Identifying Growth Opportunities
If the team at the SJ Forbes salon in Windsor had introduced client colour charges as soon as they installed Vish three years ago, it would have boosted gross revenue by £1,000 a month. But with waste costs coming in at a similar price point, that wouldn’t have translated into additional profit, it would have simply covered expenses. Owner Hayley Gibson-Forbes wasn’t surprised.
”“I wasn’t certain exactly how much colour we wasted each month, but I had an idea. The challenge is getting the team to appreciate the benefits to them, the guests, and the planet when the amount is vague. Seeing the data and making it easy to measure colour totally changes that,” says Hayley, who heard about Vish through her Goldwell Business Development manager.
She reached out to Vish immediately. An introductory meeting on Zoom – it was the middle of the pandemic – was followed by meetings between the teams at each salon and the salon’s Vish partner, Jordan Kent, Manager of Customer Onboarding EMEA. His role is to work closely with new clients to embed Vish within the salon culture and ensure the team is set up for success.
Transparency from Day One
At the time, the number one priority for Hayley and her husband and business partner, Sean J McElhill, was to rein in costs. Being able to show the team how much colour was being rinsed down the sink was the beginning; the next step was to show them how much it would cost the client once those additional colour charges were introduced. Hayley was able to do this in the monthly one-on-one meetings she has with each stylist.
”“We took our time before changing our charging structure to pass extra colour or services on to the client so the team had time to get on board with the new system. We could have moved faster, as they totally got it almost from day one, but I was happy to see our waste across the two salons drop by £1,000 a week,” explains Hayley. “I reckon that’s because the onboarding process was so structured.”
Ongoing Support to Benefit All
Jordan visited the Egham salon in person to train the team, but he also set up a WhatsApp group for the whole team so they could contact him or one of his colleagues directly if they had any queries.
”“We believe in personal contact with each user, so onboarding doesn’t become a burden for the owner or manager to act as a go-between,” says Jordan. “Anyone on the team can reach out to us for clarity or support and we make a point of answering quickly, whether it’s by message or sharing supplementary education links to our YouTube videos.”
Three years down the line, SJ Forbes’s stylists rarely need to contact Vish, especially as the salon team has been very stable. The one or two new employees who have joined them have easily learned and implemented the system into their daily routines. The first step for onboarding a new team hire is to have a champion user on the team talk and walk them through how to use Vish, from the initial mix and weigh to reweighing each bowl to identify the exact quantities required for each client at their next visit. The stylist then joins the Vish WhatsApp group and is given links to the many videos demonstrating the various functions, from Mix More and Mix From History to removing excess products and setting target weights. The Help Centre is also a brilliant resource to refer back to for any stylist starting with Vish.
“We also buddy them up with someone so they can ask questions and seek reassurance, but the system is so easy that they always get it,” adds Hayley. “The team is just a really nice group of people and they are keen to help.”
Protecting Future Profits
A year after installing Vish, Hayley decided it was time to bring in additional charges for any colour used above the salons’ set allowances for each service. She delayed the annual price increase and instead introduced the new charging system. By then, Vish was second nature for the team.
”“With hindsight, it might seem excessively long, but it was okay. I was saving on the colour waste and the team was increasingly confident with Vish,” she says. “The new pricing doesn’t affect that many clients - those who leave longer between appointments or have thick, long hair - and it’s not much per appointment. But it could have been. We have one client who could have been paying £76 on top of the menu price, but as waste is down, she actually only pays £12 extra. That’s fair and she agrees. Vish is helping me protect my profits.”
The stability and success of the SJ Forbes team and clientele affirm that the switch to Vish and the introduction of charging for additional colour were implemented smoothly. Should the team have any questions, the WhatsApp group is one click away, and Jordan and his team are always available to provide support and assistance.
