Two brands share exciting new developments and a luxe London salon shows us around

Nail News

China Glaze under new distribution

US nail brands China Glaze and Super Nail Pro Gel have a new UK distributor. American Nail Industries, which manufactures the brand, has appointed Bliss Direct to handle UK distribution through its offices in Leeds. The brands were previously available in the UK through The Beauty Partnership. The full range of colours and treatments from both lacquer brand China Glaze and gel system Super Nail Pro Gel are showcased in Bliss’s free catalogue, including the new China Glaze My Little Pony Colour is Magic! collection.

RASPBERRY RIPPLE

This Gellux design uses simple but striking nail art techniques with contrasting shades

STEP 1

On a cured base coat, paint a thin layer of Sandstone on the index, ring and pinky fingers and the thumb.

STEP 2

Paint Crimson on the middle finger and cure all nails

STEP 3

Repeat step two with a second coat on the middle and ring fingers

STEP 4

Apply a second coat of Sandstone to index and pinky fingers without curing. Add dots of Crimson and Champagne Kisses then use a dotting tool to swirl together before curing

STEP 5

On the ring finger, use the dotting tool with Crimson to create a half circle, following the cuticle but leaving a small gap. Repeat with Champagne Kisses to fill in the gap, then cure.

5minutes with Monika Shine, chief executive, Semilac UK

Before moving into the nail industry I was a property developer. I really enjoyed the design side of that job but wanted to challenge myself in a different area. Focusing on nails made sense to me because I think the way you present yourself is very important in life.

Semilac was a big name in Poland, and having moved to the UK myself, I wanted to be the first to bring the business to this country. I did so around 18 months ago. The brand is now in 200 salons across the UK and we are recuiting a London salon account manager.

Beauty Without Compromise is our campaign to reinforce the message that active women can still have beautiful nails. We’re working with brand ambassadors and have two Olympic gold medallists on board: Team GB hockey player Giselle Ansley MBE and world champion track cyclist Dani King.

We’re excited to be exhibiting at Professional Beauty North in October to showcase our new ranges, including SemiFlash Galaxy; nine cosmic shades which sparkle like the stars.

Right now my favourite colour in the range is SemiBeats Neon Orange, because it’s the perfect bright colour for this time of year

@SemilacUK @mshirley

Continental collaboration

CND has collaborated with London hotel InterContinental – The O2 on a nail treatment room in the hotel’s spa, situated on the Greenwich Peninsula in South East London. The new room will exclusively offer CND services, such as the Almond Spa Manicure, Marine Spa Pedicure and Shellac colour. The spa has eight other treatment rooms, a sauna, steam room, gym and indoor pool

Learn from the competition

Adopting a different perspective when considering your competitors could just be the key to nailing the competition. In an exclusive interview with PBTV Samuel Sweet, managing director of CND distributor Sweet Squared, talks about nail salon owners failing to think about the reasons clients turn to cut-price or “value” salons, instead getting bogged down on price points they can’t afford to match.

“You can learn important lessons from value salons, even if that’s not what you’re trying to be. What is it that’s attracting customers to that salon?” he asks. “To a degree it’s price but clients also value speed and time. It’s the convenience of being able to pop in last minute and be taken care of.”

Sweet suggests thinking about ways, other than price, in which you can match what your competitors offer clients to make your salon the obvious choice. “Try to leave space open in the diary for walk-ins at peak times to attract new customers, and see if you can steer regular clients to times that are less likely to attract walk-ins,” he suggests. You could also think about free add-ons that won’t cost much but will give the client an experience they won’t find elsewhere.

Watch the full interview online at professionalbeauty.co.uk/PBTVSweets

DELICATE WORK

Social media is awash with cute, creative cuticle nail art ideas this summer. To give clients an intricate design in minimal time, try henna or lace design nail decals on a few accent nails, or frame nails in different shades of bold neon paint. Clients who like a bit of a sparkle with their mani would love a colourful half moon with encapsulated chunks of glitter or a simple semi-circle of rose-toned glitter on an otherwise nearly nude nail.

PUT A RING ON IT

LCN has launched its own version of a clever way to make it easier for clients to choose their polish shade in salon. Its Nail Tip Ring, as showcased in its AW17 catalogue and available now, is a white tip attached to a plastic ring that fits over the cap of its polish bottles. It can be painted with the corresponding shade so clients can get a true colour indication at first glance. The rings could be especially handy for light-proof gel-polish bottles that hide the colour within.