What do you need to set up a solo cosmetic clinic?

Setting up a solo aesthetic or cosmetic nurse clinic can be a lucrative business if you’ve got the skills and have always wanted to work for yourself.

Demand for cosmetic procedures have rocketed in the UK in the last year, largely down to a phenomenon known as the “Zoom Boom” with more people sitting on video conferencing and suddenly thinking they want to make some changes.

As a cosmetic nurse offering treatments like botox, chemical peels, laser treatments or dermaroller, you could realistically aim to generate £100,000 in revenue a year.

So if this sounds like the kind of business you could succeed in, what do you need to set up as a solo aesthetic nurse?

Register as self employed

If you’re going to work for yourself you’ll need to register as self-employed with HMRC.

Even if you’re setting up a solo clinic to supplement a full-time income you’ll need to register for self-assessment on any untaxed income you’ll earn.

If you’re not confident doing this yourself and have some financial resources available you could always hire an accountant to help.

Insurance

If you’re carrying out cosmetic treatments you’ll need a good level of insurance to cover you in the event something goes wrong or a patient isn’t happy.

Insurance can ensure you have financial backing to cover any claims against your business and make sure you don’t become personally liable.

If you plan to be a full-time self-employed cosmetic nurse, you could also invest in business insurance which can cover you for things like loss of income due to unforeseen circumstances like long term illness.

Equipment & Supplies

Depending on the services you want to provide, you’ll need to source your equipment and supplies – plus somewhere to securely store them when they’re not in use.

If you’re storing medical equipment like needles for botox treatment you’ll need to make sure you have a clean environment to store your equipment where it won’t be damaged or contaminated.

Invest in a mobile payment system

As a minimum you should consider getting a business account for you to take payments into.

If you’re supplementing your income as a solo nurse a business account can help separate your personal income and your business income, which can be useful when it comes to paying tax.

You should also consider investing in a card payment system.

Most people today pay using contactless payments so a small mobile card unit can help you take payments much easier than taking cash.

Plus it can be safer to accept card payments than travel around with cash.

Find a suitable space to work

There’s a few options you can choose if you’re going to be a solo cosmetic nurse.

Many choose to operate out of their own homes.

Others offer a mobile service, travelling to a client’s home to carry out treatments.

Depending how often you plan to operate your business you could consider a permanent office/ clinic space.

Others tend to rent rooms in hotels for use during their business hours.

Whatever option you choose you’ll need to make sure you provide a clean, safe and sanitised environment that can put your customers at ease and allow you to safely carry out treatments.

Digital marketing

You’ll definitely need to think about how you plan to market your business.

The resources you contribute to this will obviously depend on how busy you hope to be.

Typically speaking your main source of marketing and leads is going to be through social media channels like Instagram and TikTok.

Creating some professional accounts to promote your work will help you attract and source new customers.

You should split your promotion between paid media (especially if you’re new and just building an audience) and organic posts.

You could also consider a website with a full booking system, a WordPress reservation plugin, or a smaller brochure website giving people your list of treatments and prices and a number to get in touch.

If you’re looking for a more in person approach, some business cards and leaflets that you can hand out to people at networking events or post through doors can be a good investment.

Call answering service

An often overlooked part of running a solo cosmetic clinic is how you’ll manage your call answering.

When you’re with a patient or already on a call, you risk not being able to answer the phone to new business, which can cost you a significant amount.

Plus, if you start to get a reputation as a clinic with unreliable communication, your customers will be more likely to try someone else.

You could hire a member of staff to deal with your calls.

But this is hugely expensive (especially if you’re hiring someone full-time).

Plus you then have all the admin and extra costs that come with hiring staff.

And what do you do when that member of staff goes on holiday, is off sick, goes on a break, or is already on a call when another new business call comes in?

Then you’re still paying their wages, but not getting the call answering service you’re paying for.

A better option could be to invest in an outsourced call answering service.

With a team of specialist virtual assistants by your side you’ll never have to worry about missing calls when you’re with customers.

Your call answering service can deal with some or all of your incoming calls.

They can either take detailed messages, which are then sent directly to you to return later, or for emergency or urgent calls they can be sent through to you instantly.

If you need help with your diary, a call answering service can also be used to take bookings and help manage your diary.

Your virtual PAs can take details of the treatment your customer wants and schedule a time in your diary based on how you want to manage your calendar – for example leaving time in between appointments for travel if you need it.

They can also be used to take payments or deposits from customers if you take monies up front.

This means all you have to do is welcome customers and carry out the treatments that will make you your all important profits.

Putting your solo clinic in the best position to succeed

Running your solo cosmetic clinic can be a rewarding career move if you do your planning and put the systems in place to help you succeed.

From taking payments to call answering, these things can be the difference between your entrepreneur dream becoming a reality or turning into a nightmare.