Are You Ready for the Salon Holiday Madhouse?
Recently I met one of my good salon owner friends for coffee. It was 2pm, and she announced that she “just had to eat!” as she hadn’t eaten a thing all morning. “I’m living the salon Christmas madhouse life”, she said. I remember those days well, and over our lunch (with a touch of wine) we discussed how to survive the lead up to the silly season in a salon. Here are some of my thoughts from that chat to put to use in your salon over this period.
Look after yourself:
BE PREPARED – Arrive in the morning knowing you’re not going to be leaving those four walls until after 8pm. If the day really does pan out that way (and it often will!) make sure you’re prepared. Have a water bottle or two, a muesli bar, and nuts and raisins to snack on. Bring your lunch and something to eat around dinner time, and have some spare coins for when the apprentice does the “food run” for a wee pick-me-up snack. Stick to healthy options – there’s plenty of time on Holiday's to put on the pounds; don’t start early.
WALK OUT – Get out of the salon as often as you can. I know, I know – I’ve just said this isn’t possible some days, but if you get the chance to then grab it. Even if only to window shop, a quick walk refreshes the mind and stretches the body. You’ll come back feeling better and more refreshed for your clients.
LOOK AFTER YOUR FEET – Wear smart shoes or bring two pairs. In a job where you’re on your feet all day there’s a fine line between feeling pain and looking great! Change your shoes every few hours and make sure a flat pair is always handy. Have your sneakers in your bag for the trip home too.
Look after your team:
CARETAKE: Providing some healthy snacks or Holiday treats for your team, for an afternoon tea will not only lift morale but feed those who have not prepared themselves. No one wants a ‘hangry-hairdresser’.
10 TO 9 TEAM MEETING:
Gather together before clients start to arrive. Have your day sheet printed out or open on your iPad and have a quick review of the day. Talk about any possible unforeseen issues, particular clients coming in, or team sickness, or shift changes. Delegate morning jobs so you don’t run into issues later in the day – things like making foils, making sure there’s enough colour for Mrs Jones, and that everyone is going to get their much needed lunch break.
SOCIAL MEDIA: If you’ve invested time in growing your social media, don’t let it drop now that you’re flat out! Keep your activity live, it’s tempting to drop everything in all the busy seasonal flurry. When you're busy running a business or column, it can seem like too much hassle to post every day to Facebook or Instagram. But, it doesn't have to be a big deal. What you need is a plan! Here are 2 quick tips to keeping your socials active.
WINE: Lastly, watch the wine intake and get plenty of sleep – you’ll be thankful during the Holiday's when you don’t have to duck away for a nana-nap. There’s plenty of time for 5pm wine when the holidays start!
Larissa Macleman owned an award-winning hair salon with a team of 25+ employees for 20 years. Now she is the Business Development Manager at Timely, world-leading salon
software. Larissa helps salons come to grips with technology on a daily basis, a task that her previous experience has equipped her well for. Timely Software is dedicated to providing salons with the newest technology in order to increase their business productivity, promote themselves at a reasonable cost and ensure each day runs smoothly.
