BUSINESS

Pedicure

Pedicure tips: how nail techs can safely support clients with diabetes

By Scratch Staff | 12 June 2025

According to charity, Diabetes UK, approximately 6% of the UK population suffers from diabetes. Learning about the condition and how to accommodate it is key to making diabetic clients feel safe and able to enjoy their nail experiences. Here, we explore how the condition can affect clients and what you…

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Michelle brookes waxing

Doncaster nail & beauty salon owner: Offering waxing has elevated my business & filled my diary

By Michelle Brookes | 11 June 2025

Scratch Stars Educator of the Year 2022 & 2025 finalist, Michelle Brookes, shares how introducing waxing services has benefitted her salon… What do waxing treatments bring to a beauty business, and how do they complement nail offerings? Adding waxing treatments to a beauty business helps fill diary gaps. Most waxing…

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Community chat: 3 networking groups for nail pros

By Lilly Delmage | 10 June 2025

Are you seeking support from fellow nail techs? Do you want access to hundreds of tutorials to inspire your creativity? Do you have questions but don’t know who to ask? The answer might lie in joining a nail networking group. Here’s three to have a look at… The Nail Tech…

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How to deal with damaged nails

By Katie Barnes | 12 September 2017

Salon owner, educator, former Scratch columnist and award-winning nail stylist, Katie Barnes, reveals how to tackle common characteristics of damaged nails… One of the most challenging roles we play as nail technicians is the role of repair man or woman. We all have clients who come to us with weak, thin and damaged…

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How to prevent nail product overexposure

By Katie Barnes | 29 August 2017

Salon owner, educator, former Scratch columnist and award-winning nail stylist, Katie Barnes, reveals why the misuse of monomer can have nasty consequences… We are all responsible for bad work habits but some are more dangerous than others. It has become alarmingly more apparent through the likes of YouTube videos and live feeds on social media that too many techs are flooding…

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How to get in front of your nail audience without paying for ads

By Guest Writer | 28 August 2017

Tom Ferris, owner of Blackwell Ferris Marketing, reveals how to reach your social media audience at a limited cost. I’ve been asked by a few of my friends why I seem to have so much beauty and nail content on my personal Facebook and Instagram pages. Being around friends who typically are…

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Fade

Gel polish fading? Here’s how to prevent it

By Katie Barnes | 22 August 2017

Salon owner, educator, former Scratch columnist and award-winning nail stylist, Katie Barnes, reveals why gel polish can fade in the summer – and how to help prevent it Many techs are familiar with the issue of under-curing gel, but not so aware of the issues of over-curing gel. How many techs have been…

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Liverpool named fake tan capital of the UK

By Kat Hill | 17 August 2017

A new report has dubbed Liverpool as the fake tan capital of the UK. Online hair and beauty retailer Hairtrade.com  looked at which cities stocked up on tanning products. Check out the table of results below. Women from Yorkshire were found to be big fake tan fans with Huddersfield coming second…

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Marketing your beauty business: The Love Island Way

By Guest Writer | 21 July 2017

Tom Ferris, owner of Blackwell Ferris Marketing, reveals how to maximise your marketing success with five tips inspired by TV’s Love Island: Grafting Marketing is all about selling yourself – just like the contestants ‘sell’ their own traits to whoever they’re trying to ‘crack on’ with. We can take a lot from…

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