After a long 4 months keeping safe and staying closed during the Global Pandemic; Covid 19, I was able to reopen following Government Guidelines this month.. only for Nails I must add but nonetheless I could open! I chose to open a week later than we were allowed, simply because i was not prepared, both mentally & quite literally. With 4 days notice I felt rather overwhelmed and I had to do what was right for me, my family and for for my clients... I wanted to ensure I has all the right PPE in place which would make me feel confident to reopen and be Covid Safe!
So with that in mind, I booked in some lovely ladies for their Gel Nails and Toe appointments for the week beginning the 20th of July and gave myself a slow(ish) week back with plenty of gaps between each appointment to ensure I could fully clean before and after, plus I needed a slow week back for me, with 4 months off I have been living a slower life, just me, my other half and our new puppy, Harley and the idea of going back to normality still hadn't hit me! But being my own boss meant I can make decisions best for me to ensure I was coming back bigger and better than before.
Fast forward a week later and I was ready, PPE and disposables have arrived, the Treatment room has been deep cleaned and my week is planned around treatments. I feel mentally prepared too, I realised that my clients will probably be feeling similar to me, anxious about the unknown and getting back to normality but ready to get on with things and do what make them happy... including self care and getting their nails done!
Here are a few things I have learnt this week since reopening.....
PPE is hot and can get in the way. If i look flustered, it's because I am and I trying to work with the new uniform takes some getting used to! If I take a while to answer the door ladies.... it's because i'm getting all my PPE on for you!
Disposables are not as nice don't always feel as nice for client. I have purchased lots of disposable PPE, more couch roll than I can store, disposable Nail Files, Nail Buffers and Toe separators and it's not how I want to work and I'm sure not as nice as some of the products I used before but here we are.... and luckily you have all been fine and understanding with it and I think it's probably me that is more bothered about it than you!
I will lose business. With treatments being more spread out than before, I cannot book back to back anymore. I am doing this for the right reasons and I think this will be good for me also, not rushing between treatments and taking my time but to ensure safety for you all, there are less treatment slots available, which sadly does mean less business.
I miss doing Brows, Lashes and Facials. Luckily I can open for that on the 1st of August and do that again as I miss all my other treatments and ladies who come in for those regularly.
Everyones Lockdown story is different. We needed this chat; catching up, sharing stories, talking about what we achieved and what we didn't, what boxsets we worked through, our jobs, family and what we have taken away from it. We will laugh and share stories of fun, but in some cases we will share stories of sadness and I am always here to listen.
I still love my job. All the worries and anxieties disappeared once I opened the door and greeted you. You guys really are amazing and I've missed this so much.
I hope you are all staying safe and well and I look forward to seeing many of you very soon!
The Beauty Cove
xx