FESTIVE BOOM!

The festive season in India is next only to the bridal one for salon business. Beauty entrepreneurs were looking forward to this year’s festive season as it meant increased footfall and higher ticket prices. Business in the festive period makes up for the dry spell during the monsoons, and also sets the stage for the new year. However, a salon cannot take the festive bull by its horns without due preparation. The Instagram- and Pinterest-armed customer of today is demanding and understands the value of customer service. Quality service cannot be delivered without quality products and skilled professionals, which makes inventory and staff management an important aspect of the busy season. So, how are salons supposed to cope with the pressures and still make profits? The key to this lies in planning. You have to plan your business hours efficiently, manage your staff better and provide ideal service standards to your customers to ensure a money-making season. Another vital aspect to consider is competition. During the festive season, a salon has to compete not just with other salons and skin clinics as well as freelance professionals but also with jewellery, fashion, accessories and food outlets, because for a customer these purchases are equally important and ones that are likely to eat into their budgets. Drawing up packages and combos is something that salons need to look into to encourage walk-ins and special rates for members would usher them to your door more efficiently. So, business during the festive season is a tightrope walk for salon owners - one that is likely to boost your business and sales if done correctly. Kanishka ramchandani ropes in industry experts to talk about opportunities during the festive season and to get a better understanding of how to make the most of it.

The festive season is always a promising time for the salons. While the biggest festival of the year is Diwali, there are a slew of other events that mark the festive calendar in India and are celebrated in different ways in different states. For instance, Navratri is celebrated with gusto in Gujarat, Maharashtra and West Bengal more than in other states. It is this diversity that helps the beauty business flourish during the season. It is the way you manage the incoming demand that decides how strong your bottom line is going to be. The size of your salon or the number of doors you have are not really the determining factors; neither is the number of competitive salons in your vicinity. What matters is how you cater to your clientele and provide services that are your niche.

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS

Before you get into planning for the festive boom, you need to understand the psychology of your customers. KYC is not just for the banking sector, you also need to know your customers well. Understanding their needs and having their primary contact, either through email or phone number, makes good business sense. Having an ever-increasing database helps you reach out to potential customers with your loyalty programmes and festive packages. For small players especially, word of mouth can have a bigger impact, so maximise on your local WhatsApp groups and Facebook communities. Here are a few more pointers that you need to keep in mind:

1. Maintain your customer’s history so you know when they are due for the next service and you can send them reminders for the same.

2. Highlight those customers who rely on you for product and service recommendations.

3. Encourage your customers to bring in friends and relatives during the festive time by giving them bonus points.

4. Keep a track of customers who are travelling and provide them with pre-travel packages.

5. Be prompt in booking their follow-up sessions.

6. Automate your responses, reminders and payment receipts with digital tools and apps.

PLAN AND EXECUTE

Vikram Bhatt, Director, Enrich, says, “Over the years we have tracked the trend and we see a 35-40 per cent increase in footfall in the festival months, as there are many reasons for customers to take up grooming and beauty services and product purchases during these months – there are festivals, visiting relatives, vacations, weddings and other social events and gatherings. Based on annual trends, we have pretty accurate estimates of these increases, and these are baked into the planning for additional inventory and team strength.”

The festive season in India lasts for up to four-five months, and each salon (depending on its location) will draw in business for a duration of a few weeks. As a salon owner, you need to study the year-on-year trends of your own salon to determine the footfall trend, and devise a customised plan to meet this demand. Remember, customers are ready to come to your door as they have put the pandemic behind them but they want value for money and complete satisfaction. And your salon will not be in a position to give them what they want unless you plan it well.

While the customer might not be in a mindframe to experiment, she will surely seek your expert recommendation to do something special with her hair and skin in order to look and feel better during the festive season. It would be an ideal time for you to introduce new services and product range around this time.

