Archives for February 2019

Are You Motivated?

As I was scrolling through SM this past week, I’m overwhelmed with all the brands, the products, the options we have available to us as Nail Technicians.

Every day there is a new polish line a new gel line, a new glitter product, a new foot care brand. I’m reminded of how little we were aware of before the SM scene came into play. You can look at our trade magazines and see how “thin” they are. Mfg’s aren’t using print media as much….they don’t really have to.

I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing. It’s good because we want to make sure we stay abreast of the newest, latest, greatest. But yet, it’s bad because does product hopping build stability? SM creates instability. What a dilemma. I certainly don’t envy sitting in your chair in today’s world. How do you decide?

I was recently at a client of mine who carries OPI nail & gel  polish, CND Shellac and Vinylux and we just added in the LCN brand of nail polish and gel polish.  Just the storage on how to display all these polishes have been a  challenge.

I was curious.  I asked my client why they feel the need to carry “it all”.  The answer was simply….it’s what our clients ask for.

The first thought in my head was “our clients are running our Business”!  Are they?

In a million years, I wouldn’t want to own a Salon these days.  God Bless all of you who do.  When I had my Salon, the options were minimal.  If we were to hear about a new product, it was via the trade shows or we read about it in a magazine.

It’s not only that though.  Staff didn’t have as many options and our clients didn’t have as many options.  Heck, I remember clients telling me I had to many polish choices one time.  I think I had maybe 25 at the time.  They said “too many choices makes it’s too confusing”.  They were right.

That’s how I feel when I look through SM.  It’s one new thing after another.  I see the same people over and over again endorsing each new product.  It’s mind boggling.  Did the one you just endorsed a month ago go bad all of a sudden?  I’m confused.

Like all of you, I receive my “memories” in my feed on a regular basis.  Memories of trainers absolutely “in love” with the line they represent, “it’s the best”, “wish I knew about this earlier” etc. etc…..only to see them totally dissing the line a year later.  It’s sad really, to see how much product hopping there really is.

Let me share what I know about product hopping;

  1. It reduces credibility – How do your clients believe what you say about a product being “the best”, if the best changes every month.  I’m not talking about adding additional products, I’m talking about complete replacement
  2. It is costly – What do you do with the product you just bought?  It sits on your back shelves.  That’s costly.  The math equation on product waste would be exasperating..
  3. It is confusing – How does your team become educated and specialized?  It’s difficult enough AND time consuming to learn everything there is to know about a single product.  Having to start all over again and over again and over again…..has to be confusing.
  4. It is unprofessional – yes, it is.  It shows lack of loyalty and it shows lack of commitment.

I can’t help but think of Salons this way.  You have the Brick & Mortar and you have the Amazons.

The Brick & Mortar Salons are specialized.  They are well adversed in their area of Business.  They specialize in a couple of things…not all things.  They are knowledgeable, they present well, they are customer service oriented and when you enter into their Business, you feel the Professionalism.

The Amazon Salons have it all.  They don’t specialize in anything in particular, they product hop, they are not educated on the products they carry, they are more industrial.  They are more about the quantity then they are the quality.

There is a vast difference and it is very noticeable.

So how do we control our Business.  What do we do about all these newest, greatest, latest products flashing in our faces all over SM.  For me, it seems rather simple.  I just follow what I have always followed.

When I chose to add another brand to my venue, it took me 9 months to find a brand.  Why?

  1. I had been teaching and preaching for 7 years how amazing the brand Footlogix was.  If I all of a sudden came in with a brand so different, what would all of you had thought about me?  About what I have been sharing for 7 years.  Would all of a sudden everything I had said mean’t nothing?  How could you trust me.
  2. I knew my clients and I knew what you were missing.  I needed to find something that was the same…..yet different..
  3. When I recently added PodoSafe to my venue, it was the same thing.  The same, yet different.  It was the Missing Piece to what we needed in the Foot Care room.  I had been looking for at least a year for a product which could make us more money in our Salons, be the same yet different and a product which, would allow me to branch out to grow my Business.

