Thinning Hair - Stylist and Salon Newspapers

Beauty Diversity — Tapping into a Wider Market
Beauty
Business Buzz
Charlene Abretske
Not so long ago there was one standard of
beauty for women in the United States; the
“beautiful blonde goddess” was the epitome of
ethereal appreciation.
When we were little girls our baby dolls
were blonde and blue eyed, and then we
graduated to Barbie. If we did not grow up to
meet the beauty standard set forth by Christie
Brinkley, we did not fall into the category of
“traditionally beautiful.”
Over time, as women came into positions
of power in entertainment and media, we
began to see a complete shift in the perception
of beauty. This shift embraces what makes
every woman beautiful, whether she is blonde,
brunette, White, Black, Asian, Hispanic or
Multicultural.
Our cultural standards of beauty have
changed considerably in the last 30 years. This
has allowed the beauty industry to explode
with different styles, products and technologies
that help every woman reach her personal
standard of beauty.
It has long been the calling of beauty
professionals to help all women feel respected,
special and beautiful. Now, as a society, we
see the effect it has on all women. Stereotypes
have been smashed and our beauty icons have
evolved.
With this relatively new beauty acceptance
comes a responsibility for salons to keep up
with the trends in new products and services, as
well as offer them in different ways and to different
clients than we traditionally might have.
Trends in the beauty industry begin by
beauty professionals trying something different
in their chairs. When you take that chance and
explore your creativity to make one woman
in your chair feel beautiful, you are actually
elevating the industry and all women as a
population.
With so much diversity out there, what
do you do to tap into a wider market? Start by
allowing your clients access to universal treatments,
specializing and branching out.
UNIVERSAL TREATMENTS
Offer services that appeal to women of all
ages, and all ethnic backgrounds. The beauty
industry as a whole is great about offering new
technology that will increase your sales and
market share.
A good example of this is the advent of hair
extensions. Until the mid nineties, women did
not have much choice about the length of their
hair. Even though they had been embraced
for decades for their long lasting and dramatic
look by salons that specialized in African
American hair, if you did not have a stylist
back then who was trained in the art of hair
extensions, you had to just wait and let your
hair grow.
Eventually, more and more products
that were much easier to use came out as the
demand grew. This allowed all women to have
access to the hair they wanted, when they
wanted it. This trend also brought back new
and better versions of clip in extensions, allowing
women at all economic levels to make
the choice to change their look at a moments
notice. The popularity of these items also
allowed for a completely new class of retail
items, allowing salons to increase their retail
sales.
Another good example is blow out treatments.
These cross all boundaries and allow
all types of women to go silky and shiny with
minimal maintenance. These appeal to women
with varied hair types, ranging from curly, to
unruly, to resistant gray. The popularity of
these treatments is exploding in all types of
salons with all types of specialty clients.
SPECIALIZING
Having experts on staff will allow the rest
of your clientele to grow. When clients are
ready to make a change in their look, having
someone on staff that specializes in that
particular area will allow the client to make
that change with confidence. Furthermore, if
they change their mind as styles change, you
will have the ability to keep them as a client by
moving them back into the more traditional
choices your salon offers.
An example of this would be having someone
on staff that specializes in natural hair,
even if your salon primarily deals with relaxers
and weaves. This allows your clients to have
all the options they need to explore the type of
beauty they would like to, while still coming to
you for their services.
BRANCHING OUT
If you are looking to have a broader appeal,
finding the clients you want to open up to is
critical. Does your website reflect the environment
you are offering along with offering an
accurate menu that appeals to the clients you
would like to have? Make sure the menu on
your website offers the newer services you are
offering. If a potential customer is searching
for “natural hair” in your town, make sure
your salon appears in that search. This will
help match you with the right clients, and you
will be surprised how many of the people you
want will find you.
Every client should feel beautiful when
they leave your salon, and the more diverse
your salon is, the more beauty you can offer to
your clients.
Charlene Abretske is an independent business advisor. To reach her email
charleneabretske@gmail.com or call (760)453-1882.
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NORTHWEST STYLIST & SALON | OCTOBER 2010 |