HANDY MANGEARING UP FOR GROWTH

Vipul Chudasama Salon & Academy Reaching out

REACHING OUT

Each salon has a tried and tested formula for offers and discounts. While customers appreciate popular services being clubbed under attractive packages at good prices, they are always on a lookout for discounts. Salon owners are divided on the question of discounts as it tends to dilute the efforts on one front and lead to unhealthy competition on the other front. The kind of offers that a salon has to offer largely depends on the catchment area and customers’ preferences.

While offers and discounts around the festive season were the order of the day in the past, today’s scenario calls for a change in approach. Well-thought out packages are more in trend than flat out discounts. Customers are keen on value for money services now more than ever. Kaul suggests holistic packages for the whole family as part of the festive season strategy.

Thumb rule of marketing – speak where you are sure to get heard. Today’s customers, no matter their age, gender and preferences, are all on social media. It is a powerful and pocket-friendly tool for you to reach out to your target audience. Maximising on the social media impact, influencing your followers, providing them with information they can use and offering them special perks are some of the ways in which you can engage your customers online. When asked about which digital platforms she would prefer to use, Kaul says, “Both Google adwords and Instagram will be used to drive traffic to the salons.”

In terms of staff engagement, Kaul has put in place a performance linked compensation plan for her team members. This helps them have steady goals and keeps them motivated. She believes this is the way forward for the industry as well.

Samuel expounds, “We have already begun reaching out to our customers about all our offers on social media, print campaigns, SMS and in-salon communication. Vurve has always been at the forefront when it comes to digital marketing. All our offers and plans have been a huge hit digitally and we will continue to use this forum to reach out to our customers and followers on all types of digital media.”

Patnaik has lined up combo offers for her clients at Indulge Salons. There will be different offers as per the festival to allow customers to take maximum benefit of the services. Additionally, she also intends to have a lucky draw at the salons to keep the customer interest piqued. Patnaik explains, “Today, digital platforms are the most effective and cost-friendly way of marketing.

We intend to train our managers to use it more effectively for each salon.”

In terms of staff management, Sukirit says, “Yes, we incentivise them with our annual awards and picnic. They all look forward to staying at a five star hotel.”

Chudasama adds, “We have always reached out to our customers via social media, whether it is the festive season or otherwise, and for us it is wonderful. We receive 90 per cent of our clients from social media as they can see our work there. The majority of our clients are coming to us through Instagram as well as word of mouth. Insta has been a great medium for us to reach out to people, and we also have festive offers running where consumers can come and experience our services for prices as per their comfort level. Digital platforms and social media channels are an essential ingredient for any modern company. We strategise several promotions to engage with new consumers.”

Vipul Chudasama Salon & Academy

Headmasters Salons

Vipul Chudasama Salon & Academy

RALLYING FOR RETAIL

The retail sales share of a salon has considerably increased, especially after the lockdown of 2020. However it is proving to be increasingly difficult to maintain the momentum. As Kaul points out, “Retail sales is a challenge in salons, because brand owners are selling professional hair and beauty products from online platforms. Customers end up buying more from the online channels.”

Patnaik believes that making the customer more aware is the key to increasing retail sales. Informing them about counterfeits and low-quality products and the hazards of using duplicate products will go a long way in improving retail sales. She added, “Educating the client about home care is important. We give out samples to help them make an informed decision.”

Vipul Chudasama Salon & Academy

RETAIL OVERVIEW

As per the retail business survey by the Retailers Association of India (RAI), which was published by a leading newspaper, “Retail businesses in the North and the South of India have indicated sales nearing recovery in August 2021 with sales at 98 per cent and 97 per cent respectively, of the pre-pandemic levels (August 2019), as against 78 per cent (North India) and 82 per cent (South India) sales in July 2021.”

Similarly, the sales in western and eastern markets reached 76 per cent and 81 per cent of pre-pandemic levels (August 2019). The figure stood at 57 per cent and 69 per cent, respectively, in July 2021. “However, beauty and wellness, which includes salons, apparel, footwear and jewellery, are yet to catch up to the pre-pandemic levels of sales. The overall industry sentiment will improve when the clothing and accessories category shows growth,” the report stated.

Headmasters Salon

HIGH ON OPTIMISM

In spite of the many hurdles that each salon owner has to overcome to have a successful year, this festive season holds a lot of potential. “I am hoping all the segments - hair, skin and make-up - will do well this season. It’s only when all segments do well that the business will be sustainable in the long run.”

Samuel continues, “We have noticed that customers have gradually begun to step out. We feel that although the salon industry received negative publicity post Covid, clients continued to visit and support those brands that took an effort to follow all the Covid rules and norms. They are still concerned about hygiene and safety precautions and I think we need to live with this sentiment for a while.”

Patnaik is expecting the hair and skin segments to do well during the festive season. She believes that innovation and education hold the key to a successful and profitable season for salon owners.

Chudasama sheds light on an important aspect of consumer behaviour: “Since the last two months, we have not seen any sentiment from the customer's side indicating fear of COVID or its symptoms. While predictions about the third wave are running high, we do not see any signs of that, which is again a positive sign. It is evident that people are open to spending money, traveling and visiting salons.” He concludes, “Initially, they asked so many questions about hygiene, health, and safety, but since the last two months, we don't see that apprehension any more. Having said that, we do take all the necessary precautions such as mandatory masks, COVID consent forms, sanitising our equipment and surface, before we take the client into the salon.”

In spite of the heavy strain on business that salon owners have experienced earlier this year, they are investing their best efforts to make the festive season a success.

This goes to show that while we are not entirely free of uncertainty, this festive season, there is hope in the air. Salon owners have made the COVID-19 safety protocol a way of life and integrated the same in their processes. In spite of the heavy strain on business that they experienced earlier this year, they are still at the grind, and are investing their best efforts to make the festive season a success. We at PBHJ wish them a rocking festive season in 2021!