Ask the experts

from Professional Beauty July 2020

Nail notes

Our beauty experts answer an array of questions about every aspect of running a successful salon or spa business

How can I operate my salon effectively with strict covid-19 safety measures in place?

There has never been a bigger event in history to derail our human touch industry than the covid-19 outbreak. But the great news is that the majority of your clients will be very eager to return for their professional services, However, we have to be well prepared to safely welcome them back. Here are three critical factors when planning your return to work:

Prep your team –Every team member needs to understand the new “laws of client engagement”. Issue revised work schedules, training on PPE gear, disposable client items and new bed set-ups.

Education materials on disinfection and hand washing are also key, while a hygiene safety checklist for both service providers and customers is also recommended. Perform a daily wellness check for all staff with a brief Q&A and by using a touchless infrared thermometer. Also consider how you wash uniforms, think about using disposable linens and develop your existing cleaning and sterilisation methods.

New safety protocols – Over-communicate to your clients the new sanitation procedures; via social, your website, signage throughout your space, email and verbally when confirming their appointment. Limit the clients you allow into your business to lower the risk of possible transmission – take clients by appointment only and stagger their appointment time to allow for thorough cleaning. You may need for them to wait in their car or outside before entering your business at their scheduled appointment time.

Have masks available for clients as well as hand sanitiser placed at multiple locations. Post signage throughout the salon encouraging social distancing. Let clients know that they will need to rebook if they have an elevated temperature.

Mindfully Gearing Up – Beyond frequent hand washing, you’re probably considering masks and visors. Consider reusable, environmentally conscious. fabric masks. High-tech versions are moulded to the face, comfortable and have three layers, the central one being infused with antibacterial silver ion technology to provide protection yet breathability. Look for lightweight, ergonomically designed face shields that fit snuggly and have anti-fog, anti-scratch clear PET plastic that is distortion free.

Annet King is vice president of business development at Bio-Therapeutic, responsible for global brand expansion. Previously, she’s held leading roles at Dermalogica and Elemis.

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How might my clients’ skin have changed during lockdown?

For many, the past few months have brought a change in working environment, maybe more time spent outdoors, additional stresses juggling home schooling and family life with working from home, plus financial worries.

We know that the skin reflects what is happening internally and that it is affected by our lifestyle, diet and stress. With the skin cell cycle taking around a month, many clients are now bearing their lockdown look. So, what can you do to assist? Education. We are all aware of the damaging effects of UVA and UVB light and know that wearing sunscreen should be a daily habit.

However, the skin needs protecting from more than just the sun. Additional screen time has increased our exposure to HEV (high energy visible light) or blue light dramatically this year. This invisible form of pollution can lead to inflammation, impaired healing, compromised melanogenesis, sensitivity, dryness, wrinkles and uneven tone and texture.

Environmental pollution may have decreased a little during lockdown but there is also domestic pollution to consider: paint, cleaning products and washing detergents. Share this with your clients. Social media posts are the most effective way to communicate the solutions.

Combat the oxidative stress and look for products containing powerful protective agents such as pre and probiotic complexes to stimulate the balance of the skin microbiome/skin flora; niacinamide to repair the barrier function and help reinforce the skin’s immune system; light

Clare Dickens is managing reflecting pigments to act as director of Totally UK, which distributors spa optical diffusers to correct and skincare brand Germaine brighten; and oxygen for detoxification.

Which is the most effective method for sugaring?

Sugaring is one of the oldest treatments for hair removal, originating in ancient Egypt. Throughout different cultures, both the technique of sugaring and the pastes have evolved. With a simple search on YouTube you’ll find numerous ways to sugar, from applying the paste with a stick and removing it with a strip, also called sugar waxing, to applying the paste with the fingers and removing with a flick of the wrist.

I’ve been a long-time practitioner of the latter technique, which is known as the “hand method” or “traditional method”. It requires only your hand and a ball of soft sugar paste, no sticks or strips. You mould the paste on against the direction of growth, which allows it to fully encapsulate the hair and seep into the head of the follicle.

When hair is extracted in the direction of growth, clients tend to report less discomfort or ingrown hairs due to the reduction in breakage. Sugar is also only heated to room temperature, eliminating the risk of burning or sensitisation. One of my favourite things about sugaring is that it’s water-soluble. Clean up is easy with just a wet cloth. Water solubility also means that sugar cannot lift live skin so you can double or triple back over any areas to get the extraction you want.

Stephanie King is founder of London Sugaring Company and director of education and international distribution for Tamara’s Sugar,

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How should I prioritise clients’ bookings when I reopen?

Covid-19 has shut down beauty salons and spas across the UK for more than 14 weeks now, but every day we are getting closer to re-opening, and, fingers crossed, expecting huge demand for beauty appointments.

