done badly have they ???? :hug:

 

[Bettierae]

go for it, its a perfect opportunity. You won't get another like it! It'll turn out to be a little community hub, and your clients will learn along with you. Be straight with them from the start and you are on to a winner. Good luck x x x
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[skymark]

You know what? It's all to do with whether or not you think you are capable of doing it.

Many on these forums are timid and lack confidence. I would tell them .. don't do it!

Many have no idea about business or running one .. I'd say don't do it!

You sound level headed, realistic and confident that you can turn out a competent job and the financial risk for you is small .. it is for these reasons I say .. do it! I do not glibly pass on advice to people without a huge sense of responsibility so I always make it clear that there are certain prerequisites to my advice, as stated above.

I have never had an unsuccessful business ... or salon and I learned as I went along as everyone does. I started my business the DAY AFTER I finished my course .... I knew that the end result for the client would be a nice one (even if I had to get there by filing .. doing perfect nails with the brush came later :lol But I am smart, level headed, realistic and confident ... it never occurred to me once that I would not have success.

There are a few here on the forums who have lots of experience and who run good, solid and admirable businesses ... it surprises me that such ones should be discouraging. Even the ones 'sitting on high' had to start somewhere and have the confidence to do it and go for it ... maybe those ones have forgoten what that was like?

Great post Gigi. I think its important for people to understand what they realistically need to have to build a business and at the same time understand that positivity, ambition and entrepreneurial talent is what will push them towards success.

Thanks for sharing your own stories also. I think they give us, new and experienced alike a sense of how real success can be acheived over and again.

Every successful person I have ever met has been level headed, yet unafraid.

 

[leanne]

Wow! what a fantastic opportunity! i would snatch that with both hands.!

 

[loubilicious]

I would go for it without a doubt!

Potentially you have a large client base on your doorstep. I live in married quarters although we are not on a base. If anything like here there will be a lot of the wives who don't drive, so while their husbands are away they are stuck, and it's the ''me time'' which is the first thing to suffer!!

You not only have the potential when there are Mess Dos and Balls, we all like to make that extra effort when hubbies come home after a tour!

I would get in touch with Kim to see about wax training, and possibly look at a couple of other ''add on'' treatments, such as eyebrow shaping & tinting, eyelash tinting and of course Minx! All of these things are easy for you to learn and will complement your nail services when the ladies are wanting to look their best.

Start now getting in touch with the Inland Revenue, they do a free 'course' for newly self employed to show you how to keep your books etc. and just make sure you have done your homework for the business/financial/H&S side of things.

Good luck, and let us know how you get on! xx