Barber Fever - Salons, Get Your Cut!
July 2018
Some say I’m a serial barbershop owner. Over a decade, and across two continents, I’ve started up 11 barbershops. Each shop had a different personality, besides from the chain of stores I started in Melbourne where I employed a strict brand policy.
So, I suppose you could say I’ve had some experience in creating barber-esque spaces.
Right now, it’s the ‘time of the barber’. There’s a buzz about the industry which I’m sure you’ve all felt. So I thought I should share with you some ideas you can use to incorporate a men’s grooming/barbering space in your salon.
With the right creativity, vision and training you can make your business more profitable and keep your male clients flocking, with the rest, to the local barber. Get your cut of barber fever!
Let’s start with the environment. This new space doesn’t have to look like a barbershop with stripy poles, beards and tattoos - if you don’t want it to. All you need to do is focus on creating a comfortable area with aspects that would appeal to male clients.
Think about the colours and textures you could use that would mesh with your existing environment but cause your male clients to ask “Wow, what’s happening here?”.
Que the barber chair! A barber chair alone will create a new feeling in your shop, even for your female customers. Don’t be afraid to integrate your new chair into your existing aesthetic.
Finding a way to seamlessly include this new masculine space is the ultimate goal as opposed to segregating it. Next, take a look at the products you stock. Men’s products differ significantly from women’s from hold factor to fragrance.
Make sure you believe in the products you hold and keep enough variety on hand to be able to cater to different styles. Remember beard products too. Beards don’t look like they’ll be falling out of fashion anytime soon!
Consider the fragrance of your products too - typical scents men tend to enjoy are sandalwood, menthol and even whiskey! Don’t be afraid to experiment.
Time to talk about training. Barbers use different tools and apply certain tricks of the trade to create ultra-tidy stylised cuts in less time than most professionally trained hairdressers. Send one of your team, or - even better - all of your team to an advanced barber training workshop!
Advanced barber workshops typically involve a lot of clippers, cut-throat blade and barber technique work. Hair professionals can quickly pick up barber skills as they build upon their existing skillset. A one-day workshop would be plenty of time to upskill your staff to begin using barber tools and performing barber techniques.
Fuse together your new-look ‘masculine area with your learned barbering techniques and treat your clients to a whole new treatment. They will love it and hopefully tell all their friends and family!
Finally, sprinkle in a marketing plan to help attract more customers. With the correct skills to provide the service pls a masculine area, you will have the total package.
