Editor's Note: How can the process of entering a business competition shape the future of your business? For Fallon Helm, owner of Revive Day Spa in Aberdeen, South Dakota, entering the SALON TODAY 200 has becoming an engaging activity that encourages her management team to help shape the salon's overall strategy, while rewarding them for their leadership at the same time. It's become a point of pride that is celebrated internally with the entire team and shared and marketed to the salon's greater community. When Helm contacted SALON TODAY earlier this year, asking if they salon could enter more than one best practice category for 2025, we had to tell her no because it went against the rules of this year's competition. But in understanding why she was asking, we invited her to pen the following blog on how she uses the competition and the essay-writing process as a leadership-building activity for her team. 

A Journey of Growth and Excellence: Our SALON TODAY 200 Experience

At Revive Day Spa, we constantly strive to innovate, grow and inspire—not only for our salon and apprenticeship program but also through our apprenticeship consulting initiative, B.A.B.E. (Beauty And Business Education), to support the broader industry. After celebrating our induction as an Honoree in the Category of Culture in 2023 and Growth in 2024, participating in the SALON TODAY 200 Celebratory Dinner held during Data-Driven Salon Summit has become a new tradition for our team. 

This tradition supports our culture and helps us reflect on our achievements and aspirations. It also provides an invaluable opportunity to connect with peers, celebrate industry excellence, and showcase the hard work and creativity of our team. We’re excited to share the story of how this experience has shaped our business, our team, and our vision for the future.

The Power of Collaboration: Leadership and Essays

One of the most rewarding aspects of participating in the SALON TODAY 200 competition has been involving our team in the essay-writing process. Our Leaders are invited to write an essay on one of the designated Best Practice categories they feel most strongly represents Revive. Our Leadership team is composed of all the instructors of our apprenticeship program, and those key in the salon's management, and developers on our consulting team. Each volunteer writer brings a unique perspective, ensuring that we have strong submissions that truly reflect the breadth and depth of our operations. Because it is volunteer based, we see our most passionate teammates proudly showcasing our accomplishments. Essay writing is exciting and fosters a deeper connection among teammates who engage with the process. It allows us to articulate our shared values and celebrate the contributions of every individual who makes Revive Day Spa extraordinary. We have already begun rendering results of strengthened team loyalty and procession planning.

Thoughtful Category Selection: A Team-Driven Process

This year our team selected the topics Philanthropy, Employee Education, Business Builders and Customer Service. The opportunity to pick the category that best aligns with their strengths and passions ensures that our submissions are authentic and rooted in the real experiences and the expertise of our team members. The apprenticeship program is a beautiful inspiration that shined through in every entry, especially Philanthropy and Employee Education. 

Philanthropy was written by Tara Mortland, Revive's first Instructor, and featured how our apprenticeship program enhances our community. I wrote on how the apprenticeship sky-rockets our potential through the Employee Education category. Whereas the writer of the Business Builders category, Trinity Martin, features the positive impact of Revive's consulting company B.A.B.E on the development of our salon’s operations, as she has direct involvement with the consulting process. Tonia McGeorge, our massage instructor who is passionately committed to creating experiences, chose Customer Service, which is universally respected as the most foundational piece of our business. Each category chosen reflects an area where we’ve excelled, but also where we’re eager to grow. It also fosters a sense of dedication to continued development with the writer through the year and beyond as they intentionally protect and promote those strengths

Impact on Team Dynamics: Sharing and Learning Together

Sharing our essays with the others who have written essays has been a transformative experience. Co-workers become confidants. The comradery builds internal support systems and strengthens the buy-in to the grander vision for our team and business. It’s a moment of collective pride, as we all see the incredible impact of our work laid out so beautifully. All essays are submitted to me to review and select the essay to formally submit, however those whose essays are not selected are usually utilized in other marketing or internal development contexts. Every essay sparks meaningful conversations about what we do well, what we can improve, and where we want to focus our efforts moving forward. This process is a testament to our commitment to teamwork and continuous improvement. It's encouraging to see how this grows our team from both sides of the spectrum. 

