Wasting Money In The Salon?! 💰 5 Problem Areas & Easy Solutions
5 Areas In The Salon Where Money Is Wasted & How To Fix Them
Real talk. Everyone feels overworked and underpaid sometimes—but one of our fave things about the pro beauty industry is this: You have the power to charge what you’re worth! But are you the one to blame for losing money? Sometimes we’re in a rush (those long days of back-to-back clients) and that may be causing you to overlook these five common problem areas where money is wasted in the salon. Keep reading to find out!
1. Not Charging Properly
We reached out to the BTC Team and here’s what we saw: Not charging properly was the most common culprit for wasting money. Know your worth, own your worth and be confident. “I think a lot of us [stylists] are people pleasers,” shares Kristina Cheeseman (@kristinacheeseman). “But thousands of dollars are not in our pockets because of being scared to charge correctly.”
Try This: Make every consultation count by clearly walking through your pricing structure, so there’s nothing to worry about when your client gets their final bill. What about more complicated processes like corrective color? If you get overwhelmed with the numbers, Gina Bianca (@iamginabianca) recommends charging hourly.
“It will help you so much and ensure you’re not giving away hours of service and ounces of product,” shares Gina. “Hourly is always the way to go and typically it ends up being close to the same price as your a la carte services if your pricing is dialed in.“
2. Free Redos
Reality: Free redos aren’t free. “Redos are usually a great learning experience for a stylist and opportunity to regain a client’s trust,” shares Farhana. “Aside from that, it’s a loss for the salon—someone has to take the hit for the time lost and the products, color and materials used.”
Try This: Have better consultations, communication and clearer salon policies.
3. Overmixing Color Formulas
We’ve all been there—you reach for a tube of color or some lightener and mix away without measuring it out first. But overmixing is causing you AND your salon extra dollars. “Sometimes stylists get lazy and don’t want to mix a little as they go,” shares Jessica Scott Santo (@jessicascotthair). “My boss said at one point during a staff meeting that she was going to charge us more for color if we don’t use only what we need.” The solution? Say it with me—accountability!
Try This: Instead of the grab-and-go method, weigh color in smaller amounts. For example, Elissa Wolfe (@elissawolfe) recommends working in quadrants. Or invest in a color management software that does the work for you, like Vish, a color management system that automatically records and organizes formulas as you work. Then, it refines formulas based on previous waste and recalculates them to the exact consistency your client needs!
4. Not Charging For Extra Product
While overmixing is a problem, so is not charging extra when you do extra work. For example: Your client has thicker hair, so you end up mixing extra color but you charge for less than what was required.
Try This: Instead, always quote higher to avoid using more color and not charging for it, suggests Elissa. “At my salon, 2 oz. of color and 2 oz. of developer is included with a toning service,” adds Farhana Premji (@xo.farhana.balayage). “If the client requires more due to length and density, we’ll certainly mix up what’s needed but charge accordingly.”
5. Salon Owners, This One’s For You!
Yes, your stylists might be charging for extra product but are they being compensated for the extra charge? When stylists are expected to charge more for extra bowls of color but it has zero impact on their monthly numbers, there’s nothing in it for them.
Try This: Farhana recommends adding a buffer to the extra charge so stylists get a commission for every extra bowl used. This will motivate them to charge properly.
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Tired of redo requests?! TAP HERE to read through multiple solutions!
