Note: The reason I'm sharing this article is I found in my own life it is much more fun to own your own business rather than to work for someone else. True, it isn't for everyone but if you are a self starter you choose your hours and choose anytime you take off. So, mostly if you know what you are doing it tends to be less stressful once you set your your business up. So, if you plan right and do enough research and planning and check out of there is a need for your business and check out your competition then you can be realistic enough to have a great life working for yourself from then on. Another thing I liked about owning a business is that you don't have to pay yourself a salary in many instances or pay yourself by the hour if you don't want to. So, one can operate most businesses as an owner or partner simply as profit or loss which saves a lot of trouble too. However, one thing I think I would caution people about is running a business with your mate as it might cause you to break up if you don't think this through enough.
Why One Woman Left A Successful Career In Finance To Open Up A Nail Salon In A Trailer
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Nail Salon Silicon Valley Best of HuffPost The Third Metric Pedicure Silicon Valley La Lacquerie La Lacquerie San Francisco Manicure Silicon Valley Nail Salon San Francisco Nail Salons Silicon Valley Mobile Salon Nail Salons San Francisco Manicure San Francisco The Beauty Page Pedicure San Francisco Mobile Nail SalonJust like that, a business plan was born.
Within a year, Aflak opened up La Lacquerie, a mobile nail salon, catering to the exact demographic she had once been a part of: over-worked, time-strapped female professionals who need to squeeze in a manicure or pedicure. The salon, located in a 1960s airstream trailer that travels around the San Francisco area, has been open since January, and it's already a hit among the staffers at Google, YouTube, Facebook and Gap, four companies that offer its employees weekly pampering from La Lacquerie.
"I'm definitely rolling up my sleeves and getting in there," she told The Huffington Post.
Between finding and fixing up the airstream trailer (she purchased it on Craigslist), figuring out how to get power and running water and making sure that everything was up to code in accordance with the California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology's rules, Aflak had a lot to learn before opening up a fully-functioning nail salon on wheels. Things haven't really simplified for her yet, either -- she's in the trailer at least five days a week and has to fill up on both gas and water each morning, as well as spend an hour or two setting up every time she moves locations.
"We're not a food truck model, where we can just pop up anywhere and sell a few burgers or tacos and move on," she said. "We definitely planned to go after the businesses and market through them."
And it's that small detail that separates La Lacquerie from many other schtick-inspired salons. Aflak doesn't cater to pedestrian traffic and only works with businesses to schedule full days on a single site. Employees can book appointments in advance on her web site or just pop in -- after all, it's just outside their office doors. Landing Google as her first major corporate partner was a big coup for Aflak, and she said her roster grew quickly afterwards when people saw her unmistakable pink trailer cruising around town.
"When I wrapped the trailer in pink, I was definitely targeting the women," she said. "We have had a decent number of men come through, though. Usually, their girlfriend took them and they liked it."
"I'm kind of obsessed and I think it's just in me to work a lot," she said. "It's my baby. I spend every waking second thinking about how I can make it better and what else we can do. I was always that little girl who was painting my nails, so it makes sense that I'm in this field now."
The way Aflak dove head first into the beauty industry as a complete novice could certainly inspire many people unhappily working desk jobs -- it's easy to ignore those bright ideas and "aha!" moments, whether or not they come while scarfing down truck food in the middle of a hectic work day. Plus, it's daunting to risk an already-successful career and throw your savings into becoming a salon entrepreneur.
But hey, sometimes you just have to listen to that voice in your head, even if it's telling you to leave your cushy finance job and paint nails out of a trailer for a living. At least, that was the brighter professional trajectory for Aflak.
end quote from:
| Huffington Post | - |
After quitting her job in finance
back in 2012, Aflak put aside her MBA and enrolled in beauty school to
get her manicurist license and learn the nail biz from the inside out.
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