The past couple of years have presented challenges and roadblocks that salon owners could never have imagined. From shutting down business for weeks (or months)  to implementing new safety protocols, owners changed schedules, invested in cleaning equipment, ran new marketing campaigns and more—just to stay afloat.

But for some owners, staying afloat wasn’t enough. They were driven to grow and thrive despite government restrictions and consumers’ fear.

Open for Business

Laura Dulay, owner of three Salon Dulay locations in Orlando, didn’t let a pandemic stop her from opening two new locations in 2020. For about three years before the pandemic hit, she had been planning a new location in Orlando’s vibrant Mills 50 District.

“During the pandemic, the landlords of the new building weren’t willing to work with me, so I had to open it in July 2020,” Dulay says. “It was tough because nobody knew us yet and we hadn’t built our reputation, so people were hesitant to come try us.”

 

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Dulay opened the Mills Park location for business, splitting her stylists’ time between the new location and her original salon in Windermere. It took about six months, but Mills Park is finally breaking even.

One week after opening Mills Park, Dulay was approached by the owners of another nearby salon where she had been a client before she became a stylist herself.

“The owners originally approached me to buy it six years ago, but I was in the middle of a divorce and unable to take on any more assets or debt,” she says. “So when they approached me again, I just couldn’t pass it up.”

Dulay took the salon over in October 2020 with no changes. “Then we shut down for two weeks after Christmas to do a full renovation. We kept the team that was there in place, made the changes needed to the space, and changed the name.”

Meanwhile, it was business as usual at Windermere, where Dulay focused on offering her clients the high-end service they knew and loved. In 2020, her service sales were $1.7 million. In 2021, she saw $2.2 million in service sales.  This 30 percent increase was mirrored by her retail sales as well, which went from $260k in 2020 to $340k in 2021. 

Refocusing on Retail

Detlev Gessner, owner of Detlev Aveda Lifestyle Salon in Coconut Grove, Florida, also realized big retail growth from 2020 to 2021 37 percent.

“We used the two months we were shut down to revamp our entire retail area,” he says. “And when we came back, I hired a retail advisor to build our retail store.”

Detlev’s retail area is in the front of the salon, separated from the stylist area in the back. The new retail advisor guides walk-in clients and in-salon guests to the products they need and introduces them to lines they’ve never tried. Walk-in clients now spend about $70 in products per visit, and salon guests are enjoying expert recommendations in all areas.

“Typically, stylists recommend hair products,” Gessner says. “But Aveda also has body care, skin care and makeup. Our retail advisor gives out samples and helps guests learn more about all these domains.”

The retail advisor also trains the guest service team and apprentices on retail, assigning PurePro videos to watch each week.

“She makes sure the retail area is performing to its maximum potential,” Gessner says.

Small Changes, Big Impact

During the six weeks she was shut down, Dulay focused on creating a safe environment while also delivering the same luxury service her clients were accustomed to.

“Instead of getting rid of beverages and snacks, we switched over to bottled drinks and individually wrapped snacks,” she says. “And we kept our rituals as well—we just performed the hand massages with gloves.”

Dulay knew normalcy was also important to her team, and has continued to offer as much in-person education as possible, including weekly classes.

“I’ve had to be persistent to get educators to come to the salon,” she says. “But it’s important to keep the team inspired.”

And when she received her PPP money, she invested it in her team.

“I knew they were stressed out, and paid them all big bonuses and made updates to the salon, including renovating the break room,” she says. “I wanted to give them a better working experience.”

Rebekah Norrell, owner of two Salon Norrell locations in the Tampa area, also attributes her business’s growth to the guest experience.

“We had an 18 percent increase in services in 2021 over 2020 in our Hyde Park location and a 38 percent increase in service sales in our Carrollwood Village location,” she says. 

When she reopened after the shutdown, Norrell quickly realized her guests wanted normalcy and connection.

“We extended our service time by 15 minutes,” she says. “It allowed extra time for cleaning, but also for connecting with the guest.”

 

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Norrell also implemented a significant price increase of around 15 percent, depending on the level of stylist.

“I also continued price increases when stylists were promoted,” she says “And then we had so many people move to Florida from the north who would call and say ‘your prices are so reasonable,’ that we ended up raising prices even more.”At one location, Norrell raised haircut prices by $15 because she had so much demand from new clients willing to pay.

She had a similar experience with retail. “We thought people wouldn’t spend on products,” she says. “But working from home, they aren’t eating lunch out every day or paying for gas, so they had more money.”

Norrell saw retail sales increase by 12 percent in Hyde park in 2021 over 2020 and by 36 percent in her Carrollwood Village location. 

Permanent Changes

Both Dulay and Norrell say that continually gathering feedback from guests and team members has kept their businesses thriving.

“I also pay attention to what’s going on in our community,” Dulay says “Disney is the biggest employer in our area, so when I saw they lifted the mask mandate, I knew it was time,” she says. “About 20 percent of our guests are Disney cast members.”

While mask mandates and social distancing restrictions have changed, Dulay says some of the changes in her salons are here to stay.

“I may never switch back from individual snacks and water,” she says. “It’s much cleaner—the same with wearing gloves during hand massages.”

Dulay’s team also continues to mask up during the guest’s shampoo, while they are in close contact.

“Some changes are permanent improvements to the salon,” Dulay says.

Norrell is keeping the extra 15 minutes she added to every service. “Our guests like to be in the chair, and don’t want to be rushed out.”

Gessner also made some changes. He has ramped up his customer service more than ever, with a constant focus on making his guests comfortable and enhancing the salon experience.

He has also found ways to make his stylists happier. After the shutdown, the salon went from being open five days per week to seven. Now, it’s open six days per week, with a schedule Gessner’s team loves.

“They work four days per week and get a four-day weekend every three weeks,” he says.

Lessons Learned

All three owners learned valuable lessons from the pandemic that they’re using to make better decisions for future growth.

“I realize now I have to have more cash on hand,” Dulay says. “I was not financially prepared to pay my staff when we shut down. I always expected money to come in.”

Now, Dulay keeps a big cushion in her bank account to be better prepared for emergencies.

“I’m still spending money on marketing and education, but have taken a bit of a salary cut to keep more money in the business,” she says.  Norrell says she’ll continue to lead decision-making through guest feedback.

“They want the high-end luxury service and normalcy—but also to feel comfortable being here,” she says. “We’ve made COVID protocols clear on our site and via all our communication, but don’t talk about it in the salon. We went mask optional when the big box stores around us did it, but also allow the guests to request a stylist to wear a mask.”

Gessner has found a great salon culture is more important than ever.

“When we came back from the shutdown, I saw how invested my team is in the business, so why not have them in charge of hiring? Now I let them meet the candidates and do a pre-interview before giving me the green light to interview the candidate.”

As a result, everyone Gessner hires is a good fit. Business is thriving–he continues to grow in 2022 and is already making plans for 2023.