Nailing your finances: a handy guide for pros

Beauty Hunt founder, VORKE KALUSI, serves up an insight into financial terms & tools to support your business needs

Good management of your finances is crucial to success. By understanding basic economic terms, keeping track of your income and expenses, setting the right prices and planning for taxes, you can build a profitable and sustainable business. Seek professional advice when needed and continuously educate yourself on financial matters to stay ahead of any changes.

ABOUT VORKE KALUSI

Vorke is a retired lash artist, who brings a blend of creativity and business knowledge to the beauty industry. Armed with degrees that taught her economics and entrepreneurship, Vorke founded Beauty Hunt UK to empower beauty professionals with essential business knowledge. Her focus lies in ensuring that pros grasp finance essentials, such as profit margins, pricing strategies and bookkeeping.

Via Beauty Hunt UK, Vorke has created a number of business products to help beauty professionals manage their finances effectively. These resources enable them to understand their profits, hourly rates, tax obligations and methods for paying themselves.

Understanding the terminology

As a nail stylist, knowing what finance terms mean can help you to better manage your business. The most common terms are:

• Revenue: The money you make from your services.

• Expenses: The costs of running your business, such as supplies, rent and utilities.

• Profit: The money left after paying your expenses. Profit = revenue – expenses.

• Cash flow: The movement of money in and out of your business. Positive cash flow means you have more money coming in than going out.

• Budget: A plan for your income and expenses over a period of time.

• Tax: Money you must pay to the government based on your earnings.

Money matters to note

Running a successful business involves more than just being skilled at your craft. Here are some financial points to consider:

• Initial costs: Starting a nail business requires an investment in tools, supplies and a space in which to work. Make sure you budget for these.

• Ongoing costs: Regular expenses include buying products, maintaining equipment and paying for utilities and rent. Keep track of these to ensure they don’t exceed your income.

• Pricing your services: Set your prices to cover your costs and allow for profit. Research what other nail artists in your area charge and consider the quality of your work and your level of expertise.

• Emergency fund: Save money for unexpected expenses or slower business periods. An emergency fund can help keep your business running smoothly during tough times.

All about bookkeeping

Bookkeeping is like keeping a diary for your business’ money. It’s how you record the money coming into your business (from clients) and the money being spent (on supplies or paying rent).

Bookkeeping helps you see exactly how much you’re making and spending. This way, you can determine whether your business is making a profit or if you need to make changes. You can’t plan for success if you don’t know where your money is going! It also helps you ascertain what you need to pay in taxes. When the time comes to calculate the tax you owe, a good bookkeeping strategy will ensure your records are ready to go. By keeping track of your money, you can plan for future moments, such as buying equipment or saving for a rainy day.

How to do bookkeeping in your nail business:

1. Keep it simple: Use a spreadsheet or app to record your financial transactions. The Beauty Hunt’s bookkeeping spreadsheet is easy to use: just fill in the blanks!

2. Write it down: Record every time you get paid or spend money, and keep your receipts. Our spreadsheet makes it easy to input your income and expenses, so you never miss a thing.

3. Stay organised: Keep all your money papers in one place, so you can find them when you need them. The Beauty Hunt spreadsheet helps you stay organised by neatly categorising transactions.

4. Check your calculations: Make sure your records match up with your bank statements, so you can catch any mistakes or problems early. Our spreadsheet does the maths for you, meaning you can be confident in your numbers.

The Ultimate Bookkeeping Spreadsheet For Beauty Service Providers £19.19 inc VAT

Handy tool

The Beauty Hunt’s Profit & Loss Spreadsheet can help you understand your business finances to increase your profit. It clearly showcases where money is spent to reveal true profits, allowing you to say goodbye to financial confusion – and hello to clarity and control. Scan to download

A FINANCIAL CHECKLIST FOR NAIL PROS

√ Bookkeeping

Keep detailed records of your income and expenses. Use software, a spreadsheet or hire a bookkeeper to help manage your finances. Good bookkeeping will help you understand your financial health and make taxes easier to calculate.

√ Taxes

Understand your tax obligations. This includes income tax and possibly VAT if your business is large enough. Keep receipts and records of all business transactions.

√ Pricing strategies

Set competitive prices for your services. Calculate the cost of materials and time spent on each service. Don’t undervalue your work, but also make sure your prices are reasonable for your market.

√ Savings & investments

Set aside a portion of your profits for savings, as this can help you reinvest in your business or save for personal goals. Consider investing in training or new equipment to improve your skills and expand your services.

√ Insurance

Protect your business with the correct insurance. This might include liability insurance to cover accidents or damage and health insurance for yourself.

√ Managing debt

If you need to borrow money to start or grow your business, do so wisely. Understand the terms of any loans and make sure you can manage the repayments without jeopardising your financial stability.

√ Continuous learning

Stay informed about financial management. Enrol on courses or read books on small business finance, as knowledge will empower you to make better financial decisions.

Specifically designed for beauty professionals to make financial management easy, The Beauty Hunt’s Bookkeeping Spreadsheet has six key features:

1. Manage up to 24 services per day, easily organise your appointments and never lose track of your busy schedule.