Insider nails

VERY

The beauty of the nail industry is that there are so many different avenues to pursue. Some of the most popular career goals among our survey respondents include developing their own product ranges (34%), writing for industry magazines like Professional Beauty (22%) and competing in nail competitions. To find out more about developing your own range of nail products, don’t miss our interview with The Cuticle Lab founder Louisa Baldwin on page 47. There will also be opportunities to enter nail competitions at our Professional Beauty North show on September 29-30.

As with any sector of the beauty industry, nail businesses can generate quite a bit of waste. Some of the most popular ways to reduce this include paperless bookings and receipts (89%), reusable tools (87%) and purchasing products in bulk (78%). Find out how to conduct a waste audit in our article on page 44.

On the spot

What career advancement option are you most interested in pursuing?

1. Developing my own line of nail products (34%)

2. Writing for or contributing to industry publications (22%)

3. Competing in nail competitions (21%)

4. Specialising in advanced nail art and design (13%)

5. Becoming a nail educator (10%)

58% perform waterless manicures

What do you do to manage and reduce waste?

1. Digital booking and receipt system to reduce paper (89%)

2. Reusable tools and equipment (87%)

3. Buying products in bulk to minimise packaging (78%)

4. Using eco-friendly and biodegradable products (67%) 

5. Recycling nail polish bottles and other packaging (55%) 

6. Educating staff and clients on sustainable practices (36%) 

7. Offering refillable retail product options (24%) 8. Partnering with recycling programmes (11%)

Month in numbers

22 nail treatments performed on average per week in May

METHODOLOGY Insider is compiled from a monthly survey of spas and beauty salons. The people who participated represent a cross-section of the industry and were polled by email and social media from June 3 to June 11, regarding business for the month to May 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.