Career change - beauty industry

Daisy2521

Hi guys,

I currently work in the finance industry, I earn a good wage and receive a bonus twice per year.

I have never been interested in “finance”, I was just lucky and it kind of fell into place.

I am a very creative person and love all things beauty, fashion, DIY, crafts etc. And have been longing to start my own business for such a long time.

I would absolutely love to start in the beauty industry in aesthetics such as Fillers, Botox and eyelash extensions etc.

As I am not a medical professional the course would cost me £5000.

I am thinking of taking the plunge, taking out a loan and doing the course. I could work from my spare room in the evenings and weekends and if it took off I could go full time.

Is there profit in this industry and would it be worth me taking the course?

I would love to hear what you think and especially peoples experience who are in the industry or made huge career changes from a stable well paid job?

Thank you so much

Marcon

Daisy2521 said:

Hi guys,

I currently work in the finance industry, I earn a good wage and receive a bonus twice per year.

I have never been interested in “finance”, I was just lucky and it kind of fell into place.

I am a very creative person and love all things beauty, fashion, DIY, crafts etc. And have been longing to start my own business for such a long time.

I would absolutely love to start in the beauty industry in aesthetics such as Fillers, Botox and eyelash extensions etc.

The question isn't meant discourteously, but why haven't you done so before? What steps have you taken to ensure that when you take the plunge (and good luck when you do!), you are up to speed on all the things you will need to know about running your own business? A background in the finance industry is a great help, but there's plenty more to learn.

Daisy2521 said:

As I am not a medical professional the course would cost me £5000.

I am thinking of taking the plunge, taking out a loan and doing the course. I could work from my spare room in the evenings and weekends and if it took off I could go full time.

How much practical experience, in a recognised salon or other bona fide establishment, will you get during the course? Not many people will want to toddle along to someone's spare room to have their fillers done by someone with no track record and no training/experience history.

Daisy2521 said:

Is there profit in this industry and would it be worth me taking the course?

I would love to hear what you think and especially peoples experience who are in the industry or made huge career changes from a stable well paid job?

Thank you so much

There's only profit to be made if you have the right contacts and those contacts produce paying clients. What marketing will you do? Where will your clients come from?

Asking if it's 'worth taking the course' won't get you any meaningful answers because nobody knows what the course is, what it covers, how it fits with your view of yourself as a 'creative' person. Have you ever worked in the beauty industry at all - even as (say) a Saturday girl in Boots in your teens, or similar?

None of the above is meant to deter you; just get you thinking about whether your ideas are realistic, or just a bit of wishful thinking. Drawing up a business plan now would be no bad start - and I wish you well!

Sandtree

Daisy2521 said:

I am thinking of taking the plunge, taking out a loan and doing the course. I could work from my spare room in the evenings and weekends and if it took off I could go full time.

Is there profit in this industry and would it be worth me taking the course?

Are you intending to get planning permission to have commercial use of your property? Considered the impact on insurance, council tax etc?

Depending the kind of area you live and what the parking situation is like your neighbours may be the sort to tell the local planning office of you using your residential property for commercial activities or not. A big driver from other people's experience tends to be parking - people are more likely to complain if your customers are making the parking situation worse.

Can it be profitable? Obviously it can but it depends on your ability to find and keep your clients. How many you will need will depend at the market you target yourself at, though the fact you are talking spare room setup its unlikely to be top tier in which case its more of a volume play.

Sncjw

Also have to remember botox and fillers are like a medical procedure. Botox is dangerous if injected in the wrong place.
I work in an area that does botox and it needs to be carefully done as you could paralize the incorrect area. 

On the back of this have you looked at insurance coverage because if something went wrong the person would likely sue. 

Is your spare room easy to maintain sterile environment. Where will you put people who are waiting for their appointment. I wouldnt be comfortable waiting in someone's home or have procedure done there.

How will you keep the botox and needles safe from other household members and children if you have kids.

Also would need approval from council and your home insurance and mortgage provider if you have a mortgage.

How long is the course for and do you learn about anatomy and physiology, drug interactions, who is safe to have them.

kimwp

If you currently have a well paid job, but have not saved £5,000 for the course, are you really prepared for the reduction in pay? 

[Deleted User]

Sorry to be negative, but FWIW, not that long ago, I use to work with a woman in Admin (whilst her main employment wasn't in jeopardy over it and whilst I don't think they weren't doing it for much needed income) who did similar as a side hustle in her back room (false nails and eye lashes - but mentioned taking a course to do) it never seemed to make her that much money and when she wasn't cancelling on them due to her 'day job' making her tired to want to be bothered come end of day understandably, it seemed her customers were generated largely from friends. 

theoretica

There is money in the beauty industry - but it doesn't seem to go to the small practitioners. 

As mentioned above - where would your clients come from?  Why would people go to you and not to someone else?  Is there a shortage of appointments and practitioners *in your area* or lots of competition?

kimwp

Why not start with something like nails (which could be a very creative outlet) and see if you want to continue from there - it would give you a chance to see if you like being in the industry and whether you are likely to have clientele.

Sncjw

If you don't have the money for the course, how will you have the money for all the equipment. 

Diamandis

Finding insurance that will cover you when you're not a doctor or nurse will be very difficult and expensive. Jumping straight to botox seems like a big leap. I agree that nails, eyelashes, eyebrows etc might be a better place to start. 

elsien

Botox and fillers sound iffy to me at the best of times, let alone from someone with no background of training other than one course. You would need to research how many people would feel confident in a non-medical person doing this from a room at home. Not being a clinic, or medically trained is going to put you at a disadvantage.
A quick stroll through the high street shows nail bars galore. It appears to be quite a crowded market.
What research have you done into your local area, costs, likely clientele etc? 

Fillers and Botox don’t sound particularly arty/crafty to me, although that may be my ignorance. It may help you to plan more if you can identify why this particular area is so appealing to you, and how you will stand out from everyone else?