Salon Owners: 3 Questions You Need To Answer

Salon owners, listen up—here’s the scoop on how Jon Reyman, fresh off NYFW and the MINDBODY Bold Conference, has built seven successful salons in places like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago. He won’t preach about how you should run your business, but he will share the three questions he asked himself—and how he answered them.

Who’s Your Customer?

• For salon owners, your staff should be your customer. “Without my staff, I have no product,” says Jon. “The people who are walking through the door are my staff’s customers—not mine.”
• Check in with your employees. Every month Jon asks his staff:
  • Why do you come here every day?
  • Are you happier than you were last month?
  • Are you better than you were last month?
  • Are you making more money than you were last month?
• Work with your staff after they answer these questions. Set goals and small ways for them to continue to grow.

What’s Your Communication Policy?

• Jon sets up a clear communication plan at each of his salons in order to hold his team accountable. “I make communication part of a stylist’s job, and if they can’t communicate properly, then they can’t work with me. I don’t want to be working with people who can’t communicate,” he says.
• If there is an issue at the salon, Jon tells his employees to communicate directly with the person they have the issue with.
• But, before confronting someone, employees need to ask themselves if what they are about to say is true, kind, necessary and if it’s the right time. If it is, go for it. If not, wait.

What’s Your Salon Culture? 

• In today’s world, your brand is everything. Jon suggests asking yourself what your mission is and then going from there.
• “For me, as a salon owner, I’m in the business of four things: cutting, coloring, styling and creating culture—a clear and excellent culture for my staff,” says Jon. So, his mission is to always create great hair for guests and to always provide an environment that stylists love working in.
• How does he do this? For his stylists, he treats them like customers and has a communication policy (see above!). For his salons, he says, “You have to be adaptable and create an experience that is better and different from anywhere else.”
• The point of difference at his salons is providing excellent quality very quickly.  “We work fast. We cut hair dry, we color really quickly, we do a good job and for that, we can charge a premium price.”