A Partner in Business and in Life
At Janet St. Paul Studio for Hair and Beauty, Director of Operations Natasha McMillen helps bring her wife Janet St. Paul's vision to life, elevating every system from education to operations.
by Stacey Soble
2016 Salon Today 200: Retention & Referral Programs
While a salon’s ability to attract new clients fuels its growth, it’s ability to get those clients to come back, and come back frequently, drives its success. These SALON TODAY 200 honorees have designed solid programs for attracting ...
December 2, 2015
Rowena Yeager, owner of Studio Wish Salon in Twinsburg, Ohio, and her team retain clients with their talented shears.
5 min to read
While a salon’s ability to attract new clients fuels its growth, it’s ability to get those clients to come back, and come back frequently, drives its success. These SALON TODAY 200 honorees have designed solid programs for attracting clients, retaining them, and encouraging them to pre-book.
BELLA SALON AND SPA
West Des Moines, IA
bellasalons.com
Joe and Kimberly Heemstra
SQUARE FEET: 3,200, 4,600, 3,000
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 55
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 45%
RETURN RETENTION: 84%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 35%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $42
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Bumble and Bumble, Kérastase
COLOR: Wella
TECH SUPPORT: Millennium
“When clients redeem points from our loyalty program, they are redeemed as a payment type, so stylists are not docked in their pay from having a client earn and redeem points. Stylists love the rewards because it’s a tool to help them build a successful, sustainable business.”
CLIVE AND CO.
Dallas, TX
cliveandco.com
Clive Lamb
SQUARE FEET: 2,700
TOTAL EMPLOYEES:24
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 75%
RETURN RETENTION: 90%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 80%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $75
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Kérastase, Davines
COLOR: L’Oréal Professionnel, Wella, Sebastian
TECH SUPPORT: Millennium, Demandforce
“If a client prebooks their next appointment and refers a friend who comes in for a service before the client’s next pre-booked appointment, the client gets their next service free. There are no limits to how often a client can do this. We have two clients who have received free hair services for the entire year!”
COCO CHEVEUX SALON
South Portland, ME
cococheveux.com
Tiffany Conway
SQUARE FEET: 4,200
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 25
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 30%
RETURN RETENTION: 76%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 82%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $45
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: KMS, Goldwell, California Blow Pro
COLOR: Goldwell
TECH SUPPORT: SpaBooker, Mail Chimp, Demandforce
ASSOCIATIONS: Intercoiffure, PBA
“Our CoCo Loyalty Club is an exclusive membership offered to a maximum of 50 people per year. Clients pay an upfront yearly cost for unlimited salon services listed within the membership for the entire year. Renewal is every October and we have created such demand that we now have a long waiting list.”
ELEMENTS SALON & SPA
Wenatchee, WA
elementsofbeauty.com
Valda Sarty
SQUARE FEET: 2,500
TOTAL EMPLOYEES:15
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 64%
RETURN RETENTION: 54%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 70%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $50
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Davines, Moroccanoil
COLOR: Davines
TECH SUPPORT: Leprechaun, Mailchimp
ASSOCIATION: PBA
“Clients who opt to provide feedback, whether positive or negative, are entered into a drawing with a chance to win a free facial. All feedback provided is reviewed by the team during our monthly team meeting, with necessary adjustments discussed and implemented.”
HEADLINES THE SALON
Encinitas, CA
headlinesthesalon.com
Gayle Fulbright
SQUARE FEET: 2,900
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 42
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 45%
RETURN RETENTION: 78%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 84%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $65
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Eufora, Davines, Yonka
COLOR: Eufora, Kemon
TECH SUPPORT: STX, custom salon app
ASSOCIATION: PBA
“Our Hairmiles loyalty program rewards our guests with points when they prebook their next appointment, purchase retail, refer friends and family, and write a social media review about us.”
