Today we are wrapping up this 3 part series on pricing in nail salons… hallelujah, am I right?  (Not that I haven’t loved shedding light on terribly unsafe practices and employee mistreatment, but I’m just about ready for some “lighter” topics if you know what I mean!)  In this post we will detail the overhead costs all nail salons experience, let you know why salons across the nation are seemingly going “un-checked”, and discuss what you can do to help.

Let’s get right to it.  Remember that our salon is located in Tacoma, Washington where the minimum wage is $12/hour.  In our last post we discussed that after a $15 pedicure (assuming it is an hour long), there’s only $3 left to cover taxes, overhead costs, and hopefully to make a profit.  So what are those overhead costs that all nail salons have? 

Do you have a job where tips are a part of your compensation?  Or perhaps someone close to you like your friend or your daughter very much counts on his or her tips as a part of their salary?  What if every time you earned a tip for a job well done, your boss took the money and said it was to cover the “credit card fees”?  How would that make you feel?  How would that make you feel for your child?  Perhaps like they’re being exploited?  Would you have concerns that something illegal was happening?  Maybe that their boss doesn’t have their best interest at heart?  Remember these questions next time you’re getting a cheap manicure or pedicure, you know the types… almost too good to be true.  I promise you, it IS too good to be true, and every single one of your concerns would be valid.  Sadly, I guarantee this “practice” is happening in a salon near you, and that most people aren’t questioning the “deals.”