More and more salons are opting to offer ‘add-on’ services to enhance their clients’ skin. These services differ in cost and variety, but all of them aim to make the salon-going experience first-class. CEO of SEIR Beauty School Samantha Elliot shares how professionals can best ascertain their clients’ needs.
“I am the owner of multiple businesses, and the sole earner and provider for my family. I primarily run SEIR Beauty School, which is a training organisation in Mosman; but we have locations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and also the United Kingdom. We teach everything beauty related; and our primary objective is to train our students to successfully enter the beauty industry as qualified technicians and eventually become their own bosses.
We also have our own salon supply and skincare brands – SEIR Salon Supplies and SEIR Mineral Complex respectively. I’ve been in the industry for decades, and I’ve definitely seen a lot in the way of how services have evolved. When it comes to add-on services, the beauty is that there’s such a large variety of offerings. There are your basics: massages, mild peels, exfoliation, chemical peels, LED Light therapy. In reality, anything can be added on! Be it an express microdermabrasion, a healing mask for flared up or inflamed skin after a brow shape, a hydrating mask after dermaplaning.
The value of the ‘add-on’
As skincare specialists, every treatment needs to be specialised to your clients. It is extremely important to look at the condition of your clients’ skin and then assess what add-on can enhance your service. I believe add-ons are also a great way to touch all of your bases in terms of the best service you can provide for your clients. For example, it is advisable to include rose petal jelly masks after manicures and pedicures because they’re great for inflammation and ageing of the hands and feet. Personally, I’m very conscious of my hands – especially when I’m driving and they’re in the sun – so looking out for your clients in areas they might not know they’re vulnerable is the sign of a great service provider.
LED masks and chemical peels are becoming increasingly popular. Chemical peels particularly – they’re an internal fixer. There are five layers of the skin: stratum basale, stratum spinosum, stratum granulosum, stratum lucidum, and stratum corneum. Chemical peels remove the stratum corneum, which is the most superficial portion of the epidermis. It works to remove all of the dead skin cells that have been locked in; and also aids unique ingredients in their deeper penetration into the skin where skin cells are made. Essentially, all of the dirt is flushed out to the surface. Chemical peels are recommended for treating pigmentation, dullness, and any skin faults that make the skin unhealthy. However, it is important for technicians to remember that they can trigger cold sores coming to the surface from deep within.
“Chemical peels are recommended for treating pigmentation, dullness, and any skin faults that make the skin unhealthy.”
I think that good basics that are generally safe to offer are a mild enzymatic peel in place of exfoliation. Using fruit enzymes, like papaya, is a gentler way of removing the dead layers, brightening the skin, and improving absorption.
Diamond-tip microdermabrasion is also an excellent service, it’s a classic skin penetration procedure that is also pretty mild. But technicians would need the proper training, and it cannot be performed on skin with acne. LED treatments particularly rose in popularity during and in the post-pandemic times. This is because technicians are able to just program a machine and let it do the work. LED was essential for beauty industry revenue during lockdowns and immediately after when people were still quite conscious of being touched. Many salons and clinics set up relaxation rooms with LED lights for their clients and let the machines do the work. It was quite frightening to be in the same room – so it was all of the skincare treatment but none of the risk.
And while add-ons can be extremely beneficial for salons and beauticians to offer, if a treatment or service is not correctly selected for a skin condition it can have adverse effects. It’s essential to keep the best interests of your client in mind, and that you’re selecting what’s best for the skin instead of just what will multiply the cost the most. Thorough skin analysis is absolutely required before any add-on or treatment can be decided on. Skin analysis should be done for every client – the skin is an organ, and paying it proper attention is the only way you will be able to treat it.”
This article first appeared in the November-December 2022 print edition of Professional Beauty.
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