Permanent cosmetics are a growing segment of the professional beauty industry, as more people discover the benefits of the procedures. Also referred to as micropigmentation, the treatment deposits colored pigments into the skin to help solve any number of cosmetic problems. If you’re interested in this segment of the industry, read on for more about who your potential clients may be, regulations and treatment costs.

Permanent cosmetics have been especially popular among people with allergies and sensitive skin who can’t wear cosmetics, as well as people with medical disorders that can cause them to lose their facial hair, like alopecia. The treatments can be used to create or enhance eyebrows, eyeliner, eyelash enhancement, lip liner, full lip color, scar camouflage, feature reconstruction, hair imitation, skin grafts and beauty marks. Costs vary between $400 and $800, with advanced work charged at $150 to $250 per hour. According to a study conducted by The Society of Permanent Cosmetic Professionals in 2006 (the last year available), the most popular treatments are for eyeliner and eyebrows and the average cost of each of those is $407 and $398, respectively. The treatment price for permanent cosmetics also generally includes one or two touch-ups.

The study also showed that most permanent cosmetics technicians have a background as either an esthetician (26.2 percent) or cosmetology (23.8 percent), and the majority has been performing procedures for one to three years (30.9 percent) or four to six years (22.9 percent). Initial training costs varied among respondents, with the most (18.6 percent) citing $2,500 to $3,000. Types of machines and devices that they were initially trained on varied as well, including rotary, coil, hand tool and rotary digital.

Regulations for training and who is allowed to perform permanent cosmetic procedures vary from state to state. To find out about your state, visit www.spcp.org and click on Regulatory Information, under the Info for Technicians category.

Information from The Society of Permanent Cosmetic Professionals.