Studios, Salons and Workshops

Watch this quick video in which I talk about some of the unique challenges that come with building a business that operates like a salon, studio or a workshop… on the face of it very different kind of businesses but there is also a really specific set of common factors.

Over the past 11 years I have worked with many owners of what I’ll refer to here as Studios. Studio business are all about having jobs booked in on a schedule and having to complete the job inside the schedule. In that way a hair or nail salon operates quite similarly to a mechanics workshop. The Studio business model has all kinds of unique challenges.

“Working with Roland has been the most productive time I have ever dedicated to myself and my business.”

(Anna Field, The Paddington Beauty Room)

Does this sound like you?

These are some of the things I often hear owners of Studios, Salons and Workshops say:

“As soon as I’ve finished training my staff, and they start to work out well, they leave me again.”
“I can never know how busy the day or the week is going to be, rostering my staff is a nightmare.”
“I get so many tyre kickers ringing up, they waste so much of my time”
“My staff just don’t care the way I do, and my customers know it.”
“My staff earn more money than I do.”

“I do everything I can to look after my staff but they walk all over me.”
“To be profitable we have to focus on ‘upselling’ our clients, but we just don’t seem to be very good at it.”
“I keep my fingers crossed every day that we don’t get too many cancellations or that we’ll have enough walk-ins.”
“I spend a fortune advertising the studio in the local rags, but I’m not sure it actually pays off.”
“I have to be on the Studio floor all day to make sure things don’t fall apart, so I can only work “on” the business at night.”
“I focus a lot on safety in the Studio, but I live in fear of being audited by Workcover one day.”

Would you like to download my 12 Question Cheat-sheet to help you find your next Coach? Click here.

Running a Studio type of business can be incredibly stressful and it can feel like all you can do is react to what happens rather than pro-actively build your business. Finding and keeping the right staff is often one of the greatest challenges, industry wages are generally relatively low and hence the staff are often highly itinerant. Marketing on a tight budget and time management are also often particular challenges because of the many distractions the day brings.

“Great results require great effort and great guidance, Roland is such a guide”

(Sebastiaan de Jonge, KwikKopy Auburn)

What you can expect:

How I’ll help you build a business that stands the test of time:

Finding absolute clarity about the Purpose of your business and developing a comprehensive but practical business plan and marketing plan from that foundation. Know where you’re going and how you’re getting there.
Improving the look and feel of your business; Clients feel comfortable and trust your business is going to give them what they need.
Developing HR thinking and systems that make the process of hiring, engaging and keeping great staff easier. Build a great engaged team of people.
Implementing better bookkeeping and workshop management systems, so you know where you make money and where you lose money. Your fingers on the pulse of all the key indicators of the health of your business.
Strengthening sales skills throughout the business; Sales conversion rates double and triple.
Improving health and safety discipline and management in a practical way. Less accidents, lower premiums, less sick days.

Five Steps to Discovery

If you recognise some of those statements above and you’d like to explore how I can help you overcome some of those everyday struggles, click here to book in a free Discovery Coaching Session now as part of my Five Steps to Discovery Process, designed to help you discover and build your own Beautiful Business and Life.

Studios, Salons and Workshops

Does this sound like you?

What you can expect:

Five Steps to Discovery

More reading, books, surveys, webinars