SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
Sydney Berry, Owner, Salon Services & Supplies, Inc.

With all businesses in turmoil, reeling from the barrage of media continuously inundating us with the epidemic of the Wall Street/Global monetary crisis, it is a true moment for mindfulness.

Mindfulness of the business we are in and how we will continue to focus our team’s thoughts on the level of service for the customer. Everyone in every sector is effected, which causes a massive sense of gloom. It is up to us as the owners of our companies, to truly guide the change that will be necessary to succeed and flourish. Maintain focus on your individual team members, as this may be effecting them personally with family members as well, so keeping your finger on the pulse to appropriately respond will be paramount.

It is imperative that you set the vision for your salon to acknowledge your key value proposition in what makes “you” (your salon) different and why the consumers would experience value with the services performed in your salon. You will need to lead change, as at this time in business will call for you to pragmatically address all areas of business. Your business practices and structure will require your focus on how it will achieve your definition of success with salon scripting, continual education protocol, hiring and recruiting staff.

We have a great internal blog site at Salon Services and recently one of our Regional Sales Managers, Marci Christopherson-Brown, illustrated how we should interact with our salon owners and how we must engage.

Marci wrote, “Business is constantly changing, but as consultants—are we adapting to the new ways our salons need us to do business? Or, are we still going out there, pounding the pavement with our Viewpoints, retail price sheets, and education calendars? Today’s salons are needing more. They have bigger problems than figuring out how many promotions to buy and sending people to classes.  If we take a minute to focus on what THEY have as goals verses what WE need them to order, you might find out…    

Top Salon Problems:

• Clients are stretching out their services from 4-6 weeks to 6-8 weeks.
• Salons are not showing strength in Retailing, Re-booking, and Referrals and they do not know where to begin.  
• Salons do not know how to make retail and service goals.  
• Salons and Stylists do not know what they SHOULD be doing and how does that compare to what they ARE doing.
• Owners do not know how to hold their team accountable to goals and get results.
• Stylists ignore goals as there is no set best practices, consistency, and accountability in place.  
• Stylists do not know how to gain new clients or maximize their current clientele to fill their books.  
• Stylists do not know how to utilize tools available to them to track their retail sales, services, and customer retention.
• As consultants, we need to be focusing on our client’s business. What are their goals? What are their immediate needs within our Four Core Objectives? What have they implemented so far and what was the result?  What solutions can Salon Services offer?

If we put a plan in place, how will they create accountability and consistency to make it a best practice? Many distributorships are running for volume by focusing on getting orders with shallow new doors that will meet an immediate need, but will not create long lasting strength. This is not how Salon Services Sales Consultants do business. We all know that instant gratification does not yield long lasting results. At Salon Services we are about helping support salons with creation of systems for re-booking, referrals, and retail that include dialogue and accountability that will sell your product through. You will conquer your clients Four Core Objectives by Increasing Services, Increasing Retail, Gaining Clients and Retaining Clients. The reorders will come, but not without the tools to back it and see it through.”

If you are feeling some of these challenges, The BennieFactors workshop November 9th and 10th in Renton is a solution! Bennie Pollard has been in the industry several decades as a salon owner in Louisville, Kentucky. He chose the manufacturing arena as his vehicle, as he felt that it could give him a greater opportunity to share what he has learned and implemented. He has accomplished six figure compensation for his stylists charging $40 a haircut, which is IMPRESSIVE! Bennie achieved this stature and is showcasing the HOW! His motto is “positive haircare” and that is how he educates.

One area of business I continue to hear that is thriving, is the business of consultation. Why? We are all looking for the answers that we have not yet implemented in our businesses. Utilize Salon Services as your partner to help build your business focus.

One last thought—I would add to Darwin’s statement, “it is the survival of the fittest that will survive”. It will be those that implement structure and adapt to the new business conditions that will excel! Now is that time for strength of leadership and as Nike says, “Just Do It”!

Sincerely,

Sydney Berry, Owner, Salon Services & Supplies, Inc.

 

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO THINK GREEN?
George Learned, Owner, Salon Services & Supplies, Inc.

What if we took the time to rethink things?

Forcing ourselves to look at how things currently are and imagining what they could be if a change occurred. Not waiting for change, but being the catalyst. The philosophy of rethink has been ours since day one:

Rethink is treating customers like people.
Rethink is buying made easy.
Rethink is a style made accessible.
Rethink is a GREENER APPROACH in which this Viewpoint is dedicated to.

You may be wondering why the greener approach is moving from the back burner to the front for most businesses and the answer is very clear:

It makes good business sense and it’s the right thing for our planet and future generations! Five is the number of planets we would need if everyone lived like the average North American. If everyone lived like the average European, we’d need three. Unfortunately, we only have one.

The consumer is demanding it! 83% of Americans now say global warming is a “serious” problem. This is up from 70% in 2004.

It’s simple. Running any business generates commercial waste, and disposing of that waste costs money and cuts into profits. But not all of that waste has to be a drain on the bottom line. There are many companies that pick up several kinds of waste generated by a business and turn them into a source of revenue. For example: Almost everything today is shipped in cardboard boxes. Not only do you have all your salon products shipped to you in cardboard boxes you have all your color in boxes as well.

Think about it, these boxes can quickly clutter a back room and ultimately fill a salons waste bin. Companies such as EFI in Portland, Oregon will pick up your corrugated cardboard on a regular schedule or as you need it. They will also provide roll-carts to help you store and organize cardboard in between recycling pickups. They will even pick up all of your newspapers, magazine and phonebooks. This is just one simple step towards going green!

