Boston’s Fenway neighborhood not only is the home of the famous ballpark, it also houses many of the city’s landmark cultural, medical and academic institutions. The neighborhood recently welcomed Phillipostyle Hair Studio (phillipostyle.com), a salon owned by Phillipo Caporrella, whose love of cutting-edge technology is creating a unique environment for staff and clients alike.

When Caporrella built the salon in 2008, he personally fabricated his station mirrors to incorporate 8-inch touch screens. Today, these mini-screens both entertain and educate clients. Footage of fashion shows, sitcoms and random news bits are infused with advertisements for the salon itself, as well as other local neighborhood vendors.

“Right now, we aren’t selling the spots, but are using them in reciprocal marketing programs. For example, we’ve promoted a local restaurant, and the restaurant then passed our flyers to their customers,” says Caporrella. “In this case, it’s all about building neighborhood awareness for Fenway, a once-forgotten area whose new high-rises house grad students, physicians and professionals.”

Caporrella discovered the system’s product and service spots prompt conversation in the chair, helping stylists up-sell services and boost retail sales. And, when a simple switch is triggered, the screens link to individual portfolios housed on a separate laptop. “These interactive portfolios showcase stylists’ work and keep their clients abreast to their changing craft.” To keep images fresh, Caporrella constantly takes images, plus he hires a professional photographer to come in once a month to capture styles.

But where did the hi-tech idea originate? “I’m a geek,” admits Caporrella. “I’m somewhat of a futurist and an early adopter of new technology. In fact, I had bought one of the first LCD picture frames, which was then about $1300. I always like to look ahead and try to predict what will be hot in the next several years.”



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