Each month we look at how people have successfully turned their hobby into their profession. This month we continue this feature with a look at beauty therapy. Here we will be discussing the most important factors and issues you may come across when setting up your own business as a beauty therapist.
Beauty therapists carry out facial and body treatments on clients. These treatments aim to enhance the appearance of the client or to improve their general well-being. It is common for beauty therapists to start off working in a beauty salon and then become a freelancer. This is because working for a company allows you to learn from colleagues and get the necessary training and experience in many areas of beauty therapy. Most freelance beauty therapists enjoy the flexibility that working in the industry brings, as clients hours can be fitted around family life.
To become a qualified beauty therapist you must sit a professional qualification at a college. It is important that you do not perform treatments on clients without this qualification. Normally this will be a full time college course; however, modules can usually be broken up so that you can learn parttime.
This is a client-facing profession so being friendly, easy to talk to and professional is very important.
As well as having solid beauty therapy skills, you will need strong sales skills to make your freelance career successful. This is because you will need to convince your clients to try a wider range of beauty treatments and refer your services to their friends if you want to increase your business income.
It is also important to be mobile, as you may be travelling to lots of different clients’ homes during your working day, so having a driver’s licence is essential.
When you’re setting up a freelance beauty therapy business, you should research which treatments are popular and which treatments your competitors are offering to help you decide on the services you should provide. You should also think about your own strengths and even about offering some unique or unusual services to help you stand out from the other therapists. You will also need to consider what equipment is needed to perform each treatment - remember that you will be visiting clients’ houses, so this equipment needs to be portable. This is an industry which is constantly evolving, so you need to be able to keep up to date on the latest trends. At the moment there is a growing demand for semi-permanent eyelashes and highdefinition eyebrow shaping. However, new treatments are often inspired by celebrities and television shows, so keep an eye on any references your clients make. Top Tip Box: Some examples of freelance beauty treatments and other useful resources to help you start you own business can be found on our business startup Pinterest board.
It is vital to make sure you have insurance cover before you carry out any beauty treatments. There are several organisations which offer specialist liability insurance for beauty therapists. If you're going to join an organisation like BABTAC, then your membership might include a good insurance package.
Getting to grips with your finances and taxes is an extremely important part of becoming a freelancer. Since you will have no guaranteed salary, you should ensure that you have a financial cushion (roughly 6 months’ worth of expenses) so that you can support yourself if you have no jobs or become ill.
Making sure you are paying the correct amount of tax can be a challenging task. The best thing to do is to check the Inland Revenue website and make a call to the helpline for the newly self-employed (0845 915 4515). You will be responsible for keeping all your receipts and records for six years to complete your annual self-assessment tax form. Keeping your own accounts can be quite a timeconsuming task, so look into small business accounting software which can simplify the whole process.
Becoming a freelance beauty therapist is a great idea if you like working with people and want flexible working hours. You will be expected to keep up to date with new fashions and beauty trends, so this is a career in which you will be constantly learning new skills. The entry barriers to establishing yourself in this industry are relatively low, and experience will be your greatest asset.