With consumers now having to battle environmental aggressors such as pollution, UV damage and blue light on a daily basis, almost a third of you (29%) said you have more clients coming in with skin sensitivity than ever before. You’ve also noted an increase in clients asking for advice on managing acne (20%) and sun damage (12%).

Workplace wellness has also been high on your agenda, especially since the World Health Organization recognised burnout as a medical condition. As such, more than half of you (56%) have implemented wellbeing programmes in salon to keep your therapists, managers and front-of-house staff mentally and physically healthy.

With semi-permanent make-up treatments continually developing, we round up the latest trends you can offer on page 95, including faux freckles, lip blush and ombré brows – which 49% of you said is the technique you would most like to learn.

Wallis

On the spot

Which skin condition do clients most often come to you for advice on?

1. Sensitivity

2. Acne

3. Age spots

4. Sun damage

56% have work wellness programmes to look after their teams

Which semi-permanent make-up technique would you most like to train in?

1. Ombré brows

2. Eyeliner dots (to make lashes appear fuller)

3. Lip blush

4. Faux freckles

July 2019 in numbers

HOW DID TREATMENT BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

51%

BETTER

37%

SAME

12%

WORSE

AVERAGE TREATMENT ROOM OCCUPANCY

HOW DID RETAIL BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

29% BETTER

32%SAME

39%WORSE

Insider spa

With clients wanting to reconnect with nature more than ever, many of you have introduced initiatives to deliver this offering. Outdoor treatments in secluded areas of your spa’s property (25%) have been the most popular concept, followed closely by hosting mental wellbeing walks (9%) and building wellness gardens (8%).

Some of you have also had clients enquiring about whether you stock products that include this year’s hottest ingredients. As such, 42% of you are looking to add prebiotics and probiotics to your retail offering, as well as CBD oil skincare (18%), crystal-infused ranges (17%) and marine-friendly sunscreen (16%).

Making sure staff are happy and healthy at work is a top priority, which is why just under half (42%) of you have been working on creating work wellness programmes for your therapists. Don’t forget to check out the hottest spa launches for autumn on page 110.

Figleaves

On the spot

How are you helping clients reconnect with nature?

1. Offering outdoor treatments

2. Hosting nature/wellbeing walks

3. Forest bathing

4. Building wellness gardens

42% have work wellness programmes to look after their teams

Which product trend are you looking to add to your offering?

1. Prebiotics and probiotics

2. CBD-infused skincare

3. Crystal-infused skincare

4. Marine-friendly sunscreen

July 2019 in numbers

HOW DID TREATMENT BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

58%BETTER

9%SAME

33%WORSE

AVERAGE TREATMENT ROOM OCCUPANCY

71%

HOW DID RETAIL BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

42% BETTER

17% SAME

41% WORSE

Insider nails

Dealing with particularly difficult clients is part of the job, so we asked you to rank clients’most annoying habits. Being late for every appointment (39%) came out top, followed by changing their mind about the colour during or at the end of the service (22%) and coming in for their appointment when ill (12%). Other top niggles included coming in for a pedicure straight from the gym (7%) and staying silent during the treatment (6%).

With sustainability a huge issue in the industry at the moment, many of you have been checking the eco-credentials of the products you use. However, only 7% said they have heard from the companies they stock about how the brands plan to reduce their packaging waste.

Meanwhile, Marian Newman scooped the title of the tech who inspires you the most, closely followed by NAF! salon founder Tammy Koslowski.

Oliver Bonas

On the spot

Which nail tech inspires you the most?

1. Marian Newman

2. Tammy Koslowski

3. Katie Barnes

4. Jessica Hoffman

7% say the nail brands they stock have outlined plans to reduce packaging

What’s the most common bad habit among your nail clients?

1. Being late for every appointment

2. Changing their mind about the colour

3. Coming in when sick – I don’t want to get ill

4. Cutting their nails badly, causing an ingrown nail

METHODOLOGY Insider is compiled from a monthly survey of spas and beauty salons. The people who participated represent a crosssection of the industry and were polled by email from July 30 to August 8, regarding business for the month to July 31. Nail business for the Insider Nails page was calculated from data provided by salons that offer nail services among other treatments. The figures given represent the average score for each answer. Brands are ranked when mentioned by several respondents.

July 2019 in numbers

HOW DID TREATMENT BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

43% BETTER

40% SAME

17% WORSE

NAIL TREATMENTS PERFORMED ON AVERAGE PER WEEK 20

HOW DID RETAIL BUSINESS IN JULY 2019 COMPARE WITH JULY 2018?

22% BETTER

54% SAME

24% WORSE