Purchasing Used Spa Equipment

Used spa equipment can be an alternative if you are unsure if there is a viable enough market for these types of services in your area. Many times, a salon owner will expand into other areas of the industry to capitalize on additional services that can be delivered to their existing clientele base. Minimizing these expansion costs can be a great strategy, but there are some risks that will be encountered.

Spa equipment is a term that can explain a broad range of products so we will concentrate on used esthetician equipment also referred to as used facial equipment in this blog post. Anytime you purchase anything electronic, new or used, there are possibilities of defects. As you may know, when electronic products that are sold to a professional industry, some of the regulations that are set forth by government entities do not apply. So as you are shopping for these types of products do not be alarmed if you do not see the usual stamps such as UL (Underwriters Laboratories) or CE (conformite europeenne, French for European Conformity). If you are unaware of what these stamps normally mean, they certify that the functionality of the product was tested by these independent engineering groups. The cost of having an item tested by these groups can be substantial and time consuming. However, in most cases the internal components have been tested individually and comply with the standards set forth, but the unit as a whole has not gone through rigors of inspection.

Anytime you purchase used electronics, it is important for it to run for a period of time. In some instances the item will initially work and then an internal component may overheat in a short period of time causing the unit to shut down. Let the unit go through a full cycle or two. This may be a little time consuming, but with most used spa equipment there is no warranty so you want to catch any issues before money exchanges hands.

If at all possible avoid multifunction machines. These configurations are very convenient because they save so much space, but when one component goes bad the whole unit has to be sent in for repair. In the meantime you are without an income while the unit is being fixed.

Also, you may want to strongly consider avoiding purchasing used facial steamers. These units require the use of distilled water only. If the previous owner used tap water instead, many of the internal components can be damaged by the impurities that are in tap water. At times, these impurities can cause internal blockages that may cause the steamer to spew boiling hot water onto a client’s face.

There are a variety of products used in the facial equipment industry and each item has its own unique components that deserve your scrutiny. We cover many of these individually in our e-book “The Barber, Salon & Spa Equipment Book”, which can be purchased at www.salonequipmentresource.com.

Salon Equipment Distributors

Salon equipment, spa equipment and salon furniture distributors require a bit of due diligence before making your purchase. Many consumers get so caught up in the design and color schemes that they do not make an informed decision on who they are buying from. The market place has evolved quite a bit with the expansion of the internet. In the past, there were a handful of distributors that primarily served key markets, usually closely relating to geographical areas. However, as the internet has become more and more accessible, it has opened up opportunities to a wider spectrum of distributors.

In the old days, usually the larger distributors had the resources to attend tradeshows, run phone book advertisements in various geographical areas and launch large catalog mailing campaigns. This required a massive amount of resources and created an obstacle for new comers to the industry with limited funds. Equipment distributors within this market had an expertise and in depth knowledge about salon equipment. This is why many of the big box stores that tried entering this market only capture a small portion. They had the resources to influence the market with marketing campaigns but lacked the expertise this market requires. Their staff received little or no training on the equipment and could not answer customer’s questions adequately.

As the internet has evolved it has generated a new breed of salon equipment distributors. The financial barrier has been removed and has brought in a lot of competition. This has been a good thing in regards to the cost of opening a salon or spa, but there are devastating consequences to purchasing inferior equipment. With the lowering of the cost barrier you have salon equipment distributors that have the ability to sell online without ever truly vetting the factories or the distribution chain of where the products originate. In addition, there are unscrupulous business practices where a distributor will intentionally use substandard parts to lower the manufacturing costs and increase their profit margins.

Before making your purchase there are a variety of techniques you can use to ensure you are purchasing from a reputable source. We have written an e-book “The Barber, Salon & Spa Equipment Book” that covers this topic in much more detail that can be purchased at www.salonequipmentresource.com. In addition, you will learn how to avoid warranty trickery as well as marketing gimmicks.