Bhatt adds, “There is also a penchant for getting higher, more premium versions of services and even products as the events and festivals are also extra special occasions that merit an upgrade in the products and services. Traditionally even the bathing soap during festivals changes to a premium soap even for the middle class brethren, our audience segment is a slice or two more upmarket. So, a significant number of customers end up choosing higher variants of services, try newer variants in keeping with the festival and celebratory mood, which translates to a higher Average Bill Value (ABV).”

“In addition, we also have a festival promotion annually. It’s an exclusive, custom-designed promotion that we have been running for the past six years and bettering year on year. The minimum ticket for entry into this promotion also becomes a factor for a higher average ticket size.”

STAFF MANAGEMENT

Pralay Bakshi, Chief operating officer, Bina Punjani Hair studio, goa, explains, “We see a 25-30 per cent increase from mid-October to end of December, which goes to about 15-20 per cent higher in January and February. We actually hire staff according to this, and make sure we have enough people under skill development during the other months to meet the seasonal demand. For example, we do most of our hiring from March to June, and spend a lot of time in training and development till October.”

Managing your staff efficiently before and during the festive season is vital to the smooth operations at your salon. Questioning the skill and capacity of your staff or looking for more help during the festive rush is an indication of poor planning and management. Avoid this mistake by keeping trained personnel ready on the bench to meet the high footfall. It is also advisable to do your performance evaluation before and after the festive period to allow your staff members to put in their best efforts. You can also reevaluate commissions for consultants, freelancers and senior hairstylists at your salon. Other motivational instruments such as advanced training sessions and perks are add-ons that can keep their spirits up. Keep your employees in the loop about what you are planning for the festive season and take feedback from them. This will make them feel part of the bigger picture and keep them motivated. Afterall, a happy employee ensures a happy customer.

IN-DEMAND SERVICES

There are certain services that are more in demand around the festive season than others; this again depends on the location of your salon. ashwin mahajan, style director & managing director, opulent salon, new delhi, states, “A hair colour refresh is more in demand, and can cost anywhere from Rs 3,500 to Rs 5,000 on an average. Other services that are popular are hair treatments such as Olaplex, L’Oréal Professionnel Pro Longer and Wellaplex.”

Bhatt is of the opinion that basic services are always in demand and premium services show a spike over the normal during festival times. And since these aren’t substitutes for each other, overall all services will show a higher trajectory – the entry level services slightly lower on account of customers choosing higher variants.

“Keratin and colour are the biggest ones, and often clients want both together. These can cost anywhere from Rs 6,000 to Rs 10,000 for a single service and Rs 12,000 to Rs 20,000 for a combo. If all services are taken into account, the average ticket size is about Rs 2,000. There is less demand for permanent straightening and backwash hair treatments - both are being replaced with keratin.” expounds Bakshi.

TO DISCOUNT OR NOT TO DISCOUNT

In the light of these statements, it is important to understand how salons are dealing with the idea of discounts and offers. Clearly the festive season is a money making period for salons so by offering discounts are we being counterproductive?

Bhatt says, “Beauty & Bling is our exclusive, customdesigned festival promotion that we have been successfully running for over six years now. Each year, we outdo the previous year’s version and bring in novelty, higher scale and wider range of services and products. Consequently, Beauty & Bling 2022 is our grandest version yet and has the most benefits for customers over any previous version. This time, customers can win up to 15X of their invoice value in reward points, and there are more surprises in store for month two and three. We are seeing record participation from our customers and also our brand partners (who join us in making this the most fulfilling promotion for our customers).”

He further adds, “Typically, if you are only going with price discounts, you are making it very boring and what you are offering can get compared across categories beyond yours. And it hardly makes for any differentiation or predisposition towards your brand. We are and have always been in favour of giving more value to our customers. And this is in multiple forms like novelty, gamification, instant gratification and more. Our category allows us to provide value to the customers in multiple members.” ways that are relevant and engaging. We try to practise this discipline of adding as much value in multiple ways every time and not just during festivals.”

