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One sure fire way to increase your lash business income is to offer lash retail products. Not -just- because you like money, but because your clients -need- some of these products to get the most out of their lashes! And let’s face it, whether you “ok” them to wear mascara or not, they’re going to wear it anyway. So you might as well be the person they’re buying it from especially if it’s “lash safe”. They don’t dare risk losing their lash extensions by using a non-lash safe product (yet they’ll smother their extensions in your lash safe products won’t they! Clients will be clients!).
Here are my top 5 lash retail items that your clients are wanting and can add some nice little “fun money” to your pockets without costing you any more of your valuable time:
1). Lash Growth Serum
This is the EASIEST product to sell to most clients! Since I market myself as a “Natural Lash Safe Eyelash Extension Specialist”, I lived or died by protecting the client’s natural lashes. We’ve all had those clients that want more density or fullness or length and we’ve maxed out what their natural lash can safely handle. So what do you do to get the client’s the results they’re wanting? If their natural lashes could not sustain the look we are trying to achieve, I would advise them that their only option was to grow their natural lashes.
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- I sold lash growth serum to clients who had lash damage from other lash businesses to help them recover.
- I sold lash growth serum to clients if they became allergic to the eyelash extension adhesive (after their reaction had subsided and they got the “all clear” from their doctor of course!).
- Lash growth serum can be used in giveaways or a really nice aftercare package for a promo or a Facebook ad.
- It would also be a great retail product to offer to clients interested in lash lifts too so they have longer lashes to curl!
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My go-to lash growth serum to retail, not just because the profit margins are AWESOME, but because I’ve tried it on myself and it works fabulously is Grande Lash MD.
BONUS – it is safe to use with extensions and lasts for 3 months with regular use! They also have brow growth serums AND lip plumping products that my mature clients gobbled up! And to really make the products look great on your retail shelving, Grande Lash MD includes FREE retail displays and marketing material to make your retail set up look real classy!
You can order Grande Lash MD to try for yourself or order their wholesale product HERE.
Lash Affair** also retails a lash growth serum as well, at a slightly lower retail price point for a 4 month supply of regular use, you’ll just need to ensure you order at wholesale pricing to make money on retailing the product!
2). Lash Cleansers
Every. Single. Lash. Client. Should go home with a lash cleanser. Every one of them. And if you’re recommending they use baby shampoo, that is a thing of the past my friend! Watch this video as to why Baby Shampoo is no longer recommended as a cleanser for eyelash extensions:
Another no, no is making your own lash cleanser. As tempting as it is, it’s a huge liability for you to make a DIY product either as a gift or for retail (at least here in the US). Watch this video to find out why you should never make your own lash cleanser for retail:
I love foaming lash cleansers both for use as a lash artist and for client use at home. It doesn’t drip or run off their face or into their eyes when you’re cleansing their lashes prior to application. You can retail them a whole aftercare package that will last them months if you sell them a concentrate, plus foaming bottle and brush like this “Aftercare Delight” from My Brand Lashes.
The alternative would be to retail them a single -premade- cleanser you purchase from a manufacturer like Borboleta’s “Lash Cleanser” or their NEW “Lash Bath Gel Cleanser” depending on whether you’re a foaming fan like myself or a gel lover.
3). Lash Safe Mascara
I know! The artist in me cringes too at the thought of mascara being caked on to my beautiful lash work. You can scoff at me for the mere suggestion that I added Mascara to this list. The reality is that most of us have many clients who treat their extensions like their own lashes and refuse to listen to our logic as to why adding any makeup to the eyelash extensions is a bad idea.
If you can’t beat em, retail em!
There’s no perfect lash safe mascara in my eyes because it’s going on the very product we work so diligently with to keep clean and free of any products to ensure maximum retention. However, there are some that are formulated specifically for eyelash extension wearers and you can be the ultimate judge of whether it impacts retention or not. Just know that whether you think mascara is a huge lash extension no, no, your clients may not care. So you might as well be the one making the money on the lash retail since they’re going to do it anyway.
