STAR QUALITY

NAIL COMPETITIONS: benefits & key considerations

North America’s Star Nail Artist Season 1 champion, ANASTASIA TOTTY, shares tips & tales from her colourful career

S tepping into the nail competition arena could change your career in unimaginable ways. The level of growth from one competition to the next can be huge, and nail professionals often feel inspired to keep learning and seek out training with world champions. Competitions can yield incredible success – but there are a number of factors to consider before entering.

In your efforts to be a nail champion, you need to commit, be disciplined and prepare to invest financially. There is a delicate balance between keeping up with the client appointments that pay your bills, ensuring you have the funds for training, and travelling to competitions.

It’s crucial to share your status as a competitor with your clients and include them in your journey. Clients feel privileged to secure appointments with professionals that are consistently enhancing their skills, and who have medals or accolades to boast. If the quality of your work is recognised at a national or international level, your service prices can be increased. I discuss competition themes with my clients at their appointments, and they enjoy the creative process behind this work, as well as seeing the finished results. When I bring home a title, it feels like a collective win.

Social media focus

Many clients and industry peers follow my competition journeys on social media, and love seeing my achievements. They often share my posts and send encouraging comments, which makes me feel supported and valued as a member of this amazing community.

Once a nail professional becomes a known competitor, they may find that other artists reach out for classes, advice and mentorship. This is a great honour and privilege, as well as an opportunity to grow in business. Unique styles and skills make for sought-after mentors.

" Clients feel privileged to secure appointments with professionals that are consistently enhancing their skills, and who have medals or accolades to boast. "

My advice to competitors is to invest in a professional photo shoot to capture medals and trophies in their glory. This makes for great marketing materials that can be used to promote training workshops and classes. What’s more, a great headshot will help build your personal brand. If you apply for a business loan to aid growth, the loan officer may look up information about you online. Nail companies may also do this when researching whether to sponsor you or offer job opportunities. A professional-looking website and social media platforms can help to promote you in the best light.

Competitions grow careers

Being a successful nail competitor got me my dream job as a master educator for LECHAT Nail Care Products. I travel all over the world hosting education events for the brand, inspiring future professionals and elevating their skills. When I interview potential educators to ‘‘ represent the company, I encourage them to enter nail competitions to help build their confidence and inspire them to create unique nail art.

It’s important to stay active in the competition circuit and keep your skills sharp. I don’t think I will ever fall out of love with the excitement of seeing a new competition schedule and planning what to create. I have a designated area at home to display all 61 of my medals and trophies, because there is simply not enough space in my tudio. However, photos and videos from competitions are all over my social media page for my followers to see!

Anastasia

Spring styles

It’s my favourite season for nail styling, as I love using spring shades to paint flowers onto the tiny nail canvas. My clients are continuing to opt for cat eye and chrome effects, but pastel shades are increasingly popular.

I trial designs on my own nails, and my first look for spring featured a combination of LECHAT’s Mood Changing Gel Polish and hand-painted florals. I love bling, so I added crystals to the underside of the nails. It was quite a surprise for those who saw my nails up close at the Be+Well trade show in New York City last month, and I think I’ll be sporting the look more often.

Trade show tales

The beauty show season is in full swing. Since the start of the year, I have travelled from Premiere Anaheim on the west coast of the USA, to the east coast for Be+Well in New York (formerly known as IBS New York). Despite the challenges our industry is facing, it has been refreshing to see so many professionals attending trade events. They have all seemed keen to learn, network and invest in new products and services.