What’s trending for Fall 2020? Clean beauty tops the must-have list, ahead of season-shifting shades, cuts and new looks. Experts agree, consumers are seeking higher standards of safety and wellness in every experience, especially those with a personal touch.

What does this mean to salons and spas that have already struggled through at least one COVID-19 reopening phase? Stay proactive! It’s smart business to refresh and refine what is now the beauty essential, sanitation.

To survive and grow through the next season of this pandemic, salon and spa leaders and will want to:

1. Take a pulse: Is your disinfection program up-to-date, fast and effective?

2. Keep evolving: ˙How have your sanitation protocols changed or improved since reopening?

3. Amplify: Are you doing enough to communicate “clean and safe” strategies and practices to guests and team members.

The good news? A free online tool from Virox Technologies and its Rejuvenate Disinfectants line of hospital grade, EPA-approved disinfectants for salons and spas now makes it easy for professional beauty businesses of every size and scope to:

• Upgrade, customize and build your own disinfection protocols.

• Save time and invest wisely in disinfecting products and practices tailored to your specific services, staffing, salon size and layout.

• Reassure guests they can feel secure throughout the salon or spa.

• Set your business apart from the competition.

“It’s all about providing comfort and confidence for your clients,” says Nicole Kenny, vice president of professional and technical services for Virox Technologies, including Rejuvenate. “The professional beauty industry has been hit so hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and with the threat of a resurgence and the onset of flu season, salons and spas want to use every means possible to create safe, germ-free environments.”

But knowing how, where and when to disinfect high-touch surfaces, equipment and devices is not as intuitive as wearing a mask, hand sanitizing or maintaining social distancing, Kenny explains. That’s where the Protocol Builder comes in. It simplifies disinfection for salons by pinpointing at-risk areas and providing step-by-step instructions to eliminate viruses and bacteria.

Build Your Own Disinfection Protocol in 4 Easy Steps

The process is simple, practical and efficient. After creating a free account on the interactive Protocol Builder tool, salon and spa decision makers click through a quick but thorough audit of their workstations, treatment/service areas, points of client interaction (reception, changing rooms) and other spaces (washrooms, break rooms). Then, the tool goes through four steps to develop the ideal protocols to meet any salon or spa service need, prompting users to select:

1. Services and treatments the salon or spa provides

2. Surfaces and equipment required for each service or treatment

3. Frequency of disinfection for each surface

4. Preferred product type to use on each surface

Within minutes, the user-friendly program outputs a custom disinfectant protocol in an attractive, clear design that salons or spas can:

• print (with the salon’s or spa’s own logo, if desired),

• post for team members to follow,

• display throughout the salon to educate and reassure guests.

See how the Protocol Builder works and sample it, at no cost or commitment, at LearnAboutRejuvenate.com

“For the first time, customized protocols created by individual salons or spas take the guesswork out of disinfection,” Kenny concludes. “The Protocol Builder and the new LearnAboutRejuvenate.com site are just what the professional beauty industry needed to make pandemic cleanliness less stressful.”

Other powerful benefits, according to Kenny:

1. Consistency: Stopping the spread of pathogens is a team effort. However, there are widely different practices and levels of awareness with regard to proper product selection, application and use of disinfectant products. “Our tool provides a single standard of germicidal activity and disinfection, ensuring the job is done correctly every time.”

1. Focus: Not all areas within a salon or spa pose the same risk level of exposure to pathogens. While it’s good to take additional precautions during any kind of on outbreak, high-touch points should be especially noted. “By isolating each station, each treatment area and each potential opportunity for cross contamination and infection, our tool targets hotspots so extra measures can be taken to keep everyone safe.”

1. Higher Standard: Recent studies show consumers are wowed (and come back) when businesses go beyond safety expectations. The protocols resulting from the tool exceed state and cosmetology guidelines. “We only recommend the use of hospital-grade disinfectants with EPA approved efficacy against coronavirus, and fast, achievable contact times of one minute against viruses and bacteria.”

1. Positive Exposure: Protocols can be printed and posted near each workstation or service/treatment area. “Not only will this remind staff of cleaning and disinfecting responsibilities between each appointment, but clients get a visual reminder that proper disinfection practices are in place and being regularly practiced.”

1. Confidence: In times of uncertainty, beauty professionals as well as their clients need reassurances to know salons and spas are doing everything possible to be safe. “Our protocol builder helps overcome an unseen enemy that thrives very much in the open.”

Building Industry Buzz

More than 1,000 salons and spas signed up to try the Protocol Builder before it even launched. Karen Short, CEO of Universal Companies, the exclusive supplier of Rejuvenate to more than 30,000 U.S. salons and spas, sees this eagerness to preview the Protocol Builder as a strong indicator of need.  “We are excited to offer this invaluable tool to our customers and to help them communicate the importance of infection prevention to staff and clients,” she says.

Power in the Products

While no purchase is required to try it, the Protocol Builder does make Rejuvenate product recommendations customized to specified services, surfaces and preferences, all aligned with product efficacy, delivery and contact time requirements. It also calculates the volume and type of Rejuvenate products needed to execute each protocol, along with time and resources required, which can help simplify inventory management and streamline productivity.

Know the Options

Rejuvenate products are recommended for salons and spas, and all meet the EPA’s (List N) criteria for use against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that caused COVID-19. For salon and spa surfaces, the company offers:

• Rejuvenate Wipes: Disinfect in little as one minute. Ideal for stations, treatment areas and other client touchpoints.

• Rejuvenate RTU Spray: Ideal for disinfecting larger surfaces. Spray, leave wet for one minute, done!

• Rejuvenate Concentrate: Economical! Diluted solution is effective in a spray bottle for up to 90 days. Five-minute contact time required.

Overall, Rejuvenate’s EPA-registered, hospital grade disinfectants for salons and spas are designed to be more powerful than traditional solutions, but gentle on surfaces and equipment. Formulated with patented Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide, the solutions are biodegradable and non-irritating–– helping salons promote safer, greener practices while also extending the life of tools and equipment.

If You Build It…

The Protocol Builder is ready to work for salons and spas, so get started! Take (or delegate) five minutes to go to learnaboutrejuvenate.com, create a free account and test the system. Next, print, post and follow a new protocol you create. Ultimately, Kenny says, whatever you do next about sanitation and safety heading into fall and winter, show--and tell--your community.

“Make sure what you’re doing is part of the ongoing conversation with clients and among staff,” she advises. Include an update when the client books an appointment or during the consultation to draw attention to any changes to your protocols. Note that you are posting them in the salon and on social media.

The more everyone understands the steps you are taking to keep them safe, the stronger relationship you will have. More education means less anxiety. Enhancing your protocols, delivering consistency and exceeding standards is all part of your commitment to providing a higher degree of care.”

That’s what’s helping guests who come into the salon feel more comfortable and what those who haven’t come back yet are still looking for, Kenny says. “Build it, make the effort to communicate, and you will see the result.”

For more information on Rejuvenate products, education, and videos customized for salons and spas, please visit rejuvenatedisinfectants.com​

Virox Technologies has been formulating revolutionary disinfectants for the war against pathogens for more than 20 years. As the creators of the Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide (AHP) technology behind Rejuvenate, Virox is committed to providing safer, more sustainable solutions to support a wide range of industries in building robust infection prevention programs. In addition to developing innovative products, Virox provides education and technical support to help salons and spas optimize their infection prevention protocols. Using Rejuvenate with the right training and protocols can help you open with confidence each day.