So, if that huge demand does materialise, who do you ensure gets the first appointments? Loyalty comes first. A great deal of thought needs to be given to who you prioritise, but top of the list should be your loyal/VIP clients. If you have a loyalty scheme it will be clear who those clients are, and if you do not, get your team together to make a list of your most loyal clients. They will be the people who have supported you regularly for a number of years.

A call from the salon owner or manager to the client will help to cement your relationship, and of course make the client feel special. Secondly, it will be important to create a priority booking list, which is a fair way to allocate time to clients. Clients who were booked in before lockdown, and were consequently unable to have their treatments, should be contacted and given the opportunity to make an appointment as a priority.

Some consideration should also be given to trying to book higher-revenue treatments and upselling so that when your salon does re-open you can maximise profitability as soon as possible. Finally, the rotas for your team will have taken a great deal of time to organise because of the need to

Anna Nickless is director ensure that the salon is operating of AB Beauty Consultancy, safely. Emphasise to clients that it which she launched this year with Bonnie Platts. The is a desire to protect them and duo previously ran the Lavender your teams that has led to limited & Stone salon group in the South availability in the early stages of reopening.

I had only just launched my spa before lockdown hit. What now?

The Spa at Carden opened on January 6, so we were only open for just under three months before the official lockdown started.

We were in the middle of launch so we didn’t get to our official opening. The major thing with a new business is that you’re not established yet so you’re still getting people to understand your offering and come to you. The biggest challenge thrown up by this situation for us was to not lose that momentum.

However, I actually think there are some advantages to being a new business going through this. Your business is still evolving so your team is used to change and not stuck in old ways. We were already regularly reviewing and changing things, so the team will be responsive to the changes that come in the future.

We’ve have learned a lot about our team members and how everyone operates, so it’s fresh in our minds how we can do things better.

I’d recommend that everyone sees this as an opportunity to set targets and goals and really think about what you want to do with your business. Moving forward, it’s working to understand that plans change and it’s now going to be such a changing environment.” PB

Steve Ewing is spa director at Carden Park Hotel in Cheshire, where he runs The Spa at Carden, a £10m, 4,500sq ft two-storey spa.

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Talking to...

Von Hep JULES

The celeb spray tanner tells Amanda Pauley how he’s been disrupting the industry’s outdated views of “beauty”, and why the body positivity movement needs to be taken up a notch D espite the strides that have been made by the beauty industry in recent years to amplify the body positivity movement, it’s fair to say that more needs to be done to celebrate all body types. Somebody who has been championing this for a long time and is a true leader of the Not only has Von Hep spoken openly about struggling with his body image and being bullied in school and the workplace, but he regularly shares posts on social media about the importance of looking after your mental health and loving yourself the way you are. movement is Jules Heptonstall – better known by the moniker Jules Von Hep – a celebrity spray tanning expert Positive outlook and creative director and founder of colour-correcting But that’s not all. Last year, Von Hep launched a self-tan brand Isle of Paradise. game-changing Body Positivity campaign for Isle

For years, Von Hep has been trying to make everybody of Paradise, which featured 10 tanned models in feel body confident and working hard to help clients break their underwear. The imagery went viral for its sheer that vicious cycle of comparison – comparing themselves diversity, including men, women and all body to heavily filtered images on social media. His message shapes and sizes, including plus-size model Tess isn’t a gimmick either, as soon as you watch his videos and Holliday and disabled beauty blogger Tess Daly. read his posts you can tell it comes from the heart. “It was a huge movement across the internet,”

says Von Hep. “I always try and use my position in the industry for good, to make positive changes. I originally never wanted to launch a self-tan brand but I felt it was my duty because the way that traditional brands were communicating about tanning was wrong – i.e. tanning to look skinny. That was never what tan was for me – it was to feel good, feel confident. I wanted people to use my product and feel empowered by their body.”

But, it’s not been easy for Von Hep to get his message out there. When he first launched Isle of Paradise in 2018, using a curvy model in the marketing imagery was no easy feat. “This

Top: An image from the Isle of Paradise Get Body Posi campaign; bottom: With Little Mix on X Factor in 2011

sounds so alien because, amazingly, using a curve model is now more of the done thing, but I can’t tell you how hard it was at the time to get that across the line,” explains Hep. “Once the campaign launched, I was inundated with messages from customers who said they were crying because they finally felt like they could tan. They finally felt accepted.”

Winds of change

Despite these achievements, Von Hep still wants the body positivity movement to be turned up a gear this year, stating that people with disabilities, gender fluidity and the trans world need more of a voice. “The industry needs to view it not as a token disabled or trans person [in the campaign], but to celebrate that person as an individual. We should be casting on achievements,” he says.

“It doesn’t matter what you look like, as that’s not necessarily the most interesting thing about you. What you’ve done, what you’ve achieved, what your beliefs are – now that’s interesting.

Let’s celebrate that.”