I like Lash Affair’s HD Mascara**. You can also apply to their “Makeup” Wholesale Program to get discounted wholesale pricing on their retail (and other) products which means more dollars in your pocket for every item you sell! If you’re just wanting to try it out (or order products!), use the CODE: LASHP10 at checkout to save 10% off your order!
Bella Lash also has 3 different extension safe Mascaras for the different phases of a lash growth cycle. You can retail these mascaras individually depending on what your clientele might be interested in or you can retail them as a set to ensure your client’s mascara’s needs are met at every level of their lash cycle!
4). Lash Safe Eyeliner
Double whammy! Eyeliner too! Come on, Tara. Why don’t I just glue strip lashes to the clients’ eyes? Or have a slew of Minks at my shop that I can shave as each client comes in so they’re getting genuine fur!?! Don’t shoot the messenger ladies (and lads!). Clients are doing it anyway, right? What’s wrong with being their go-to supplier if they’re going to do it anyway? Eyeliners, in my opinion,
are a must have since SO many eyeliners from major and drugstore makeup brands are awful for eyelash extensions. The eyeliners that are formulated for lash extensions are usually water-based and don’t build up on the lash line like kohl or crayon liners.
My preferred recommendation is to have a client use a black eyeshadow and a wet eyeliner brush to apply lash safe eyeliner. It washes off very easy and leaves no residue. An example of a great makeup retail line that would carry this and give you wholesale pricing is GloMinerals Eye Shadow in Eclipse and their Dual Brow/Liner Brush 309.
Another lash brand’s that carry really awesome AND lash safe eyeliner’s are My Brand Lashes “Accent Line” which is lash extension safe, smudge and waterproof (mind blown!) and it comes in 5 different shades. I’m dying to try these out! Feel free to check them out with me and use the Code: LASHP at check out for 10% off!
Lash Affair’s Eyeliner Pen** is also a great long-lasting liner option in black or brown and glides on silky smooth. Get your 10% off with Code: LASHP
5). Lip/Brow Products
Retailing lip and brow products are a natural complement to our services and lash obsessed clients go nuts over lashes, lips, and brows. I retailed GloMinerals Lip and Brow Products. I also retailed Grande Lash MD’s GrandeLip products that promoted fuller, hydrated lips with that left the lips nice and plumped for up to a few days. The Chatty Kathy lip masks from My Brand Lashes. They’re also heavenly for an upsell to your lash service as well as to retail! I would upsell 1 lip mask for $5 and retail a pack of 3 for $12. With your cost for the mask just over a $1, it’s a no-brainer money maker!
You’ll want to make sure you mark your retail products up from your wholesale purchase price to ensure you’re making money and not just breaking even on the sale of these essential products. Buying in bulk (usually a quantity of 6 or more units) should allow you to get savings on your purchase price as the retailer. If it’s not clear on a lash supplier’s website if they offer wholesale pricing, you might reach out to them to see if wholesale orders are available. A standard “mark up” (or price increase) from wholesale pricing is 50%. So if a product costs you $10 at wholesale, you would then retail it to the customer for $20. The retail price is also known as MSRP or Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price.
LASHPRENEUR LIGHTBULB
The best way to get retail off your shelves is to know and love the products you sell. If you stop associating the sleezy used car salesman image to “selling” in your business, you’ll have so much more success in retailing and upselling. Just focus your efforts on educating your clients on why your retail items are there to enhance their lashes (and their lives!) and you won’t ever have to feel like you’re selling to them!
If you want to know what other products and equipment I recommend and use in my lash business, check out these products I got from Amazon**. Leave a comment below on any awesome retail products you’ve come across that the lash community MUST know about!
Have a Good One,
Tara Walsh
The Lashpreneur
**Denotes Affiliate Link
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