In short, there are many opportunities which come my way as a Distributor.  It’s as important for me to think about what I bring in, as is it for a Salon.  Brick & Mortar or Amazon.

So do our clients run our Business?  I guess in some ways they do.  But, we also have to be sensible enough to consciously think about what we do, how often we make changes, how it looks from the outside in and what it is doing to our bottom line.

CJ Murray, President

CJ Murray
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The Importance of the Why?

If there is ever a moment when you realize going through the motions just isn’t enough. Contact me personally for information on our next OSS (Oncology Spa Solutions)-in the Pedicure room
More often than not, we as licensed Nail Technicians perform a process and forget we need to do more. We need to know the why’s of the process, and more importantly the why’s of our clients. We need to be “in the moment”

Centre for Beauty Salon Supply hosted its 1st of many classes on how to manage the Cancer client in our Foot Care room.

This class is not cheap.  It’s a 3 day class at a cost of $997.00.  Many have travel expense along with the expense of a 3-4 day hotel stay.

I make no apologies.  The cost of good Education is NOT cheap.  However, you can’t think of “what this is going to cost you“, you need to think about “what is this going to do for me, do for my clients“.

Come with me as I share our three day emotional journey and the impact it has already had on our attendees and their clients.

The first day some may consider the hardest.  It is a full day of really intense information.
I knew this because of my experience with taking the class back in December.  Therefore, I planned a Happy Hour for the attendees for when the class ended.
On our first day we learned a ton load about the history of Oncology.  Including; Timeline, What is, Characteristics, Pathophysiology of, Categories, Theories, Risk factors, Stages, Survival rates etc etc……….
If that wasn’t enough we also learned of the Treatments, Integrated therapies, Understanding our Immune system Skin cancer etc. etc. etc.
It’s an overload to say the least.  Our attendees at Happy Hour were overwhelmed, they were solemn, they were shocked, exhausted and even had moments of anxiety.  It was ALOT of information.

The 2nd day was just as impactful.  We learned the Psychological aspect of cancer.  How it affects our clients, how words, atmosphere, disinfection, scents etc. etc. etc……are all important to the client who has faced or is facing a life threatening disease.

We also learned a butt load about ingredients.  The good, the bad and the ugly.  What do we put on our clients bodies?  Are they products which might exasperate their condition?

By the end of the day, most of the attendees were shocked just to learn of the products they personally use at home could be carcinogenic.

No Happy Hour today, but we did have to ask our attendees to move on so we could close shop, get something to eat and rest for an eventful 3rd day.

Most of the 3rd day was spent reviewing our CAC forms.  Consultation, Analyze, Care.  The right questions to ask, a much more thorough consultation than we are use to in our Foot Care rooms…..if we even do one.
We learned the importance of accurate information and mostly ALL information in order to properly modify our service for each specific client.  We heard and did our own case studies.  We had to look up ingredients, learn terms and learn about specific organs which relate directly to Foot Care AND Nail Care services that either should or should not be performed, or at least modified based on that clients specific health issues.  INTENSE!

THEN…..came our guest.

IF…you take this class and you don’t “get it” after listening to the emotional, physical and spiritual journeys people go through when being told they have Cancer……get out of this Industry.

I mean this more emphatically than I have ever felt before.

If you can’t get beyond the process…..to the why……you don’t belong in this Profession

THE JOURNEY OF OUR ATTENDEES

I’ve always said.  When I teach, if there is 1 person who came out of my class that I have made an impact on…..I have done my job.  Hosting this class affected so many in our group.

The tears which were brought on by the information we learned, reminded me of how so many of us internalize so much.  The experience is felt not just from a Professional level, but from a personal level as well.

I could see it on many of the attendees faces.  The shock, the fear of what they NOW do in their Foot Care rooms which they know needs to change.  I could see the blank stare of exhaustion while the wheels were still churning.

I heard from attendees who have had some unexplained physical issues.  1 attendee went straight to the hospital for evaluation and 1 attendee scheduled and physical exam.

Attendees have been reaching out to me about friends and family members who have experienced Cancer.  Discussing with them, the importance of finding someone who is “Oncology Trained” in the Pedicure room.