It’s also about making these people feel included and that they can tan like anybody else, and any good spray tanner should be able to deliver this. “You want to give them the best tan you can, so you need to be upfront and honest with the client – don’t pussyfoot around the issue,” advises Von Hep.

“A client with a disability will know how much

Left: Backstage at Milan Fasion Week; below: With Made in Chelsea’s Millie Mackintosh on the red carpet

they can move their body, so you have to ask them: can I move your arm? Can I lift your leg? Are you going to be in any pain? Don’t be nervous to ask these things. You’ll also need to hand-apply the tan with mousse and mitt because the pressure of the solution from the gun and the way it’s going to sit on the skin won’t work for somebody who is in a wheelchair, for example,” he adds.

Von Hep also wants airbrushing and retouching in the beauty industry to come to a stop, especially after working on sets and then later seeing photos of the celebrity he worked on that look completely different to the images that were coming through from the photographer’s camera on the day of the shoot. much like their hairdresser; you’re with them

“Taking cellulite, body hairs and wrinkles out of an through the whole process. That’s the very image is just lying and it’s not fair,” he personal side of this industry says. “You’re lying and I never take that for to a consumer to get them to buy a granted,” he explains. “Also, product that doesn’t do what you say Airbrushing needs to those clients who are going it does because you’ve airbrushed it. I just find that side of the industry mentally difficult to process.” stop. Taking cellulite, body hairs and wrinkles through other painful life moments like a divorce, you’re there cheering them up, and out of an image is just that’s why I do what I do.” Lead by example lying and it’s not fair Working in these different As well as his admirable work environments, from live TV promoting body positivity, Von Hep is shows and editorial shoots to also a sought-after spray tanner. His travelling to private homes, celebrity clients including TV Presenter Stacey Dooley and was one of the other reasons Von Hep launched he’s worked on top TV shows such as The Crown, The X his self-tan brand – because he was mixing colour Factor and Strictly Come Dancing. However, Von Hep is corrective make-up with tanning products to get proud he’s remained a man of the people, working to instil that natural-looking continuity tan for clients. confidence to everyone he meets. Carrying around the make-up and tanning

“I’ve had many career highlights – spray tanning Kate products he needed to achieve this was making Moss was a huge ‘pinch me’ moment – but working with his kit massive – “I was carrying two suitcases clients who have overcome their cancer journey is up there sometimes,” he says. “I needed a product that for me. When you’re a client’s spray tanner, you’re very didn’t take up all this space, especially as a spray

KEY DATES

2011

Von Hep is trained in spray tanning by Nichola Joss, then meets MUA Natalya Chew to become the tanner for The X Factor

2012

Becomes spray tanning expert for Strictly Come Dancing and works with celebs for red-carpet events

2013

Backstage tanning artist at London, Paris and Milan Fashion Weeks, and A-list spray tanning expert for the BAFTAs

2014

Travels the world training salon pros in how to apply self-tan perfectly

2015

Starts as spray tanning expert for Netflix series The Crown

2018

Launches Isle of Paradise (IOP) and unveils bodyconfidence and mental-health podcast Wobble with Sarah Powell

2019

Publishes free E-book Get Body Posi and shoots the Isle of Paradise Get Body Posi campaign, encouraging inclusivity in the beauty industry

2020

Global sales of IOP increase 200% during Covid-19 lockdown tanner you travel a lot, so I created a colour-corrective tan.”

If you’re considering launching your own product, Von Hep has some advice on the key factors to consider. “There’s so much competition out there, it is really hard. So, you have to figure out what your USP is – are your products eco-friendly? Are they vegan? Are you communicating to a specific demographic? If so, is there a real need there? Think about what you can give people that they can’t get already,” he says.

But, it’s not all about having a good product, that’s just the foundation to building a successful brand. “A good product makes everything else easier, but you have to consider the other things that come with launching a range – you’ve got to have a soul within your business. Then, the more you ask yourself ‘why?’ during the process, the more you can justify each move,” says Von Hep. “Also, bear in mind that things won’t always work on a first attempt, especially when you’re putting products in testing and stability.”

Future planning

I also asked Von Hep how he’s feeling about returning to work post-coronavirus lockdown and, like many in the industry, he’s excited and anxious. “I completely understand the nervousness beauty business owners are feeling at the moment. In week one of lockdown, I put my kit away and haven’t got it out since – it’s surreal,” he says.

“I’ve really missed having that physical connection with clients, but I’ve been taking this time to get organised. I’ve been improving my video-editing skills and looking at my Instagram from a business point of view, thinking, ‘what can I do to make it better?’ I’ve also been checking in with clients regularly, asking them how they’re doing.”

Von Hep says now is the perfect time for spray tanners to sort out their back catalogue of work on social media. “Instagram is your book, so make sure it shows that you’ve worked with different skin tones and body types. Also, these posts don’t always need to be pictures; screenshots of reviews clients have left you can be just as effective,” he adds. PB