Mobile businesses make sense for Auckland women

Howick resident Rachel Smith, 27, started her own business earlier this year offering manicures and pedicures in peoples’ homes.

“Everyone in my family is pretty much self-employed,” Ms Smith says.

“When I was [studying] beauty therapy, I did know of mobile beauty, Beauty Plus I think it was called. But none that I know of were doing nails.”

She says she had wanted to start her own business for some time and was tired of having ‘ridiculous bosses’, so the move to mobile made sense.

Munirah Soloman, who owns MS Mobile Hairdressing, started her business in 2012.

Ms Soloman says that being a mobile hairdresser certainly works around the busy schedule of ‘kids and family time’.

But she says that getting into the mobile business is not to be taken lightly.

“Definitely see if it’s for you. If I wasn’t a family person I probably wouldn’t be doing this.”

Both Ms Smith and Ms Soloman have set up social media sites and other outlets to reach potential customers.

Ms Soloman has a Facebook page, Twitter account and a TradeMe link, all of which are linked to her website.

Ms Smith says, “I’ve got my website, the Facebook page. I’m also on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, and YouTube.”

But so far the most interesting feedback has come from an old-fashioned flyer in letterboxes.

“I was pretty excited when I was contacted from the flyer drop,” Ms Smith says.

“I think it’s still early days yet, but yeah, that was the most exciting bit so far.”

Dr Petra Theunissen, the Curriculum Leader in Public Relations at AUT, says social media can both help and hinder small businesses.

“For them, it’s a good place to be, but they do need to understand the culture and tone.

“The good thing in New Zealand is that we all know small businesses and we know the owners, so they can’t really go on social media and try and pretend they’re something they’re not.”