Attendees have been checking on friends who have had surgery due to other issues.  Finding out if they have had lymph nodes removed.  Which, will make a big difference in the process of our Pedicure room…..now, that they understand the why.

WHAT ARE THE WHY'S

When I was sharing the class info and all the stories with my husband, he said to me “I guess you were pretty lucky in your Salon not to have caused some of these things that can happen”.

He’s so right.  I felt much like I felt when I first learned about proper disinfection.  The things we don’t know are the things that can ruin us.  Education is so important.

The WHY’S

  • Did you know that scents can really affect a person going through treatment?  You want to make your room very aromatherapy like, but it’s actually insensitive not to cover this in your consultation.  Many are very sensitive to smells.  Eating lunch, cooking popcorn, broccoli or any other pungent food right before their service, can trigger a vomiting episode.
  • Did you know that performing a massage on someone who have had lymph nodes remove can cause epidema, and more?
  • Did you know not cleaning “everything” I your treatment room makes them very susceptible to infection?

The WHY’S is what you should invest in. The process can be read from a sheet of paper. The WHY’S need to be learned.

Centre for Beauty will be offering another class in October.  $100.00 deposit secures your seat (we already have 6).  The balance won’t be due until September.  I highly encourage to think about taking this class.  It will change the way you do things.  It will be one more step in the direction of changing the image of our industry.  It will be life changing, for you and your clients.

CJ Murray, President

CJ Murray
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Are You Going Through The Process, But don’t really understand the why?

I just love you all. Always and forever giving me ideas of what might next blog can be.
In speaking with a client this week, we were talking about Education and her frustration with the lack of Education being available in her area.
I shared my frustrations with scheduling classes (because you all want them) only to have to cancel them because of low or no attendance.

In this conversation she shared with me some products she purchased several months ago, sitting in her closet….not being used. Why? Because although she understand the process, she doesn’t understand the why.

LIGHT BULB MOMENT

So often we go through the motions of working the process. However, when it comes to really understanding the guts of the service, the products themselves, the ingredients….we fall flat. We don’t know how to explain to our clients and we are intimidated enough by this, to leave products sitting in our closets being unused.

?

This is a real problem.  I often get asked for step by step procedures. However, I rarely get asked….

  • what are the ingredients
  • why do they work
  • what effect do they have
  • how is it going to benefit my clients
  • how will it benefit me

These are all very legitimate questions and these are all questions which legitimize our Profession. These are all questions which legitimize you.

Do you know about the ingredients in the products you use on your clients. Not JUST what the ingredients are, but what are the benefits. What will they do to our skin. What will be the long term effects.

30 years ago, I would never have thought about the ingredients in the brands I used.  I would never have thought about it’s benefits, it’s contra-indications or anything outside of the fact this is what I chose to use in my Foot Care room. 30 years ago, this worked. Not any more.

The feet of yesteryear are know way shape or form, the feet of today. Our lifestyle have changed so drastically. We are dealing with more geriatrics, more diabetes, more immune compromised health issue than ever before.

We are also dealing with a sue happy society.

It is a must we know more about what we are using.  It is a must we know how to talk about what we use.  It is a must, we are educated not just on the process, but also on the why of that process.

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I can almost hear the voices in my ears “I can barely get my staff to follow the process, how on earth am I going to get them to know the whys?”

To begin with I say “get er done”.  Do you want to be one of those Salons with new product sitting in your closet? Product  you spent money on, wasting away behind closed doors? The idea of that is just ridiculous.

What do we do?

  • Each team member should choose a product a week to study
    • Learn what the ingredients are
    • Learn what the benefits are
    • Learn what the results can be
    • LEARN A NEW PRODUCT WEEKLY
  • Each team member should
    • Learn how to communicate this information
  • Each team member should try the product and/or receive a service with the product

In addition, when a new product is brought it, it should be

  • Used immediately to form a comfort level with this new product. Practice makes perfect.  You have to use it to use it.
  • Share it with all your customers by offering a new product promo.  Get it into their hands/feet immediately

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT?

