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SEARCHHooray and welcome to 2015! The dawn of a new year always turns thoughts to new growth and new opportunities. What do you have planned for the next 365 days? Have you thought about it? Or was 2014 a pretty good year in your salon so you’re ...
Hooray and welcome to 2015! The dawn of a new year always turns thoughts to new growth and new opportunities. What do you have planned for the next 365 days? Have you thought about it? Or was 2014 a pretty good year in your salon so you’re just planning to do it all over again?
If that’s the case, well, good luck. Here’s the good news: for all intents and purposes, the Great Recession is over. Jobs are being added and people are spending money again. But don’t get too excited just yet. Wages are not increasing and although consumers are spending money, they aren’t spending a whole lot, and they are very selective where they open their wallets. The economy is growing, just not fast enough. It’s still fragile, despite a decent holiday retail season. So where does that leave us.
Maybe it's no longer about the recession, it's about stagnation.
Stagnation exists when your Guests are still coming in, but it’s likely they make fewer visits and aren’t as likely to spend as freely as you would prefer. On top of that, today’s consumers are smarter than ever before. Thanks to mobile devices, they have unlimited access to information always at their fingertips. The on-demand economy is revolutionizing consumer behavior and if you don’t keep up, you will be left behind.
So what are you going to do? It’s time to sit down with your team and get creative because our slow and stagnant economic growth is not going away soon. Put your heads together and come up with three or four new ideas. Your guests are mobile, and you should be too. The beauty of trying a promotion digitally, whether on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook or via text message campaign, is 1) it’s a fast, low-cost way to get your message out, compared to newspaper or radio ads, and 2) you don’t have to worry about a long-term marketing failure. The digital age allows you to try everything and anything, measurement is instant, and if a campaign bombs, you know it right away. Tweak it on the fly, learn from any missteps and try a new idea next month.
Most importantly, make it CONVENIENT and EASY for your customers to do business with you. Note that we didn’t write, “affordable.” That’s great too, but more importantly, be in their space, at their fingertips. Do you have a mobile app? Do you allow online bookings or send out appointment reminders via text message? How quickly do you reward your best guests and your new guests for their patronage? Do you even reward them at all? It’s 2015 and if your marketing plans don’t include a mobile component, well, 1998 called and wants its promotions back.
In this stagnant economy, you will have to fight even harder for every dollar that comes from your existing clientele and the new customers you attract. Don’t wait to see how the New Year shakes out – get creative now and have some fun.
After moving to Colorado and teaching at a cosmetology school, Allison Stock joined Zandi K as a stylist, eventually becoming part of the Leadership Team, Education Team and Master Bridal Team. Today, as Director of Operation, Stock is Owner Nicki Wenz's right hand, managing human resources and operations, education and career development, and coaching and culture.
The company's Concealed Bead Method is raising the bar for what professional extension education can deliver.
Scott maximized her micro-salon by transitioning from stylist to strategic owner, focusing on recruiting and station-sharing. By prioritizing her ownership role over behind-the-chair work, she grew her team to six stylists within the two-chair, 150-square-foot space before eventually moving to a larger facility.
The former CFO of Perdue Farms and owner of Hardy Seafood, Terry Owens delivers a wealth of wisdom and strategies for entrepreneurs in his new book, "Business is Simple."
After scaling her single-location salon business, SALON TODAY 200 Honoree Amy Pal recently sold her six-location Whip Salon for seven figures. Using the six Ps for maximizing a business's value, she's ready to help her peers do the same.
Buried inside the One Big Beautiful Bill Act are federal solar tax credit changes that deserve your attention now. Two of the credits that matter most to commercial property owners, the Investment Tax Credit and the Production Tax Credit, are still available, but only if you move fast. A third, the Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Deduction, has a hard termination date that is closer than most people realize.
Up to 40% of hair stylists ghost the salon interview stage, leaving owners trapped playing endless phone tag with uncommitted applicants. This data-driven report breaks down why traditional job boards create recruitment friction and reveals the modern messaging strategies high-growth salons use to get pre-qualified talent to actually show up. Learn how to transition from cold calling to high-conversion conversations that protect your time and fill your chairs.
Sponsored by Beautista
Spit fests, hostile threats, and even an overachieving matchmaker--SALON TODAY readers share their craziest client tales and how their team handled these tough situations with professionalism and grace.
Keeping your appointment book full when clients are in vacation mode takes more than a good Instagram post. It takes a plan. The 2026 Summer Marketing Calendar from Meevo gives salon, spa & med spa owners a month-by-month roadmap with sharp themes, key opportunity dates, and campaign ideas specifically designed for the beauty & wellness industry. Here’s to your summer season working as hard as you do!
Sponsored by Millennium Systems International
AI is transforming the beauty and wellness industry, and the future is about empowering people, not replacing them. Discover how Phorest AI helps salons, spas, and med spas across North America respond faster, personalize every visit, and keep human connection at the heart of the client experience.
Sponsored by Phorest
Owner Michaella Blissett-Williams credits her General Manager Gloria Hortua with [salon] 718's year-over-year, double-digit growth and says she's been able to scale the company to eight locations because she can rely on Hortua to manage daily operations.
Shine Time: Aluram’s High Shine Line Delivers Moisture and Shine with Clean Ingredients
Sponsored by Aluram
Elyse Rogers is an uplifting presence at The Headroom who makes the team feel heard even in stressful situations. Owner Danielle Cherewyk sings her praises in this installment of Meet the Manager.
Despite a slight and predictable decline in client traffic for Q1, resilient pricing power is driving year-over-year revenue growth in salons. The KIM Report's Alain Audet reviews the data and what it's telling us about the state of professional beauty.
Same-store revenue grew just 2% for the second straight year—and new guest visits declined across every segment of the industry. The 2026 Benchmark Report reveals where growth is actually happening, which verticals are pulling ahead, and what the data says about where your business stands right now.
Sponsored by Zenoti
Hair restoration is entering a new era driven by regenerative science. This paper explores how Exosome technology is transforming treatment outcomes by targeting hair loss at a cellular level. Discover why EXOGROW is leading this shift.
Sponsored by Dermapenworld
A salon brand is much more than a logo. In this thought-provoking blog, Leon Alexander, Ph.D., walks you through the difference. SALON TODAY suggests sharing this article with your team and leading a discussion at your next huddle, asking the team to define your business's brand.
