Do you want to start your own lash business but are unsure where to start? Starting any business requires drive as well as know-how. There will be moments when you doubt yourself, but if you persist past those feelings, accomplishing your goals is completely worth it.
Make sure before starting an eyelash extension business that you are passionate about it. That will keep you motivated when the going gets tough.
So, how do you start an eyelash extensions business? A lot goes into launching and having a successful lash business, but five general steps will help you start a lash business successfully.
However, there is a lot to consider when accomplishing these five steps. Below are the details you need to know about starting a lash extension business.
1. How to Start an Eyelash Business: Plan
With any business that you are trying to start, planning is essential. Some people like to journal about all of the aspects of their business, but if you create a lean startup business plan, it will help you stay organized with the direction of your business.
Some of the aspects of starting a lash business that you will want to determine are:
- The name of your business and business registration. Click here to learn how to register your business name.
- Your company bio
- Your target market
- How to advertise your business
- The beauty business influencers or lash artists that you will want to do a review for you
- The hosting for your website
- Startup costs
- Business bank account
Additionally, you need to decide what type of eyelash extensions services you want to offer. There are various types of lashes you can sell. You also want to plan for the lash services your company might offer. You may start with one kind of lash and expand to selling other types. You may even extend into selling other beauty-related products.
You also want to decide what type of business entity to establish. You can start your new lash business as a sole proprietorship if you want to hit the ground running. If you don’t have personal assets to worry about, you should be fine with this since you are unlikely to have a lawsuit selling lashes. However, if you want to play it safe and protect yourself while getting the best tax benefits, I recommend setting up an LLC (limited liability company).
2. Get the Proper Licenses for Your Eyelash Business
To start a legitimate lash business, you must obtain the proper business licenses. Research the requirements in your city/state regarding licensing for small businesses. Depending on your state, you may also need a seller’s permit.
You will likely need a cosmetology or esthetician license if you decide to sell the lashes and apply them. Nearly all states require it but research this before applying any lash extensions as a lash artist.
3. Know Your Information
When starting a lash salon or eyelash services business, you need to know the ins and outs of the product you sell. In addition, your customers may have questions they will ask you regarding lash care and upkeep.
Therefore, you need to know how to care for them, make them last longer, and wash them. In addition, it would be best to also learn about lash tech, eyelash extension supplies, and the different aspects of eyelash extension services.
If you don’t already know all of this information before starting your lash artist journey, do market research on the eyelash extension industry or check out this article. It would also help to learn about the beauty industry and speak to established lash technicians.
4. Figure Out the Logistics
When it comes to figuring out logistics for your eyelash business, there are various aspects you need to think about and decide on. Below are more details regarding this.
Choosing a Vendor
When finding a vendor or lash brand, your best bet is to use Alibaba or Aliexpress. However, if you want more options for vendors, you can also Google “wholesale lashes.” Please specify the type of lash you are trying to sell, though. In addition, you may want to consider local businesses around you that deal in wholesale eyelashes.
With that said, when it comes to choosing a vendor, research is vital. There are many vendors out there, and you must do plenty of research before putting your name and eyelash brand on a product. The purpose is also to compare prices and quality of the lashes used by other lash businesses.
Some vendors are expensive, and some are well-priced. Also, just because a lash vendor or lash company sells expensive lashes or custom eyelash extensions doesn’t mean they are good quality.
Since most of your wholesale vendors get their lash supplies from China, it would be a good idea to download WhatsApp. WhatsApp is an app that allows you to text and call people from all over the world for free. Again, ask your potential vendors for prices and photos of the lashes.
Once you have a vendor you might want to use, ask them for a sample. As a lash business owner, you must not buy lashes in bulk without getting a sample and trying them yourself first.
When testing the sample, check to see how many wears you can get out of them. High-quality lashes will give you 20-25 wears out of them. That’s as long as you clean and wash them properly.
Even when you decide on the lashes you want, hold off on buying large quantities until you get an idea of the demand for your product from your target audience. Once you have picked out your lashes, you will need to research vendors for the boxes. To stand out against the competition, you must invest in boxes representing your eyelash brand.
Building Your Website
When it comes to your lashes business website, you have many options. You can either have someone build a website for you or do it yourself. There are many options to make your own website, so research this.
Right off the bat, some of the big names are:
You have to decide which one works best for you. While you can purchase your website’s domain from one of these websites, I’d recommend going with GoDaddy because they are generally cheaper. Make sure to double-check this before deciding on where to purchase the domain name for your website.
Creating a Logo
Creating your own business logo and using it in marketing materials is always an excellent idea. But, again, you can either hire someone to design it or design it yourself. However, if you create a logo yourself, you might have to pay to download a higher-resolution image. Click here to access my favorite logo maker. With this logo maker, you can make your logo and download a high-resolution image completely free!