Is there a product your purchased that you aren’t 100% sure about?

Is there something you purchased which you haven’t used yet because you aren’t comfortable with it?

What do YOU want to know about?

Share your thoughts and I will make a blog out of it

DON’T JUST KNOW THE PROCESS, KNOW THE WHY 

CJ Murray, President

CJ Murray
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Learning & Teaching are forever moments?

I had to pivot. Yup, we have to do that every once in a while during our lifetime. For me, this was one of those times. You see, I was so excited about what I wanted to blog and share with you this week…but…..life happened.
I was drawn to a thread on SM which gave me an “ah ha” moment. It was a question being asked in regards to feet. How could I not take the opportunity for a teaching moment. It’s just way to good to pass up.

Let me set the stage

Technician performs a pedicure on a client with severe thickness and dryness on the heel of the foot, the sides, the ball of the foot and the sole of the foot as well. There was also some severe cracking.
This isn’t discovered until after the client has soaked and the toenails have been clipped and manicured. The situation is severe. Filling doesn’t touch it.
The Technician recommends the client files her own feet a couple times a week after a shower, uses a cream and wears socks at night to moisturize.
I’m totally shortening the story, just to get to the guts.
Let’s find out what is wrong with this picture
Calloused heel

Ever hear the comment “I’m in feet heaven”?  Well, I am right now.  This scenario is sooooooo up my alley. Let’s get to it.

1st of all – adjustment #1.  Client consultation.

A client consultation is a MUST in our foot care rooms today.  The rise of diabetes, the rise of baby boomers visiting our salons, the rise of geriatrics now getting Pedicures puts us at risk for something really bad to happen in our chair.  A “proper” client consultation is our Insurance policy.

If a consultation had been done, the Technician would have seen what she was up against prior to servicing the client.  She could have made many choices of what to do at that time.  Should she service her/him?  Should she use a file on her/him?  Should she even soak her/him?  How about a scrub….should it have been used? Did she inquire about any health concerns prior to performing the service.  Obviously, something is going on.  Was it illness, medications, lack of care, wrong care?  It’s imperative to know the answers to these questions and more prior to moving onto the next step.

What should the next step be?

Well, I certainly can’t say for sure because we don’t have all the information needed.  However, I can tell you just based on this small bit of information we do have……I might have suggested this client an at home care regimen for a couple of weeks to seal the cracks.  Once the cracks are sealed is when and only when I would service the client in the Pedicure room.

Open portals of entry on the skin make this client susceptible to bacteria entering the skin and possibly getting in the blood stream causing serious if not deadly issues.

We should never ever service a client who has open skin, either on their feet or their legs.

Technicians as a whole have a difficult time turning clients away.  However, this is not what we are doing.  We have to educate the client to the reason(s) why the service can not be performed.  We have to know what products to recommend.

Once we go through this process (through the consultation), we can schedule an appointment at least 2 weeks out for them to return for the service.

This process not only shows the client your level of education, they will also trust you and respect you for what you have done.

2nd…..Do you have the right products to recommend to your clients.

I seriously can’t fit everything running through my mind right now in this one short blog.

In this particular case, the client was referred to use a cream and wear socks at night. Well….congratulations Mr. or Mrs. whoever you are…..you now have the most highly moisturized socks in your County. NOOOOOOOOOO!

What “creams” are you recommending or do they have for at home use?  Most (not all) creams have a thick molecular structure. These structures are not tiny enough to process through to the layers of the epidermis in order to be effective. Nor do they have the proper ingredients.  They sit on top of the skin.  Therefore, they not only wipe off on the first thing that touches them (socks), they do nothing for being able to reduce the callus nor soften the skin.

WHAT SHOULD WE RECOMMEND?

When retailing and/or recommending products to our clients

  • Look for products with a fine molecular structure like a mousse based formula or a light cream base
  • Look for products with active ingredients which act as a driver which delivers the ingredients into the layers of the epidermis so the product can work from the inside out.  How do we heal?  From the inside out.
  • Look for high level quality ingredients

There are great products on the market, but they do NOT all work as products which can attack these types of issues.  Many feel good and smell good, but they are not effective.