We see our more senior teammates loving the opportunity to take on new roles, and they are further moved to explore their "next steps" at Revive.
Interest like joining "B.A.B.E" as a consultant or to further their education, pioneering new positions, shareholding, or heading up new departments. We also see our newest providers, and even potential apprenticeship applicants, more excited to commit to their careers and education at Revive because of the endless career growth opportunities. Apprentices who are brand new to the industry feel pride and hope through achievement of contributing to a SALON TODAY 200 team! 

We have found that the SALON TODAY 200 competition has given space for our team to engage with aspects of our company's core values that felt abstract in the past.

Data-Driven Insights: From Reflection to Strategy

The SALON TODAY 200 competition ties seamlessly into our salon's data-driven approach to business. The essays prompt us to reflect deeply on the past year, analyzing key metrics, like apprentice graduation rates and retention, retail to service ratio, membership base growth, rebooking, effectiveness of promotions, and guest 5-star ratings. 

This reflection doesn’t just help us create strong submissions; it also informs our strategic planning for the coming year. We begin our next year's strategic planning and calendar building by October, also when our team's essays are due for review. The deadlines are mutually beneficial and keep us in a future-focused mindset while helping us re-energize for the busiest season of the year. By identifying trends, strengths, and opportunities, we position ourselves to innovate and thrive.

Deciding to Compete: A Culture of Excellence
The decision to enter the SALON TODAY 200 competition is not one we take lightly. It’s rooted in our desire to showcase the exceptional work of our team and to benchmark ourselves against the best in the industry. This competition has become a new norm for us, a tradition that motivates and inspires our entire organization.

Experiencing the event firsthand is equally transformative. Each year, we invite every teammate who wrote an essay to attend the Data-Driven Salon Summit and the SALON TODAY 200 Celebratory Dinner. This ensures that the experience is both a reward for hard work and an opportunity for professional growth. Whether it's networking with industry leaders, or attending workshops, our attendees return energized and equipped with new ideas to share with the entire team. 

We connect with dozens of other salons, and supporting businesses, in person and on social media. Providing our team with unmatched opportunities to develop a strong network. We met with long-time friends at Inspiring Champions, EasiHair Pro, Meevo & more. We also made new and hugely beneficial connections with Vish, Zenoti, and many others like Beyond the Technique. We were actually honored to be featured on the Beyond The Technique podcast to celebrate our team with Kati Whitledge!

A Transformative Experience: Leadership Growth and Operational Impact

Externally, our marketing content is highly impacted by this award and event. We’re proud to publicly feature our placement on the SALON TODAY 200 as a badge of honor, celebrating it with our community and team to reinforce Revive’s identity as a luxury brand. By sharing our recognition through social media, events, and in our apprenticeship marketing, we aim to increase public attention and support for the excellence we strive to deliver every day. This equally validates the effectiveness of our systems, resulting in a heightened opportunity to impact other salons through consulting with B.A.B.E. 

The internal competition for submissions has added a layer of excitement, encouraging creativity and innovation among our teammates. We are sure to share all the excitement of the event with our audience on social media as well by showcasing the experience in real time. From the internal perspective, participating in this process has been profoundly impactful. It has strengthened our operations by fostering a culture of reflection, strategic planning, and legacy planning. It has also reinforced the importance of education, collaboration, and storytelling as tools for growth. 

We are passionate about the business of the beauty industry and this process helps our team shift into a new mindset when daily operations threaten to drag down energy. These experiences are shaping the future of Revive Day Spa, inspiring us to aim higher and dream bigger.

Looking Ahead: Honoring Our Journey

As we approach our third year of participation, we are proud of the recognition we’ve received and excited about what’s to come. The Salon Today experience is more than a competition; it’s a celebration of our team, our apprentice programs development, and our commitment to excellence.

We are honored to share our journey and to continue building a legacy of innovation and impact in the beauty industry. And, we thank SALON TODAY for being part of our journey. We can’t wait to see where it takes us next!

The Data-Driven Salon Summit is a hands-on educational experience that brings together the owners and managers of salons, spas and barbershops to understand how data can lead to better business decisions to fuel growth and success. It is also home to the SALON TODAY 200 Celebratory Dinner. In 2025, Data-Driven Salon Summit will be in Scottsdale, Arizona, April 27-28. For more information, visit datadrivensalon.com.