Tracy Bird Beauty
Tracy Bird's beauty business could have been decimated by Covid-19. As someone who made her income by offering beauty treatments, the pandemic had a huge impact. But rather than sit back and possibly lose her business, Tracy made a change and started driving revenue from product sales. Here she tells us all about the last year.
When did you start your business?
I started my business in May 2017 after having my daughters. I knew I needed a career that would fit around my family life and mean I could be there for my girls. I’d always had an interest in nails and beauty and wanted to study it at college. However, there was pressure on me to complete my a levels and go on to uni. There was also a stigma around studying beauty and hair dressing that you were “thick”!!! I started my home salon doing just nails, working in the corner of my girls play room. To then eventually taking over the whole room and making it my salon where I now offer a wide range of beauty treatments.
What did your business do before Covid?
Pre covid I offered a range of beauty treatments to my clients.
How did Covid affect your business?
When lockdown happened I found myself going from fully booked 3 weeks ahead of time to absolutely nothing! As the lockdowns have been lifted I have lost some clients and also gained new ones but as a business that relies on people coming back every three weeks (for most treatments) I have found that most people are unsure about whether to commit to their usual treatments for fear of not being able to have their next appointment.
How did you adapt your business?
During the first lockdown I knew I needed to adapt my business and with a background in retail management, selling a product range felt like a natural step. I wanted to offer something unique to my clients so decided to launch my own brand of products. If I was doing this, I was giving it my all! That brought the launch of “Blossom Bird” and my website! So now I have a range of salon quality products that my clients can use at home. I offer a wide range of products from self tan to lash serum.
How is the business doing today?
So right now although we’re still in lockdown and I can’t offer treatments I have sold products 2 days in a row. Although that doesn’t seem like much to most people, for a small business like myself it’s a big achievement. It’s more than I would have sold if I hadn’t brought to life my idea.
What do you expect from your business over the next year?
Over the next year I expect the Blossom Bird side of my business to grow, in both sales and the variety of products I offer. I can’t wait to get back to doing what I love and giving my loyal clients gorgeous lashes and nails again!
Thanks for your insight, Tracy! If you want to find out more, check out www.tracybirdbeauty.co.uk