Bakshi explains, “We do not do discounting or packages, especially during peak season. We have 5-6 major promotions in the year -Valentine, Holi, Monsoon, Independence Day and our anniversary in October. Each of these is about two weeks long, except for the anniversary, which goes on for a month. Rest of the year, we offer services at full price, and 15 per cent lower for paid

“We believe discounts need to be used strategically to add flavour like salt. The moment you depend on discounts as a way to bring in footfall, you risk discounting the brand itself. Of course, this works only if there is something you offer in terms of your work that others cannot. Even when we discount, we always add some excitement to it through some sort of a game that allows people to win more. For example, this October was our 11th anniversary, so everyone gets 11 per cent off on all services, but they can play a game and win 22 or 33 per cent, right up to 100 per cent off. Adding that kind of excitement goes a long way!”

Mahajan adds, “We have three Opulent customer cards, which offer 15 to 20 per cent discounts providing a convenient way for our regular clients to save on our luxurious services. We believe in quality, reliable services and positive experiences, which is why we offer sustainable prices and discounts to our clients.”

MARKETING THE RIGHT WAY

Festive season is the proverbial ‘make hay while the sun shines’ time for the salon business. However all your preparations, staff training and hiring and attractive packages can come to naught if you are unable to communicate it to your customers. That’s where marketing and promotional activities come in the picture. In today’s social media age, shouting from the rooftops is not enough, you need to strategically communicate with your clients and engage them virtually before you are even able to meet them in person.

Bhatt points out that Enrich has been at the forefront of using online mediums for promotions for the past many years and it would continue to do so with targeted and relevant content and offers across online channels using all the available mediums in the market.

“We are constantly updating our clients on current offers and services through social media platforms, as well as the latest work done by our talented stylists. By staying up-to-date with us, our clients can always be in the know about what we are offering and also get inspired by the wonderful hairstyles created by our team,” shares Mahajan.

While social media is a powerful tool today that enables salons to reach out to both existing and potential clients, there are other digital instruments that can complement your efforts, such as emailers and bulk SMS. WhatsApp is quickly emerging as a contender for a feasible marketing tool for the salon industry. However, use of one platform is not enough and you will have to customise your marketing strategy depending on your customer preferences and metrics.

CHALLENGES AHEAD

Each business comes with its own set of challenges, and the salon business is no exception. While each one wants their fair share of the pie, and there’s plenty to go around, there are still some hiccups that salons owners have to face.

Bakshi states, “Key staff leaving or even falling ill during the peak months is a challenge. We take a lot of effort to train / retrain people, and simply don’t have the bandwidth to train replacements in these months.”

“Although we have not yet encountered any challenges, we are continuously having internal meetings to brainstorm any potential issues that could arise. This is to ensure that we are prepared to competently deal with them should they come up,” shares Mahajan.

One of the key business challenges for a salon is competition. As mentioned earlier, competition comes from different quarters during the festive season but if we were to look only at the beauty circle, there is definite threat from dermatologist-led clinics and at-home service providers and freelance professionals. And this can be overcome by creating a niche for oneself or combining one or more sub-segments, such as in-salon and at-home services. The salon industry is a growing one and there will always be competition in some form or other. The most effective way to eliminate competition is to offer the best that you can to your clients and adapt your mindset to changing times.

As Mahajan aptly puts it, “Our competition is not others, but ourselves. Providing better service and creating an amazing client experience is our goal every month.”

Bakshi relates, “We are known for our technical expertise and provide hairdressing that is not available elsewhere. We don’t really worry about losing clients because of any other reasons such as packages or discounting or electric massage chairs for pedicures. People come to us because they value what they are getting and are willing to pay for it.”

“We have always maintained that in the stage that we are in, there are more opportunities to collaborate rather than compete. The market and opportunity is large enough for all formats and kinds of players to grow,” states Bhatt.

Year 2022 has been a good one for the Indian salon sector. Had the pandemic not happened, it could very well have been one of the best years business wise. But it is back on the path of progress and this festive season is giving the industry the much needed boost. To conclude, we offer Bhatt’s wisely chosen words: “Now that customers are back in the market and so is the momentum, this is the time to see opportunities rather than challenges or hurdles and make the most of this momentum.” PBHJ