If you need help creating a logo, check out this Youtube video.
Pricing Your Lashes
Another aspect of your business is how you will price your lashes. You should research what other lash artists or beauty salon are selling their lashes for and try to price around that range to be competitive and get more customers.
Depending on the quality of your own lashes, you can price them accordingly. If you plan to sell high-quality lashes, you can charge a higher price, but explain why you charge more to your customers. Explain to them that your lashes are better than what other lash professionals are offering and will last them longer than cheaper versions.
Shipping
When it comes to shipping, you can go with Priority Mail first. It usually ships faster and is cheaper than shipping through UPS and FedEx for packages under five pounds. If you are only shipping three or four lashes a day at first, you can hand-address labels and send them manually.
However, you may want to invest in a label printer as you start shipping more lashes. While you could also use a regular printer, a label printer will save you time. With regular printers, you need to insert labels sheet by sheet, so you’ll have to get up from your desk for each batch.
As you grow, you can get an account with UPS or FedEx Ground, and they will pick up your packages at scheduled times.
If you use Shopify, they will provide you with the shipping label to ship the lashes.
When you ship your product to your lash clients, include a card to thank them for their business. Additionally, to entice your customers to get repeat business, provide a coupon for a discount on their next purchase. Discounts also work to attract prospective clients and lash enthusiasts.
You may also want to reward customers by providing free shipping on purchases over a certain amount. This will encourage customers to buy eyelashes in bulk instead of just one pair.
5. Advertise Your Eyelash Business
Once you are at the point where you are ready to launch your business, you will want to focus on how you will advertise. There are a few different options you should consider.
Have a Drop Date
A drop date before you officially launch your business is an excellent way for people to start getting excited about your new business. Advertise your drop date using your social media accounts and to your friends. That way, everyone will know when to go to your website to start making purchases. In addition, you can leave fliers at any local business that is not your competitor.
Word of Mouth
An underrated method of advertising is word-of-mouth advertising. Tell everyone you know about your lash business so they can tell everyone they know and refer more people to your website. You can also make business cards to hand out to current customers that they can pass along. Even if you plan to apply eyelash extensions for customers, having people vouch for the quality of your eyelashes and service can go a long way in bringing in new customers.
Social Media
Another excellent method of advertising is social media. You can advertise your lashes via multiple social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. Make sure to take high-quality photos of your lashes. You can either take pictures of the lashes on their own or models.
If you want to create more buzz around your lashes, create a giveaway. Have people retweet your tweet or share and follow your Instagram for a chance to win free lashes. People retweeting your tweet or sharing your Instagram will give you more exposure to potential customers.
Partner With Influencers
Another way to get your brand name out there is to partner with influencers. It may be hard, at first, to partner with big-name influencers because they will usually want money to give you a shoutout or do a product review.
Instead, try partnering with smaller influencers that still have a good following. They are more likely to try your product and positively review it for free as long as they like it. That will get your name out to more people.
You can start making a list of the influencers you want to reach out to as soon as you start your lash business. Influencers aren’t just limited to one social media platform, either. You can find beauty influencers on Youtube, Instagram, and Twitter.
Here is a list of some of the top beauty influencers of 2021.
Advertisements
Last but not least, you have good old-fashioned ads. You can use various methods for ad placement, whether Google Ads, Facebook Ads, or Instagram Ads. For example, if you are starting with your personal finances and are on a tight budget, you can use Instagram to advertise your product reasonably cheaply.
If you switch your Instagram to a business account, Instagram will let you promote a post. Therefore, you can promote the photos of your lashes that you post on Instagram. For a 6-day campaign to drive traffic to your website, Instagram only charges $30.
Instagram has roughly one billion active users. That is a massive base of potential buyers! While Facebook has more active users at 2.96 billion, most beauty influencers will use Instagram for most of their marketing tactics because of how photo-focused it is.
For more on how to use Instagram ads, click here.
Other Considerations
Here are other things to consider and put in place:
- Create a business account for spending and receiving money distinct from your personal bank account
- Create a budget to help you avoid overspending and track your business finances
- Look for a reputable eyelash salon and partner with them
- You might want to consider buying business insurance, especially if you have a physical lash studio
- Have an ongoing support team to help you answer clients’ complaints and resolve them immediately.
Wrapping Up: How to Start an Eyelash Business
Now you know how to start your own eyelash business. It takes time and research, but you can do it from home! First, ensure you find a way to stand out against the competition and market yourself effectively.
There may be moments when you feel discouraged, but that can happen with any entrepreneurial endeavor. With hard work, ambition, determination, and persistence, you can be well on your way to creating a successful eyelash business and being your own boss. Now, what are you waiting for?
