THE PROFESSIONAL BEAUTY NORTH show is the perfect opportunity to stock up on Christmas gifts that clients won’t be able to resist, plus we pick up some promotional tips from the experts

Professional Beauty North

Heaven

There are nine Christmas gift sets from Heaven and each is put together to address a specific skin issue. For example, the Bee Healed kit for sensitive skin contains Essential Moisturiser, Chamomile Hydrogel and SOS Oil Serum among other products, while Bee Revived (to revitalise skin) includes Willow Bee Mask & Cleanse, Dream Oil Serum and Prism Age Defiance Cream, among others.

Trade: £55 each

Stand: B5

Caci

The perfect gift for lovers of Caci facials, the Age Delay Duo pairs Eye Revive Serum and Amino-Lift Peptide Complex in a kit for targeted anti-ageing. Eye Revive Serum targets puffiness and dark circles with active ingredients including hyaluronic acid to hydrate the delicate skin around the eyes, while seaweed extract helps detoxify. Amino-Lift Peptide Complex uses matrixyl 3000 to reduce the appearance of wrinkles while increasing dermal thickness for firmer skin.

Trade: £41

Stand: E5

Elemis

Elemis will show its 14 gift sets for Christmas to offer something for every one of the brand’s fans. The Gift of Pro Collagen is the star of the line up, containing full sizes of Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm, Marine Oil, Marine Cream, Oxygenating Night Cream, Marine Mask and Hydra-Gel Eye Masks. There is also a Biotec skincare collection, three options for men, body care sets and two candles: Soothing Glow and Joyful Glow.

RRP: from £27.50

Stand: E19

The only way to get free entry is to register in advance at professionalbeauty.co.uk/north

Manchester Central, Sunday October 22, 10am–6pm; Monday October 23, 10am–5pm

MY MOST SUCCESSFUL CHRISTMAS PROMOTION…

“We had a really successful December last year”, says Lesley Caster, owner of City Retreat in Newcastle. The salon puts several business-boosting initiatives in place over the festive period, but last year it saw particularly good pay off from its Christmas gift guide. “We introduced our gift guide two years ago but the first year we were a bit late getting it out. We’ve had feedback that it really helps clients make decisions on what to buy as a gift because it shows them everything we have in one place”, says Caster.

The guide has sections on presents for women and men, detailing treatment packages and gifts from the salon’s product houses, Elemis and Aromaworks. It also includes couples’ packages and corporate gifts as well as stocking fillers like the City Retreat signature candle. “We give the gift guide to clients in salon and email it out to our mailing list. We also leave copies in local businesses”, adds Caster.

Thalgo

Thalgo’s 13 Christmas include either spa-style body care treats, pampering skincare or grooming gifts. Highlights are the Indocéane Gift Set, with a shower gel, massage oil and silky body milk; the Thalgo Men Gift Set with staple skincare products; and the Prodige des Océans coffret, comprising Prodige des Océans Cream, mask and body cream.

Trade: from £10

Stand: C26

Murad

Each of Murad’s festive collections groups together three products that work on different skins. Joyful & Rejuvenated takes products from the Age Reform range to restore elasticity and suppleness, Joyful & Radiant contains key Essential-C products to fight environmental aggressors and promote brightness, Joyful & Renewed features a selection from the Resurgence range to tackle dehydrated skin and wrinkles; and the Ultimate Skin Perfectors kit contains hero Murad products.

Trade: £35.21 each

Stand: B30

Crystal Clear

There are plenty of gift options from Crystal Clear, each wrapped in silver ribbon and adorned with a star ornament. The Essentials Solutions set contains travel-sized post-festive-period skin fixers including Skin Repair Serum, Brightening Complex and 10 Minute Glow; while the At Home Microdermabrasion set comprises the Ionic Sonic Cleanse Brush and Soothing Cleansing Gel among other products.

Trade: from £15

Stand: G11

The only way to get free entry is to register in advance at professionalbeauty.co.uk/north

Manchester Central, Sunday October 22, 10am–6pm; Monday October 23, 10am–5pm

MY MOST SUCCESSFUL CHRISTMAS PROMOTION…

Tranquillity Beauty Studio in Pwllheli, Wales, installed its online booking system with software provider Ovatu in October last year. Owner Lindsay Thompson took the opportunity to boost Christmas spend well into the new year by creating offers linked to online bookings.

“To get people using the online booking system, as well as increasing January and February bookings, we did an offer whereby if clients booked online for appointments in those months they’d get a 20% discount”, explains Thompson.

“It encouraged a lot of clients to book a couple of treatments. They allow themselves a treat if they’re also saving money, so they might have their regular waxing and then treat themselves to a facial. So, despite the discount it did end up being cost effective for us”, she says. The salon also ran an offer on gift vouchers that gave clients a “20% off” voucher to use in those quieter months after Christmas if they purchased a gift voucher of £40 or more as a present.

