A tough-love chat every estie needs to hear.
Okay bestie, pull up a chair and let’s have a real conversation — the kind you have with another esthetician when you’re both in your aprons, hair in a claw clip, half a cold coffee on the counter, and you’re like: “Why the hell aren’t my clients buying the retail I know they need?”
I’ve been there. We’ve all been there. And the answer isn’t that your clients are broke, or that “no one buys retail anymore,” or that you picked the wrong brands.
The truth?
It’s usually confidence, clarity, or consistency.
And sometimes… all three.
Don’t worry — we’re fixing it right now.
1. You know the product works… but you’re not saying it with your chest.
Clients can smell hesitation.
You could be holding the best brow serum on the planet, but if you present it like it’s a maybe, they’re checking out.
Think about it — you’re the expert. They trust you with their brows, their skin, their waxes. If you don’t sound sure, why would they feel sure?
Fix it:
Talk about your retail the same way you’d talk about your favorite restaurant.
Confident. Direct. Zero weird energy.
“This serum will keep your lamination hydrated for weeks. You’ll thank me later.”
Done.
2. You’re educating, but you’re not connecting the dots.
Here’s some tough love:
Telling a client what a product does is not the same as showing them why they should care.
Example:
“This brow gel has flexible hold.”
Cute, but… who cares?
Try:
“This gel keeps your brows fluffy all day without going crunchy. It’s what I’m using on you today.”
See the difference?
Clients buy when they understand the result for them — not the ingredient list, not the marketing fluff, not the vibe.
The result: How it solves their specific problem.
3. You’re skipping the experience part — and that’s where the magic happens.
Clients don’t buy products because they’re on your shelf.
They buy products because they felt the product during the service.
And honestly?
If you’re not using your retail in the treatment room… you’re making your life harder than it needs to be.
Use what you sell. Sell what you use.
It’s the easiest, most natural retail flow on earth.
Coat their brows in Fiber Gel.
Let them smell Bikini Balm.
Use Like Laminate on their brows if they’re on the fence about lamination or just want the look without the service. Call it your “insurance step.”
When clients experience products in real time, retail stops being a pitch and becomes a no-brainer.
4. You’re assuming they’ll ask. (They won’t.)
Your clients are thinking about:
Dinner
Parking
Their kids
Their next meeting
They’re not sitting there planning to ask you about your retail.
It’s your job to close the loop.
Fix it:
End every service with one simple line:
“These are the two products I recommend for what we did today.”
Not pushy. Not salesy. Just leadership.
5. You’re forgetting the P.R.I.D.E. formula — your retail cheat sheet.
No, you’re not saying it out loud.
But this is the backbone of an esthetician who sells with ease and integrity:
-
Product – What it is
-
Result – What it does for their specific problem
-
Ingredient – A quick why-it-works
-
Demonstrate – Show them, don’t tell
-
Experience – Make them feel it in the service
When you naturally weave these five pieces into the conversation, retail stops being “sales” and becomes education that actually empowers your clients.
6. You’re not selling — you’re protecting their results.
Here’s the mindset shift:
Retail isn’t about the product leaving your shelf.
It’s about the client getting the results they’re spending their hard-earned money on.
Want their lamination to last longer?
Nourish.
Want their brows to actually stay full ‘n fluffy all day?
Fiber Gel.
Want their post-wax skin to stay calm instead of mad at them?
Bikini Balm + Tonic.
When you see retail as part of the treatment plan — not an “extra” — everything changes.
7. You don’t actually need to “sell more.” You just need to talk like the expert you already are.
You’re the authority.
You’re the brow queen.
You’re the one shaping and tinting and mapping and lifting and waxing and making literal magic in the treatment room.
You’re not asking for permission.
You’re guiding your client toward results they want.
And honestly?
When you step into that energy — not cocky, just sure — your clients feel it instantly.
Final Truth: Clients want to buy from an esthetician who knows their sh*t.
They want to trust you.
They want simple, easy, done-for-them recommendations.
They want to feel taken care of.
So give it to them.
Be direct.
Be confident.
Be the expert.
And use every product you sell during the service so they can fall in love with it right there on your table.
Retail isn’t a chore.
It’s not awkward.
It’s not “too salesy.”
It’s a service — and a damn good one.
🦊❤️🔥🌴🪩