I represent the following 2 brands because they do work, they do have effective ingredients and they are safe for any immuo comprised client.  As much as I would love to sell you either of these products……do your research.

  • LCN Urea based
  • Footlogix Urea based

Urea is a hygroscopic.  It absorbs into 5-7 layers of the epidermis. It brings the “good” active ingredients with it to allow the skin to repair from the inside out.

We want the callus.  The callus is there to protect us.  However, we want that callus to soften so it will feel better and we also want it to look better.  In addition, the Urea will continuously work allowing the dead skin cells to push to the outer layer of the skin, allow the Stratum Corneum layer to naturally exfoliate

 

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While on the topic of products and ingredients.  I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the harmful effects of using acid based products or a product like baby foot.

When using acid based products we are only “burning” the top layer of the skin.  If we keep doing this, the skin will grow back tougher and thicker.  Remember, the skin is there to protect us.  If we continue to “remove” what is protecting us, it will think it isn’t doing it job.  Hence, growing back thicker and tougher.

Baby foot, literally burns off the top layer of the skin.  It even compromises the integrity of the good skin.  Another problem with baby foot is when the skin begins to peel off, you have a layer of red, tender, exposed skin leaving an absolutely fantastic bacteria haven. In short, it’s just bad!

Disinfection Micrylium BioSurf Kinder Greener Safer

 

WHAT ABOUT FOOT FILES?

I’m very passionate about foot files because of my own personal research.  We as technicians are causing roughness and cracking on our clients feet because of inferior foot files that are on the market.  Satan’s grader, sandpaper peel n sticking others, pumice stones and more.

I the case of this story, the technician sent the client home and suggested she file her feet a couple of times a week.  We have a couple problems with this scenario.

  • Did she know what type of foot file she is actually using at home?  Is it possible the file she is using is causing the skin on her feet to crack and be rough?  Absolutely!
  • Why would you send a client home to do your job?  Don’t ever suggest a client does at home what you should be doing in the Pedicure chair.  Not only is it poor advise, but your sending $$$$ out the door.

We recommend the AngelFeet file….hands down.  Yes, its considered to be expensive……BUT……if you cut hair, would you purchase a pair of shears for .75 cents?  If so, don’t expect too many clients.  A foot file is a primary tool in our Pedicure service.  It should be of good quality, it should be safe.  We recommend the AngelFeet file for a variety of reasons.

  • Medical grade, surgical stainless steel.  It can be cleaned, disinfected and sterilized to the highest degree
  • It has the “worlds” only and patented grit technology.  Guaranteed not to shred the skin
  • It won’t rust
  • It’s made in the USA which requires ISO9000 regulation
  • One file offers over 1000+ pedicures
  • It’s available in retail size IF you retail foot files to your clients

Centre for Beauty, during the month of February is offering our FILE BUY BACK program.  Send us your old files and you can purchase the AngelFeet for only $40.00.  This is a $42.95 savings which only happens during our buy back program.  This program is not a given.  We have no idea how many times we will be able to offer this program during the year.  It’s a program you will only find through Centre for Beauty.  For more info contact me @ cj@centreforbeauty.com

I wish I could get this message to every technician in this industry.  However, unless I visit every salon in existence, it can’t happen without your help.

I talk all the time about changing the image the outside world has of our Industry.  WE are the only ones that can change that. Share this article.  Tell all you friends.  Inform your clients.  This information may seem like feet 101 but it isn’t.  We weren’t taught these types of things in school (still aren’t).  And, there are many people out there offering what they think is good advise, but it’s wrong information.

I don’t fault this technician for doing or not doing what she did.  In my opinion, the fault lies in our Industry for not providing quality education in our schools to our new Technicians.  30 years ago…sure, no one knew what we know today about feet and the products we should or shouldn’t use.  But in todays world…there is no excuse.

I say it again….please share.  Let’s educate each other.  Let’s work together to make a change.

CJ Murray, President

CJ Murray
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