So, how green do you want to be and when do you start?

To help you decide what shade you want to be, first ask yourself these questions:
• What are my reasons for becoming green?
• How does being green integrate with my business plan?
• How does being green give me a competitive edge?
• Do I want to be 100 percent green or are there areas in which I will not be green?
• In any area where I cannot go green, how can I offset my consumption?
• Do I want to have my business certified as being green?
• Are there any green groups in my area, or should I start one?
• When choosing to purchase products and services, how do I qualify them as green?

After answering these questions, you will be better prepared to schedule a staff meeting with your Salon Services Consultant to discuss all possibilities of what the salon could do. You may even be surprised in finding out how knowledgeable your staff is on this subject. You may even find a person who’s living a life that is green that would love to be your spokesperson and advocate for the salon at all community events.

If you would like to dig deeper into other sources, prior to your meeting go to: www.treehugger.org and click on “how to take action” to read about how to go green. Tree Hugger offers daily posts, hints and advice on how to green your life. You’d also do well to check out the drilldown in TreeHuggerPicks.

Sincerely, George Learned Owner & Vice President of Sales, Salon Services



More resources and ideas for going green:

Why use a reusable tote?
• 500 billion plastic bags are sold to businesses every year
• Almost 80% of plastic bag use is by consumers in North America and western Europe
• 88.5 billion plastic bags were used in the US in 2006
• 1,460 plastic bags are used in a year by an average family of four in the US
• Less than 1% of all plastic bags are recycled in the US • It takes 1,000 years for plastic bags to degrade Source: trendwatching.com

This link talks about the upcoming changes with King County’s bags: http://www.seattle.gov/util/Services/Garbage/Reduce_Garbage_&_Litter/GreenFeeFoamBanProposals/index.htm

Sustainable Ideas for Your Salon:
• Get your Viewpoint delivered digitally! Ask your Consultant, or get yours online at www.SalonServicesNW.com
• Sign up for promotional emails from Salon Services, online at www.SalonServicesNW.com
• Get reusable totes for your shopping
• Donate and recycle old salon materials
• Use technology more to waste less—emails, online business systems
• Purchase office paper with a recycled content, make double-sided copies when you can and then use the waste to make scratch pads
• Send email promos to your clients, instead of printed pieces
• Have your salon brochures available online
• Recycle and let guests know this is the practice by providing recycling cans for their use
• Precycle—reduce waste before you buy. Consider the packaging that comes with the product as one of the factors in determining choice
• Ask clients if they would like a bag, rather than just assuming
• Encourage carpooling, public transportation, or ride/walking to work
• Do an energy audit of your facility—heating, lighting and insulation

- Sheri Rearick, Marketing Manager, Salon Services & Supplies

Retail Revolution!
Sydney Berry, Owner, Salon Services & Supplies, Inc.

We are starting a retail revolution.

I was struck by the cover of the June Oprah magazine, which said, “We’re starting a beauty revolution!” This made me think, as I would love to see a retail revolution in our industry! I would like use to be able to claim the commitment of our clients; plus the profits we drive into the grocery stores, drug stores and specialty stores—through our top-notch client education.

Why would they need to access their beauty supplies in any other environment than from our professionally trained staff?

As an industry, we have failed to create the retail environment necessary to develop the purchasing mentality for our clients to realize that their product needs are met our at our salon locations.

Where do we begin? We need to start by developing a business model that will create a structure for our salons to be successful. We need to commit to plan implementation, create the financial means necessary to sustain the inventory turns and develop systems for internal ongoing training with our staff. Also, to establish expectations with our artists and therapists illustrating the goal that our clients are leaving with the home maintenance package necessary to maintain the look or result that they came to us for.

Why have we not committed? Other segments of the retail world see professional product as a basket builder, which is how diversion happens. We have been continuously chasing this challenge, vs. taking a stance of commitment with retail. It is easier to not hold our staff accountable when there are issues that are distracting—but retail is our sustenance. Retail is the investment dollars that we can utilize to develop career paths for our staff, benefits such as vacation time, cash flow for our businesses and build client retention. We know that retailing takes work and investment, and is the one thing that doesn’t call in sick—it is the consistency in our business, if it is structured appropriately.

At Salon Services, we have been involved with skin care for 15 years with Dermalogica. We have witnessed the level of commitment they have, and the educational dedication that is inherent to therapists. They are continuously desirous of new technology and new techniques—which they will only discover with their faithfulness to education. Once their confidence level builds, it is rewarded by their ability to prescribe appropriately and educate their client. Dermalogica assesses the goal of matching service dollars to their retail dollars.

One of our VIP accounts, SkinLogic in Greenlake, achieves it’s retail and business goals through initiating the discussion of the SkinLogic method of educating and prescribing for the client—in the interview process. This culture is sustained with training; which includes product knowledge, ongoing education and regular staff meetings. The staff understands this vision, and the needs of the client.

What did you envision when you opened up your salon? “Raving Fans”, or clients that appreciated the “experience” of your salon, because they loved their hair services and knew they could recreate the look at home? How do you maintain that connection once they depart? The answer is retail! Retail enables the client the same opportunity to recreate that beautiful look that they got from you at the salon. It is your silent billboard in their bathroom—It reminds them of your salon and stylist every time they use the product. If you don’t capture the retail dollars while they are with you, another retail environment will.

The beauty revolution starts at your salon!

You are the director of the destiny of the Salon Beauty Revolution. Are you ready to commit?

Sydney Berry, Owner, Salon Services & Supplies