Unlike in the early months of Covid-19, we now have adequate PPE and solutions available to help us work and continue to stay open safely. However, having the funds to continue suppling the PPE and sustain our businesses to be successful while open during the pandemic comes with its challenges. Most businesses owners report bring in less revenue due to working at 50% capacity, loss of station space from needing to be 6 feet apart, and the public’s fear of covid-19 as government officials continue to encourage the public to stay home. This is making it difficult for businesses to afford to stay open as we wait out the economic effects of the pandemic. 

Congress passing funding, is helpful but it is not clear to who that funding will go to. We believe a specific percentage of the funding in Connecticut should be allocated to the beauty industry businesses. Ensuring we have a fair opportunity to receive funding we need and not let the funding be swallowed up by big business as it was in the past. With the help of CTBA members, we will continue to fight for our rights and the help our beauty industry needs.  

Our objective moving forward is to continue to keep our businesses open. Period. It’s our business and our choice. We will do this while ensuring we are provided the needs to continue to stay as safe and as successful as possible. This includes, keeping the state requirements of our businesses reasonable and that our businesses are not being inundated with citations of a $1000 per occurrence or that our businesses are not being temporarily closed by any government including the Commissioner of Heath, local Health Departments and state contact tracing agencies, as is happening in the restaurant industry.  

Our goal is to advocate for our businesses to have proper representation in Hartford. We will advocate to continue to stay open, for fair requirements of testing and vaccine choices, to receive proper funding grants to help salon and spas sustain their businesses through this pandemic to then keep their doors open. We can achieve this but we will need your help. Making a small donation to CTBA, can make a difference for all of us. 

Estheticians have been unfairly reopened. It is not responsible for the CT Reopen Committee to reopen an industry to then prohibit the very service they provide because of mask mandates. This not only makes it impossible to produce an income but also sets off a series of economic problems. To start, it confuses clients as to when they can receive facial services. Many independent estheticians and spas primarily only doing facials are still paying operating cost such as rent, with no protection of future eviction or then face an eviction. How will they make up for past rent with zero or minimal income? The state has not provided solutions forcing many to shut their businesses. We are not suggesting the state run our businesses for us but we are saying that if the state is going to continue to interfere in our businesses, that they then provide responsible resolutions for the ultimate success of our businesses. We have proposed a solution for the safe reopening of facial services to the CT reopen committee. 

UPDATE; THE STATE TOOK OUR PROPOSAL INTO CONSIDERATION AND REOPENED FACIALS. THIS PROVES ONCE AGAIN THAT TOGETHER WE REALLY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. 

Many have recently been made aware of the changes to the cosmetology and hairstylist licensing. Anyone holding this license has been stripped of barbering, esthetics, nails and waxing services. Any performing these services without an additional license are operating in violation of CT law. Although we are pleased to have these service professionals hold a license and finally be properly recognized by the state of CT as professionals. We do not agree that our cosmetology licenses should have been stripped of services that many of us still provide, paid to learn in school and tested for during our board exams. The state did this without properly informing those holding a cosmetology license. They cannot just take away what is ours as if they own those rights. We own those licensing rights and we want them back! For example; a hairstylist cannot provide a beard trim to the client they just gave a haircut too. Why? Because beard trims fall under barbering. Barbering has been stripped from your cosmetology license. Your haircut client requiring a beard trim will need to see a barber for the beard trim. This doesn’t make sense but what is worse is the state did this without our knowledge and we don’t believe it to be a legal act. With advocacy and representation in Hartford we can resolve this.