We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Valerie Barrera. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Valerie below.

Alright, Valerie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

Since I was a little girl, I have always been around the beauty industry. My mother and my grandmother are both cosmetologists, my mother did nails and hair, my grandmother did just hair.
Always going to the salon with my mom seeing all the wonderful ladies she meets and how creative she was with nails and how these ladies left with such happiness made me want to do the same.

I knew from high school I wanted to have my own business; I wanted my own salon just like my mother.
I went to cosmetology school finished and from there I started to build my portfolio to gain potential clients.
first couple of years was a struggle, but I got the experience I needed and joined my mother in the business.
Building clientele was still a struggle it took some time. When I get asked how long it took to build steady clientele, I give the raw truth and tell them two years in the salon it took me to start growing my business.
Once I started growing on my own, I decided to venture off from my mother after a total of 4 years being with her and created a brand for myself and that’s when I created Luxury V.

I’m still continuously growing and building my business, there are still obstacles I face like any other small business owner does, but the key is to always just keep promoting yourself, social media has help me with that in so many ways, it’s the reason I am where I’m at today.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Hello, my name is Valerie Barrera I am the owner of Luxury V
I am Nail Tech here in San Antonio, Texas.
I have been in the beauty industry all my life, following in my mom’s footsteps as Shes been a nail tech for about 30+ years now. I always knew this is what I wanted to do.

I provide manicures, acrylic nails and toes.
Clients come to me because I am all about quality over quantity, I make sure you leave with what you want.
Seeing them leave so happy and satisfied really makes me enjoy what I do that much more.
I Provide and use only the best products out there, so I make sure you get what you’re paying for.

The past 8 years that I have been doing nails I have accomplished things I have never thought I would get that far in doing.
I have been on Ksat 12 SA Live for fiesta sets I have done, I have been nominated and won 3 times for best Nail Tech in San Antonio, I am also an ambassador for one of the best nail brands Valentino Beauty Pure, I have been so grateful for these amazing accomplishments that I have gotten over these past few years, being in this industry, and it’s all thanks to my amazing clients and just everyone who supports me and my business.

For future clients/followers do not hesitate to ask any questions you may have before booking with me, I am always here to help you out with any questions and services you may have questions about. My goal is to always make sure you leave with what you want, and definitely make sure you get what you’re paying for, I stand for quality at all times.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I started building my business on Instagram, I wasn’t too familiar with it yet but I used it as my portfolio so people can see my work before booking.
At the time I was still afraid to put myself out there with my work, because I was still nowhere near what I wanted to be with my nails, I was still in beginner stages, but me being in a salon that was the only way I was going to bring potential customers.
So, I started to post more often and that’s when I was told to use hashtags, that was the key to get your work seen and recognized to gain more clientele.
Once I started being more consistent with it, I saw the growth and more messages for bookings started to come in more, and from there I started to grow to where I am now with 4k followers and still growing.

So, my advice for any business and wanting to build,
stay consistent post your work from the very beginning to now, so people can see your growth.
make reels that other people can relate to, and always just be yourself make your page part of who you are too not just the business side.
Number 1 thing you cannot forget is always use HASHTAGS they are a major role to you building, trust me it really works.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Social Media has been the most effective strategy for growing my business, but what has also helped a lot is word of mouth of my clients. Everywhere they go having their nails done they get compliments and that’s when my card, IG, facebook etc., gets passed around.

Every new client I get I always ask, ” How did you hear about me?”, they always respond with either ” word of mouth ” or “social media”.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nailsbyvalerieSA.as.me/
• Instagram: @luxury.v.sa

Image Credits
Photography by: Sarah Rogers ( unfiltered glamour )