If you want to go down the facial route there is no shortcut to a VTCT level 3 facial and electrics course. This will set you back at least a couple of thousand pounds. I must stress that without this foundation knowledge you are not a professional. Taking a short facial course without this initial training is like setting up in business making flapjacks, cookies and muffins after a weekend baking course. It’s perfectly possible to make a living, but you’re very unlikely to have a career. At some point you risk being called out for defrauding the public by pretending to be a professional when you’re just a keen amateur.
Once you have your qualification (and a reputable brand won’t train you without this qualification and won’t sell you professional products nor offer you a wholesale account to retail products to your clients), you then need to invest in training with a brand. This is as much about your marketing skills and your client base as the brand itself. It needs to be something that you feel passionate about, otherwise you could struggle to get your money back. Remember that the beauty industry makes far more money from selling training and set up offers to would be entrepreneurs than from selling retail direct to customers.
Waxing is very popular - you need somewhere for clients to leave their clothes and bag and the space needs to feel private, but it works very well in the space that works for PMU and brow and lash treatments because you need really good lighting.
I’d mystery shop your competition for waxing - lean into your response as a customer. How did you feel? Also put your business head on and carry a tape measure, if you scramble back into your clothes quickly, you can take some measurements of the couch and the space, whilst you have privacy. Take some photos to remind you of the set up.
Think about your own space - where would you put your waxing equipment? If you have wall mirrors you might want a screen - it’s very disconcerting for clients to see their reflection during a waxing service.
You need lots of practice with waxing - I really struggled so I put myself on Groupon! 68 working for nothing leg, biking and underarm waxes later I was more than ready, I’d trialed a few different waxes, improved my timings and learned to work without getting into a sticky mess.
I find that waxing is seasona. Unlike intimate waxing. It may take you a year before you are good enough at waxing before you can offer intimate waxing - as a part-time, self employed therapist having to find your own customers . You need a few good friends to support you in your learning journey. You need to see at least 20 different women a few times before you can be confident that you can tackle anything and it is stressful, knowing that you haven’t got a more experienced colleague to help if you get into a pickle. It is worth considering though. Hollywoods etc are in demand all year round. it’s pretty inflationary proof and a huge part of my January bookings). My only 12 times a year clients are intimate waxes. It is tricky to market though - you can’t share reels and before and after shots. Word spreads. I haven’t posted on social media in years. I have a steady stream of recommendations.
I’d recommend waxing training with Outback Organics. There are a few threads here about OO. You need to do a VTCT level 2 waxing course first (check, there are lots of “accredited courses that don’t give you a government accredited qualification, and that matters for insurance and your own competence). A VTCT will teach you theory that will stand you in good stead for facial training as you’ll learn some skin structure anatomy that gets skipped on industry verified courses. However, VTCT training won’t take you to industry standards, you’ll be like a newly qualified driver - safe but not ready to drive for a living. Outback Organics will give you the confidence to work to professional standards. It’s worth travelling and paying for accommodation in order to get to Taunton. When I sent staff on their intimate waxing course I never once had to “rescue” a struggling therapist afterwards. That’s remarkable.
So lots of food for thought. Ultimately it depends how much you can afford to invest and how confident you feel, I once employed a super confident girl who dropped out of her apprenticeship with me after a few weeks, tried to blag her way on to some professional brand training courses by referencing her employment with me and eventually fast tracked herself through private training to get her VTCT quals. She then worked for a couple of months in several different salons - each time getting fired. And then set up as self employed with an online bio that just told lies - 5 years experience etc. Her self belief and around £15k invested in premium products and training has carried her through and she hasn’t looked back.
