Look guys, if I could just add my 4 cents. Feel free to fire arrows at me, as I've said before on this forum I am not a nail tech - only the Slave to the Nail Mistress
. But I have run my own businesses for 20+ years and know something about cheap competition, marketing and how to position a business successfully.
I don't think regulation will work, at least not in the short term. While there may be a health risk at some of these discount salons, it's not enough to inspire the government to enact new regulation. Or for local authorities to hire inspectors. The economy is in a dreadful state and will be for several years - it's simply not a high priority.
Even this happened, the discount salons would clean up and adapt. They'd still make nails fast and charge lower prices. There will always be a part of the customer base that doesn't want anything else.
Personally I think rather than worry about this, nail salons should focus on their business model and do what they can to offer perceived customer value and uniqueness.
Great competitors in any field don't worry about the competition - they play their game, their way. :idea:
Although we only have one discount salon in Stockholm, I wouldn't care less if 10 of them opened either side to Iryna's salon. They will never have her skills or her commitment to continually develop her skills and invent new techniques (4 to 6 hours of practice in the evenings at least 4 days a week).
In some way it's the difference between a drop in hairdresser and a hair stylist salon like Tony & Guy. Some people want it cheap and don't care or don't need more, and other people are willing to pay for a perceived upmarket service.
The problem comes when what you offer isn't perceived by the customer as much different from the cheap alternatives. Especially in a recession, it's easy then for the customer to save a few bucks.
How to be more unique?
1. Develop your basic skills. How many nail techs get their diploma and don't take another education for years? Technology changes, new techniques are developed - stay ahead of the curve. Hang those new diplomas on your salon wall to show your customers that you are continually developing. (preferably behind your desk so they gotta look at them for one and a half hours every visit! hee-hee!)
Work on your technique to get the time down. You could also use PopIts or Prescription Nails to offer an alternative faster service but who prefer your care and a chat, rather that having the feeling they are on a the production line in a discount salon.
2. Develop advanced skills. I'm a big fan of nail art. I know not all top techs agree and think natural is best. But because of nail art Iryna has become one of the three most known nail techs in Scandinavia in less than 18 months, and I guess most of you will recognise her name now because of the articles in Scratch.
Now, I'd be the first to admit that nail art is really not popular with our uber-conservative Swedish clients - but even those who will never wear nail art are very impressed with her skills and every visit want to see what new designs or photographs were made. This means Iryna can charge higher than average prices and has a very strong customer loyalty.
Another way to develop your advanced skills is to enter competitions. We have two wonderful international nail champions in Sweden - Karin Ström and Najet Hamilla Strand. If you enter their salons the first impression you get is all their competition cups. Incidentally, Karin has one of the largest salons and training schools in Europe, over 1000 sq ft with 19 busy nail techs (an dhtat's in a country where nails are really not popular). Now do you think they worry about discounted salons?
Everyone has to start somewhere and being a great nail artist or competition winner requires a very strong personal commitment - but if you want this, you can do it. Look at Lynn Lammers in the USA - she's come from almost nowhere to clean up in the US competitions and to win the world cup in Düsseldorf this year.
3. Extend your service offerings. Offering eye-lash extensions is an easy route - it's a days training and as a nail tech you already have the hand-eye dexterity (don't you).
In Iryna's salon she will start to offer pedicure. Here usually the beauty slaons offer this - but when Iryna visited our local salon which is very professional and managed by a well qualified beautician with many years experience, her feet were cut! We figure of it happened to her then it probably happended to other customers - so Iryna's new service won't use scrapers to remove the dead skin and we are thinking about calling it "Pedicure without Pain"
4. Improve your service. Think like a client. How can you improve the experience from the moment the client walks in until they leave? Fresh flowers in reception, a bowl of fruit in the waiting area, choice of teas or coffee (e.g. Netpresso coffee machine), a glass of sparkling wine or even a PC connected to the internet for them to use while they wait?
We've been looking into appointment booking software. The reason for this is that many of Iryna's customers are professional busy women. So we figure it would be great for them to receive an sms 24 hours before their appointment as a reminder.
The software isn't cheap at nearly £1000, but we would be the first nail salon in Stockholm (that we know of) to offer sms reminders. Makes us look more professional, and can reduce the number of occasional no-shows. Plus we can then send email or sms offers to drum up additional business!
OK - this is probably 10 cents worth now, so I'll stop blabbering and go do some of my own work.
Feel free to call me an idiot - but just think about it, ok?
BTW - these are my ideas and not Iryna's.
