KEY TAKEAWAYS:  Renting a salon space can be an excellent way to grow your nail tech business and thrive as a beauty professional. To maximize your potential as a nail tech in a salon suite, you’ll want to follow the nail tech tips found here!

Being a nail tech is full of exciting opportunities to embrace your creativity, build relationships, and determine your own future. 

Chances are, you’re ready to make a name for yourself, tackle some seriously big goals, and assert your independence and expertise as a nail tech.

There’s just one caveat–you’re not quite ready to take the plunge and purchase your own studio.

If you’ve outgrown the rent-a-booth life but you’re not yet looking to set up and own your own nail tech salon, the perfect middle-ground option could be renting a space in a salon suite.

Nail Tech Tips to Help You Succeed in a Salon Suite

Salon suites help blossoming nail techs and cosmetologists work in a place surrounded by the beauty community without sapping them of creative control or freedom to run their business their way.

All in all, salon suites can be a pretty sweet deal, especially for nail techs searching for a middle ground between renting a booth and diving head-first into salon ownership.

Still, there are challenges that go hand-in-hand with working in a salon suite. There are lots of conveniences, of course, but you’ll deal with issues like less foot traffic, having to manage your own books, and basically running an entire business out of a small space.

So, how can you succeed?

A little advice can go a long way. Read on to learn our nail tech tips and tricks of the trade to attain success in a salon suite setting.

Team Up with Your Fellow Cosmetologists

You’re an independent nail tech running your own business, but that doesn’t mean you have to go it alone. A salon suite doesn’t have to mean relentless competition–it can be about helpful collaboration where everyone wins, too.

In fact, working in a salon gives you ample opportunity to collaborate and work with other beauty pros.By teaming up with your fellow salon suite renters, you can create deals, discounts, referrals, and more. This helps you (and your new beauty pro community) attract clients to your nail tech business and spread the love to your beauty biz neighbors.

You can even develop relationships with your fellow beauty pros to offer your clients more comprehensive services. Whether you team up and perform those services together or simply coordinate appointments so that clients can fit more services into their busy schedules, this style of collaboration is a win for you, the other beauty pros, and your clients!

Learn from Other Beauty Pros

In addition to teaming up with your fellow cosmetologists to attract clients and collaborate on fun projects and new services, working in a salon suite presents valuable opportunities to learn.

Your fellow beauty pros may not share your specialty, but they are knowledgeable, skilled, and experienced in their own fields, making them amazing resources for you to grow personally and professionally.

Not only can you pick up some diverse technical skills that might help you expand your career potential, but you can also learn the ins and outs of the beauty industry and the business side of things.

From improving your marketing proficiency to increasing your financial literacy, surrounding yourself with like-minded beauty pros who can accelerate your growth is one of the top nail tech tips we can offer you.

Keep Your Marketing Game on Point

One of the nice things about salon suites is that they will often handle a chunk of the marketing for you. This alleviates some of the pressure on your shoulders and gives you a built-in way of attracting clients. However, it’s rarely enough to attain the success you’re seeking. 

Slipping into the rent-a-booth mindset when you’re in a salon suite is tempting and easy to do, but for your own success, you’ll need to market your little heart out.

This means taking control of your destiny and putting time, energy, and resources into developing (and sticking to) an effective marketing plan.Embrace social media marketing strategies, build a strong digital identity with your website, and focus your marketing efforts on your target audience to ensure that people know where you are, how they can book with you, and why you’re the best.

It may be daunting at first, but developing effective marketing skills can be the difference between achieving your dream career and falling just short.

Network Every Day

Walk the building, meet the people, and of course, know your neighbors. Salon suites offer a very unique opportunity–there are tons of people in that building every day who aren’t there to see you.

Rather than seeing strangers or people visiting for other objectives, try to see the opportunity that comes with this arrangement.

You can meet new people every day and attract new clients to your business without spending much time or money. 

That sounds like a pretty great deal to us. What do you have to do? Because these individuals are already in the building, this is one of the simplest nail tech tips we can offer. All you need to do is network, talk, and meet the people who are in your salon suite–whether they’re cosmetologists in the building or their clients.

Take Advantage of the Features and Services

The perks of being in a salon suite are huge–especially when it comes to amenities and services. Lots of salon suites handle electricity, utilities, and more for you.

Taking advantage of these and other perks is a nail tech tip you should definitely be following.We are not recommending that you take advantage of anything beyond what is offered and made available to you. That being said, you may be surprised just how many perks your salon suite comes with (and how many you aren’t currently using).

For example, you may have the option to be included in marketing efforts, and you should certainly hop aboard that train.

Basic necessities are also often available to you, saving you time and money. Laundry is an excellent example–it’s probably in the building, saving you time and money, as well as giving you the ability to multitask on-site.

Multitasking is Your Best Pal

Did we mention multitasking?

As a nail tech in a salon suite, learning how to accomplish several things at once is among the best nail tech tips to follow. The reason? You’re not renting a booth; you’re running a business.

That means it’s up to you to market yourself (even if it’s included in your salon suite arrangement), take care of your books, handle daily communication, and manage the resources for the ins and outs of your business.

If it sounds like there aren’t enough hours in the day to do it all, it’s because there aren’t. Not to worry, though–the more adept you become at running your own business and the better you get at multitasking, the easier juggling all of your professional responsibilities will be!

To make things easier on yourself and save you a bundle of time, here’s a bonus nail tech tip: invest in software and tools that streamline your processes and make your multitasking more efficient.

Get to Know Your Suite Neighbors

Here’s a nail tech tip for you–pal around with your fellow cosmetologists in the salon suite.

The reason is simple–not only is networking valuable on a personal and professional level, but it’s also super important to know and trust the people who work around you.

Building a community that has your back is a big part of your success. This can show up in small but meaningful ways. The beauty of it is that the small things add up and can make a significant difference in not only your success but in your daily experience. Think about the following examples and how they could transform your experience as a nail tech (and human being).

• You’re running low on time, and your salon suite neighbor just offered to throw your laundry in with theirs.

• Your salon suite neighbor is running out for a coffee and wants to bring you something back.

• Your salon suite neighbor has a family birthday party and they want you to be a part of it.

This type of community is beneficial for business, but it’s also good for your soul. Combine those two things, and you have a recipe for professional success and personal fulfillment–a rare combination that truly enriches your life.

Salon suites do you a huge favor by offering up this community with a neat, little bow­­. In essence, you receive access to a built-in community that would otherwise take a lot of hard work and time to find on your own. Don’t let this benefit pass you by.

Create Referral Programs

You’ve probably figured it out by now, but one of the major perks of working in a salon suite is the possibility of collaboration with your fellow cosmetologists.

Not only are there personal advantages to this in terms of learning, community building, and growth, but there are also ample professional opportunities, including access to clients you might not reach otherwise.

Establishing referral programs with your other salon suite renters is an excellent way to capitalize on this opportunity and expand your client base. For example, if the salon suite adjacent to yours is rented by a badass hairstylist whose work you adore, set up a referral program with her­ that benefits you both.

Maybe she sends customers your way, you give them a discount, and you save on marketing costs. In return, you send referrals her way, too. This creates a win-win-win situation for you, your beauty pro neighbor, and your clients. Talk about a fantastic nail tech tip!