Christmas is here! Mince pies are in supermarkets, decorations in Target and – most importantly – Mariah Carey is defrosting as we speak.
But, as we know, along with the tinsel and public holidays comes the busiest period of the year, a time for every client who has ever come across your chair to ask for a ‘last minute quick touch up’ (on a Saturday morning, lol) which we all know means it’s usually either a colour correction or some serious regrowth.
But! It’s also a great time to see your regular clients, take on some new and have a wonderful festive season with your salon fam.
Below, we’ve compiled your Christmas salon cheat sheet – all the things you need to stay sane, stylish and super pumped for the season ahead.
PERMISSION TO BE ‘EXTRA’... ORGANISED
You're gonna be busy, that’s a given. So, we give you permission to be very ‘Type-A’ in the lead-up and during the holiday period. Back-to-back bookings and peak levels of salon traffic control can be grinch-worthy at the best of times. Avoid the chaos by giving your salon and team an internal check-in, look at your booking system and try to get your admin in tip-top shape before the silly season really kicks in. For some tips on how to get the most out of your bookings, we’ve covered that topic on The Hub, here
Deck the halls… and counters, and basins:
Festive decorations are both a fun way to change the look of your salon, and a chance to enhance your retail offering. Your staff spend so much time within the salon, so changing the look – even slightly – offers a fresh perspective.
If your salon is all about the aesthetic, decorations that fit your salon décor can still be festive. White Christmas trees, fairy lights and even fiddle leaf figs can all be decorated to suit your style.
Or, if you’re more of a traditional Christmas stylist, ask everyone to bring in an ornament that means something to them, to hang on a salon Christmas tree.
If you have the time, consider some fun and silly things to keep your team happy and engaged. No one says that Elf on the Shelf is just for kids – those little critters can get into some interesting places, can’t they?!
GIFTS GALORE
Christmas is such a big opportunity to retail to your clients – not only can they shop whilst they’re in the chair, but they know that they’re supporting local businesses.
Creating eye-catching displays of Christmas special offers at the front of your salon to capture foot traffic but adding gifts and products at different points throughout your salon gives clients products in their eyeline for most of their service.
Displays at the point of sale are always helpful, but consider adding gift packs at styling stations. Moroccanoil’s Stocking Stuffers are perfect for this type of visual merchandising.
Image credit: Roman Samborskyi_Shutterstock
SHHHH, IT’S A SECRET (SANTA)
Running a Secret Santa amongst your team is a fun way of connecting everyone. Here are some of our top tips for keeping things fair and stress-free:
- Set a clear price limit
- Consider asking each staff member to write 3 of their interests on a paper with their name. That way, when someone draws their “person”, they know a bit more about them, and can help them in the direction of a gift
- Have a Secret Santa swapping time – either at a Christmas party, or when everyone is working – pop open some bubbles, turn up the music and let everyone exchange gifts.
- If you have the space, a small tree in your back room to leave gifts under is a fun way to build suspense!
- Theme your Secret Santa – if your team are stuck for ideas, have everyone pick a theme. It could be something like ‘a gift starting with the same letter of their first name’, or ‘something they’ll use this summer’ – your team will have fun with these ideas, and the pressure is off to find the perfect gift.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE VIBES
It’s a tiring time of year. One of the best parts of Christmas Day is simply that it’s a day off, but it’s also a fun time of year. Keeping the vibes up can be a difficult task at times, but they key here is consistency.
To keep your team united, grounded and positive, here are some of our tips:
- Communication – rosters sent weeks in advance, closing dates clearly communicated
- Incentives – these can be cost-effective and a lot of fun!
- Remember the little things: Gestures such as allowing parcels to be delivered to the salon will help alleviate a lot of stress for your team
- Be flexible where possible: Whilst being organised and having clearly planned dates, shifts, and times are hugely beneficial, sometimes, you just gotta go with the flow. Being agile and flexible is crucial to being a salon professional
INCENTIVISE, INCENTIVISE, INCENTIVISE
A great driver to increase your sales and UPTs (units per transaction), but incentives are also a great way to unite and give your team a united direction and focal point.
We know that money and gift cards are also a great incentive, but consider some of these fun ideas that are smaller, but can be offered more widely to the team:
- An appointment for a half hour foot massage after their break, in a store close to your salon
- An hour of Christmas shopping time (an extra hour of lunch break, schedule permitting!)
- Selection of the playlist for the next hour or day
Image credit: Steel Panther Credit: Billboard
JINGLE BELL BEATS
We all know how much a great playlist can bring the mood up or down. There’s some of those go-to tunes that seem to fill the salon up with energy and there’s nothing quite like a 3pm pickup of an absolute banger to get you through the afternoon.
Whether you’re going full festive with or not, we’ve compiled some of our favourite playlists to keep your toes tapping behind the chair:
- Christmas Hits: Almost every Christmas tune you can think of
- Family Christmas Party: It’s poppy, it’s fun – it has the Beibs and Britney. A good one for a family-friendly salon (or those mid-morning appointments with lots of kids running around)
- Soiree: Anything with this caption ‘Groovy, dancy, funky stuff’ gets our attention
- Lofi Hip Hop: Voted as one of the most popular playlists on Spotify, there’s a strong chance this one is already in your library
- Dance classics: It is what it says it is – classics. Definitely one for the late trade nights!
PLAN YOUR PRODUCT
Whether it’s colour, lightening products, styling or sundries – this is the time to make sure you have your most-used and favourite products on hand, without running out between orders.
If you’ve shopped on our Haircare Group website, you’ve probably come across the re-order function – with just a few clicks, you can re-order a previous order easily!
We also love the constant cart function – add products to your cart as you go, so when you’re ready to order, your shopping list is already in your cart!
REMEMBER, WE’RE ALL HUMAN
As much as Christmas and end of year can be a fun time, it can also be stressful.
Take time to check in with your team, make sure they are managing okay and have what they need to stay healthy and well up to the Christmas break.
Haircare Group is here to make your life simple this Christmas, so you can focus on the things that matter.
From easy reordering when you shop online, exciting gift ideas from our exclusive brands and professional hair colour to keep your racks stocked, back bar bustling and clients happy – Haircare Group is your one-stop shop this Christmas.
Happy hair, happy holidays!
Merry Christmas!
