MENU
SEARCHSince its inception seven years ago, Avalon Salon in Deer Park, Illinois, established a tradition of celebrating its business birthday each year by hosting clients for complimentary services, raffles, food, drinks and music.
Since its inception seven years ago, Avalon Salon in Deer Park, Illinois, established a tradition of celebrating its business birthday each year by hosting clients for complimentary services, raffles, food, drinks and music. The event not only allows the salon to thank its loyal clients, it lures in new potential guests. While brainstorming ideas for this year’s event, the salon team determined that creating a more casual event would be more appealing.
Playing with the idea of the salon’s 7th anniversary led to notion of a 7th inning stretch, which inspired this year’s baseball theme. “One of our guest relations team leaders changed up our logo and designed a baseball team jersey with a big bold ‘7’ on the back,” says Bonnie Conte, who co-owns the salon with spouse August Conte and Shyla and Richard Kurnick.
“We placed batting cages in our parking lot where our guests could ‘Go to Bat’ for a charity. For a nominal $5 charge, clients made donations to one of the top three charities we sponsor throughout the year. We gave them a spongy baseball with our logo, website and telephone number after to thank them for their support,” says Conte.
The salon also invited Lifesource, Chicagoland’s Blood Center, to host a blood drive during the event. One of the center’s mobile units parked in the salon’s parking lot collected 45 pints of blood throughout the day.
Inside the salon, guests were given a playbook, which guided them through complimentary consultations on make-up, hair and skin care. As guests crossed each base, a team member autographed their playbook. At home plate, guests could detach an entry form from the playbook and enter a raffle for a day in the spa.
Outside, attendees were treated to complimentary chair massages and encouraged to linger and listen to a great local band and enjoy ballpark treats, such as Cracker Jacks, peanuts, Chicago-style hotdogs, cola and cold beer.
“Our anniversary party has become an event that receives a good deal of community support. Each year our mall and our local Chamber of Commerce help promote the event on their websites, and several of the Chamber’s members bring their friends to celebrate with us,” says Conte. “Our ‘7th Inning Stretch’ was a grand slam in that it generated pride to our staff and existing clients, made a positive impact with our mission to give back, and promoted us as a leading salon and day spa in our community.”
The strongest salons, spas, and med spas know which numbers tell the real story of their business. In this practical guide, Phorest breaks down the five essential KPIs every business should track to improve retention, boost revenue, and make smarter decisions with confidence.
Sponsored by Phorest
At Bella Style Salon in Slidell, Louisiana, Director of Operations Angela Meyer tackles inventory, team management, and guest relations. Read all about her in our latest Meet the Manager.
Starting at Impressions front desk in 2006 when he was 19 years old, General Manager Paul Petrowsky is a seasoned professional who owner Sarah Taylor says is responsible for much of her own success.
Planning is in full swing for the most anticipated events and promotions for the 2026 holidays. As owners share their favorite ways to celebrate, they prove that a carefully planned event can also build culture, increase client loyalty, boost sales, and set a business up for a successful 2027.
When things run amok at Mane Attraction Salon, Owners Chris and Jenny Knudsen say General Manager Sami Hernandez is their go-to resource and ultimate sounding board. Meet Sami in this installment of Meet the Manager.
Pagoda, a new AI-native operating system for scheduling, payments, patient records, marketing, and client communications, launches at Skinovatio Medical Spa in Arlington Heights, Illinois.
At a panel discussion hosted by L’Oréal Professionnel in Paris in early July, French Philosopher Sophie Galabru explored the cultural shift where women are increasingly choosing natural, personalized color results over traditional grey coverage. In an exclusive interview with SALON TODAY, Galabru and L’Oréal Professionnel Colorist Pierrick Beringer discuss this shift and how salons and colorists respond.
At Salon Blonde, Director of Operations treats the staff as the salon's most important guests, while her wonderful 'nerdy' side, loves data, systems, and numbers. Find out how she makes Salon Blonde tick.
In an exclusive interview with SALON TODAY, Salon Owner Salvatore Minardi reflects on his past 18 months as Intercoiffure America Canada's World Talent Exchange Ambassador and how his experiences will help encourage cultural and artistic exchange and support greater engagement between ICA and the global organization Intercoiffure Mondial.
Everything you need to know about client retention as a salon owner.
Owner Shelby Bills says her general manager, Sydney Osborne, reminds her of the power of leading with heart. Find out how Osborne became a great leader in our lastest installment of Meet the Manager.
In her latest blog, Kati Whitledge identifies the five stages salon owners go through when a team member leaves the salon unethically, offering advice for each stage.
The beauty and wellness businesses pulling ahead aren’t just working harder—they’re using AI to capture demand, personalize pricing, and convert more of every guest interaction into revenue. Here’s what the benchmark data reveals about the growing gap between AI adopters and everyone else.
Sponsored by Zenoti
Stop chasing recruitment ghosts on generic job boards and start curating an elite team. Discover the framework that top-tier salons use to bypass phone tag, automate visual portfolio vetting, and attract high-earning, culture-first beauty professionals directly through real-time messaging. Turn your recruitment process into an exclusive brand invitation that keeps your highest-ticket chairs permanently filled.
Sponsored by Beautista
Your calendar looks full, but is all of that demand actually converting to revenue? From phantom rebookings to underpriced peak hours, the 2026 Benchmark Report exposes five revenue leaks that most beauty and wellness businesses don’t even know they have.
Sponsored by Zenoti
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.
In a world dominated by e-commerce, salon owners push back with proven strategies to increase retail sales while motivating team members to educate their clientele and delighting clients with retail-themed events and clever merchandising displays.