“That was really popular. They tend to spend more in the first place because, again, they know they’re getting the money off”, says Thompson. “Offers like these open clients up to trying different treatments and hopefully finding something they love, which could become a regular booking.”

The salon advertised both offers on Facebook with a direct link to its online booking system to make it as easy as possible for clients. “We did see an increase in footfall in January; we were fully booked throughout the month, so this year we’ll be focusing on extending that through February and into March”, says Thompson.

ANP

Ideal for those who want to give skin-boosting supplements a try, the Skin Celebrations gift features three formulas to help achieve plump, radiant skin from the inside: Skin Collagen Support, to contribute to collagen synthesis; Skin Omegas+, for the maintenance of normal, healthy skin; and Skin Vit C, tablets to help protect skin cells from oxidative stress, all packaged in an environmentally friendy cardboard sleeve printed with ANP’s new branding.

Trade: £27

Stand: E24

Environ

Subtly decorated hexagonal boxes house Environ’s festive offering this year. The Ultimate Gift contains Skin EssentiA Mild Cleansing Lotion, Botanical Infused Moisturising Toner, Vita-Antioxidant AVST Moisturiser, Vita Peptide Eye Gel, C-Boost, and travel sizes of Revival Masque, Avance DFP 312 Cream and Hydrating Oil Capsules. Festive Treat comprises travel sizes of Avance DFP 312 Cream and Hydrating Oil Capsules. Finally, Vita Peptide Eye Gel is available on its own, packaged as a stocking filler.

Trade: from £17.50

Stand: E24

The Eyelash Design Company

Regular lash and brow treatment clients will find the perfect gift in one of The Eyelash Design Company’s specially packaged bags. The Lash Perfect Glam Eyes set contains five essential products for lash extension maintenance: Finishing Glaze, mascara, black eyeliner, Lift-Off Eye Makeup Remover and a Cleansing Cloth; while the Hi Brow Style Kit matches the 24 Hour Brow Powder Compact with Smoothing Wax Pencil, a sharpener and tweezers.

RRP: £42.95 each

Stand: E27

The only way to get free entry is to register in advance at professionalbeauty.co.uk/north

Manchester Central, Sunday October 22, 10am–6pm; Monday October 23, 10am–5pm

Dr’s Remedy

Podiatrist-formulated nail care brand Dr’s Remedy has put together three Christmas gift sets. The Gold Trio contains Glee Gold lacquer, Basic Base Coat and Calming Clear Top Coat. The Love & Peace Trio contains Cheerful Cherry and Poised Pink Champagne lacquers and Total Top Coat; and the Revive Trio contains Revive Ruby Red lacquer, Basic Base Coat and Calming Clear Top Coat.

Trade: £32.45 each

Stand: E77

Spa Ritual

The nail brand will have several Christmas gift sets on show, including the Let it Glow and Tinsel Holiday sets. Let it Glow includes three bright pastel colours – Miss World, rich coral-pink; Thunder Road, pale lilac; and Delight, mint green – and Lighthouse glow in the dark top coat for eye-catching manicures. For a more traditional Christmas mani, the Tinsel Holiday set groups rich red, metallic silver and blue and glittering gold shades.

Trade: from £7.20

Stand: C35

Jane Iredale

The mineral make-up brand will be presenting a choice of three limited-edition lip collections packaged in chic Christmas crackers. Each contains a mini Pure Gloss Lip Gloss with a full-size Lip Drink Lip Balm and Lip Pencil. There’s a choice of nude, pink or berry tones.

Trade: £20 each

Stand: E24

MY MOST SUCCESSFUL CHRISTMAS PROMOTION…

At Galgorm Resort and Spa in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, spa manager Tara Moore shows off the resort’s unique riverside setting after dark by inviting clients to a Christmas shopping night. “We’ve done it for the past three years and it helps very well with retail gift and voucher sales”, she says. “Reps from the brands we stock come along to talk to clients about the products and we have mulled wine and goodie bags that contain a treatment offer.”

Moore says gift vouchers are so popular at the spa that they recruit seasonal staff purely to sell them. At the Christmas shopping night, these staff are on hand alongside a retail stand stocked with gift sets comprising treatment gift vouchers attached to a complementary product.

“[The client] may have just intended to buy a gift voucher on its own but we have a product there with it wrapped up, and our staff can very easily sell it as if it goes with the voucher. You’re getting that sale without them really knowing it”, says Moore. “Plus, the recipient isn’t just getting an envelope, there’s something they can unwrap too.”

The initiative has worked so well for the spa that Moore is planning on turning it into a ticketed, whole-day event “in a larger function room with an afternoon tea, treatment masterclasses and discounts on the day”, she explains.