INSPIRE SALON
Weldon Spring, MO
saloninspire.com
Chris and Sandi Ravenscraft
SQUARE FEET: 2,100
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 11
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 54%
RETURN RETENTION: 92%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 68%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $44
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda
COLOR: Aveda
TECH SUPPORT: Millennium
“The Experience More card for first-time clients has five offers designed to expose them to all the salon has to offer—the offers include a free, full-size retail product recommended by the stylist, a complimentary wax service, a free makeup product with an application or lesson; a free mani or pedi and a complimentary deep conditioning treatment.”
JOHN ROBERT’S SPA
Mayfield Heights, OH
johnrobertsspa.com
John DiJulius and Eric Hammond
SQUARE FEET: 7,000; 1,800; 2,400; 2,000
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 150
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 37%
RETURN RETENTION: 76%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 22%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $60
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda
COLOR: Aveda
TECH SUPPORT: SalonBiz, Constant Contact
“To thank all of our loyal patrons, we’ve developed a world-class VIP rewards program that consists of four tiers: Silver, Gold, Platinum and Black. Levels are based on the amount of a guest’s annual purchases or by the number of new guests a guest has referred to JR during the calendar year.”
SALON ESTIQUE
Phoenix, AZ
salonestique.com
Cheryl Finn, Kelly Boudreau and Brenda Barnaby
SQUARE FEET: 3,600
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 35
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 48%
RETURN RETENTION: 80%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 47%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $65
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda, Bumble and Bumble, Moroccanoil
COLOR: Wella, Redken, Joico, Pravana
TECH SUPPORT: Millennium, Demandforce, Constant Contact Facebook
ASSOCIATION: PBA
“Our Salon Estique Retail Rewards Program allows guests to earn 10 points for every dollar spent on retail. Our computer system tracks all earned points, and once a guests reach 1,000 points, they can redeem for $10 off a product purchase.”
STUDIO WISH SALON
Twinsburg, OH
studiowish.com
Rowena and Eric Yeager
SQUARE FEET: 3,000
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 14
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 49%
RETURN RETENTION: 83%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 65%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $49
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Oribe, Sebastian, DevaCurl
COLOR: Wella
TECH SUPPORT: Millennium, Demandforce
ASSOCIATIONS: NCA, PBA
“The Wish Rewards program allows guests to earn ‘wishes.’ They can earn two times their retail take-home care, 1,000 wishes after the 10th haircut within a year and 2,000 wishes for recommending another guest. Points are given in $20 increments as a ‘wish rewards’ voucher—2,000 wishes equals $20.”
THE CHOPPING BLOCK SALON COMPANY
Louisville, KY
thechoppingblock.biz
Sandra Collier, Don Collier and Greg Combs
SQUARE FEET: 4,000; 1,700
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 35
NEW CLIENT RETENTION: 43%
RETURN RETENTION: 78%
PRE-BOOKING RATE: 63%
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $46
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Redken, Eufora, Pureology
COLOR: Redken
TECH SUPPORT: Salon Iris
ASSOCIATION: CC
“We have a free smart phone app for our salons that leads guests to our website. They receive one credit for downloading the app, then on subsequent visits, when they use the app to check in they receive additional credits. After six credits they receive a complimentary facial wax or luxury conditioning treatment.”
ADDITIONAL HONOREES
360 The Colour Bar Salon, El Paso, TX
Aura Salon & Day Spa, Scottsdale, AZ
Avenue Hair Design, Venice, FL
Bii Hair Salon, West Dundee, IL
Blo, Raleigh, NC
Chemistry Hair Salon, Shreveport, LA
Cutting Loose Salon, University Park, FL
Impressions, Mequon, WI
Mane Attraction Salon, Phoenix, AZ
Michael Helene Salon Gallery, Dulles, VA
Nuovo Salon Group, Sarasota, FL
Nurtur the Salon, Columbus, OH
Omagi Salon & Spa, Louisville, KY
Paul Kenneth Salon & Spa, Woburn, MA
Pin-Up Curls, Fort Wayne, IN
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