Nail Tech Talk: How I’ve been keeping busy while my salon is closed

Tina Bell, head of education for Pure Nails & owner of Totally Polished Academy, shares the ways she’s been keeping busy before her nail business and academy can resume in-person service…

I have officially worked more from my dining room table in the past year then I have my salon – who would have thought it? Once again, I have taken over the dining room with my complete Halo collection, and it’s just as well I have an understanding partner and family who are eating from trays on their knee until I can head back to the salon.

Even though we knew this lockdown was coming, it still didn’t make it any easier. Packing up the salon again after a busy Christmas period left me feeling stressed, miserable and fed-up. I knew if I was feeling this way about the current climate, then so would the rest of my team. I called all the Pure Nails ambassadors for a rant, moan and laugh which put me back on track, proffered some fabulous ideas and left me feeling motivated.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it is to be kind and talk about how you are truly feeling.

Over the past year, we have all gone through some sort of breakdown, suffered from anxiety, insomnia and/or depression. Some of us have started to seek counselling/therapy to help with the stress and worry we have had regarding our salons and business- – which I urge anyone to do who feel as though they are struggling.

Contact time

I make sure I talk to friends, family and the Halo ambassadors. This has been so important as it prevents us from feeling isolated. You can talk about anything from worries to how your day is going. A problem shared is a problem halved.

Routine

I have tried to stick to a routine which is similar to what I would do if I was at the salon. This helps keep me motivated and gives me a reason to get dressed every day. It’s so easy to sit in your PJs all day – which once in a while is perfect, however, doing this daily would soon promote me to get into one big slump, and I would also find myself extremely demotivated and fed-up.

Once ready, I have been using my time to try out different designs that I have always wanted to recreate. This has helped me to keep my Instagram running as I have new content to post daily which my clients have been loving , and they also appreciated me keeping in touch via Instagram. I then move on to product testing. I love looking for new things to try and bring into my salon; this helps to keep my salon up-to-date with the latest trends.

Training

If you are an experienced nail technician, why not use time before reopening to offer online training? This is something I have been investing some of my time to; I have found that loads of nail technicians want to take this time to focus on skills they have been struggling with.

Upskill

Use the final few weeks to enhance your skillset. This is the perfect time to learn something you’ve always wanted to learn. There are loads of online courses you could take part in, so use this time to your advantage- there are even some free ones available! Halo offers training for all products and alongside this training, we also offer 24/7 support.

What’s more, make sure you practice systems you’re not 100% confident in – your clients will be so grateful for this once you can go back and work again!

Plan

One of my favourite things to do is to plan and fill out my diary; noting any beauty shows I want to attend in, any specific personal dates, events and hopefully holidays – I love planning ahead as it gives me a focus to work towards and look forward to.

Pure Nails

During all three lockdowns, I have been running FREE workshops every Wednesday at 7pm via Pure Nails’ Instagram Live. The feedback has been amazing and the workshops have helped many to upskill and sort any problems or struggles. If you aren’t able to make our Instagram Live at 7pm every Wednesday – don’t worry, they are saved on our IGTV! Follow us on Instagram: @purenailsuk for our weekly Instagram Lives.

For any advice regarding Pure Nails products and support, email us on Nailtechsupport@purenails.co

For training advice and more information, email us on purenails@totallypolishedtraining.co.uk.

Stay safe, stay in touch and stay motivated!