Are you Sabotaging your Esthetics Department?

Spa Owners, this one's for you.

You may be sabotaging your Esthetics department without realizing it! 

Scattered throughout my new book The Heart of Esthetics: Creating Loyal Clients & Achieving Financial Success are what I am calling "Notes to Spa Owners" which are gems I have picked up throughout my years of consulting.

Most self-employed Estheticians figured this out long ago, however spa owners who aren't Estheticians may not realize that they are inadvertently sabotaging the financial success of their business. Not only are they doing a disservice to their clients, but they are also limiting the potential income of their Estheticians. 

That said, it is your business so as long as you are following the laws of your state, staying within the course and scope of your license and not harming anyone, you can do whatever you want with your esthetics department. But if financial success is your goal, you may want to consider that your massage department -- which is service based -- and your esthetics department - which is service & retail based -- are very different. So what might work for the massage department will not necessarily work for the esthetics department. 

Here is an excerpt from "The Heart of Esthetics" Chapter 5 - The Formula - (Step 5: Home Care)

BEHIND THE SCENES: A Note to Spa Owners

One of the biggest financial mistakes I see spa owners make is not allowing extra time before and after a new client’s first appointment. Instead, they have their Estheticians running from client to client with barely enough time to change the sheets on the facial bed. This is an enormous error.

While the typical massage department must rely on services for income, the opposite is true in the esthetics department because of the endless opportunities for retail sales. Once the connection between an Esthetician and her client has been established, the client will replenish her home care products on an ongoing basis -- with or without a facial service. So, while there is a cap on the amount of profit a service can provide, the profit from retail sales is unlimited.

Another reason to factor in extra time between clients is that new clients may have never been face-to-face with an Esthetician. These clients may have questions about the facial and their skin condition, as well as curiosity about the products and equipment that were used during the facial. And they almost always want advice about home care. It is an important part of the Esthetician’s job to answer the client’s questions and make the client feel comfortable. That is how clients bond with their Estheticians, and that is how loyal clients are created.

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