Think about your best client: the one who prebooks her services, has been loyal for years and always buys retail.

Is she purchasing that shampoo just because you use it on her, or because you’re passionate about the product? Stylists who talk about the products they are using throughout the service instill that same passion into their clients.

And a client who can’t live without her favorite products is never going to leave the salon empty-handed.

We talked to passionate stylists and owners at Pyure Salon and Whole Salon Spa about how their love of Aveda products and consistency in messaging has yielded powerful retail results. 

Work Smarter, Not Harder

Ruthie Morales has been a stylist at Pyure Salon’s Wellington location for 15 years. In 2021, she hit $31,705 in retail—and only worked three days per week.

“Discovering the needs of the guest and educating them on the products they should use is part of the experience we give,” Morales says. “I specialize in color and tell them what they need to maintain their hair.” 

“I do a lot of blondes, so my favorite recommendation is Botanical Repair™ for its immediate strengthening results,” she says. “And because we live in Florida, all guests need SPF to help with color fading, so I recommend the Nutriplenish™ leave-in conditioner.”

Luca Boccia, Pyure Salon owner, says, “Ruthie is consistent. If someone says no, it won’t affect how she treats the next guest. Every guest will get the same experience whether Ruthie was just shot down or not.” 

Boccia says Morales also makes the most of her downtime, which has contributed to her full book and retail sales.

“If she has idle time, she’s up front helping people with retail,” he says. “Other stylists may use that time to go to lunch or hang out in the backroom, but Ruthie is helping people, greeting them, and eventually turning them into color guests.”

Like Morales, Kris James, master stylist at Whole Salon Spa’s Oldsmar location, has decades of experience and knows what works.

James hit $35k in retail sales in 2021 with an average of $29.24 RPCT (her benchmark was $18).

“I really listen to what my guests say,” she says. “I advise others to hone their listening skills. People like to be heard and get suggestions based on your professional opinion.” 

James also takes notes after each client and checks them when the client comes back. “If someone bought a liter six weeks ago, they won’t need another shampoo,” she says. “So then I recommend body care or some other new product—Aveda is constantly coming out with new stuff, so there’s always something fun and fresh to talk about.”

James says many of her guests are Aveda fans, and even if they don’t purchase something at an appointment, they still love hearing about it.

“And the next time they come in, they might remember talking about it and buy it then.” 

It’s Not Personal, It’s Professional

Boccia says a lot of Morales’ success is due to her professional attitude towards every guest.

“She doesn’t get into anyone’s pocketbooks emotionally,” he says. “Her business is to give her expertise and educate them on what the products do. Her emotion is around the product—not around whether you buy it or not.”

If Boccia could bottle up that attitude, he would.

“If you feel like you’re going to get rejected, you aren’t going to sell to anyone,” he says. “But Ruthie could get rejected at her 9 am, 10 am and 11 am and her 12 pm client is still going to get the same professional recommendations.”

Tim Belcher, owner of Whole Aveda, drills the message of professionalism into his team as well.

“Our conversations revolve around client retention,” he says. “We want loyal guests because they are coming back, buying retail, and tipping regularly. We need retention because the cost of acquiring new guests is huge.”

To keep guests loyal, Belcher says they need to love their stylist and be able to replicate their style at home, love the salon and love the brand.

Motivation Strategies

At Pyure, Boccia instills the importance of the guest experience in his team from the get-go.

“They need to know what that experience looks like,” he says. “People come here to learn more about their hair care and skincare—and we coach our stylists to do that.”

Morales adds,

At any time, Morales can see how she’s doing on her stylist app or see her best weeks posted in the back room.

“We set these mile markers for them all the time,” Boccia says.

In January 2021, he created a new incentive for his team—a 20 percent retail commission.

“We did it as a result of the pandemic as a way to get more money into the pockets of our staff,” he says. “Those who hit $1,000 gross sales in retail in a two-week pay period get 20 percent commission. Those who don’t hit it get zero.”

And it’s working. Stylists like Morales are seeing a nice boost in their paychecks and stylists who were previously only selling around $300 per pay period are now hitting double that as they try to get to $1,000.

“My highest retail bonus was $400, and I usually get an extra $200-$400 per paycheck now,” Morales says. “And that’s just working six days in a two-week pay period.”

Boccia says about half his stylists are hitting the 20 percent goal, which works out to an 8 percent payout across the board. His retail commission before was 5 percent unless a stylist hit $16 RPCT—then it was 10 percent.

“This new goal wasn’t just about selling more retail—it was about getting more cash into the hands of staff. If they’re making more money, they’re not going anywhere else—people don’t leave a good paycheck.” 

At Whole Aveda, Belcher offers a 10 percent commission on retail but says that isn’t what drives his team.

“I work on helping them achieve their hopes and dreams,” he says. “I can’t make them sell shampoo, but I can find out what they’re working towards, whether it’s a new house or car or a vacation,” he says.

“Once we have a goal, we can start working towards building a book of loyal guests.” 

Last year, Belcher had seven stylists who were very close to reaching $30k in retail—and 2021 wasn’t a great year overall.

It all comes full circle to the loyal guest who needs to love their stylist, love the salon and love the brand.

“You can be a phenomenal hairdresser, but you can’t achieve a hair style with just water—you need some stuff,” Belcher says. “Believe in those products and tell your clients about them.”