explore news CONVERSATIONS HEADER Creative head x authentic beauty concept techniques header inform home inform freelance content connect home connect inform header home explore documents header creative projects header
SALON SMART 24 – WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA

SALON SMART 24 – WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA

Feb 27, 2024 | CONNECT, SALON SMART

CATEGORIES > CONNECT

SALON SMART 2024: FIVE TOPICS WE’LL BE TACKLING

Profit, recruitment and mental health are all right up there!

When we start shaping the Salon Smart line-up, we look at the topics first – what are you, the Creative HEAD audience, telling us would benefit your businesses right now. Then we marry those topics with the perfect speakers to deliver actionable insight that could make a real difference, or perhaps inspire an unthought-of outlook. So, what will the 2024 event cover, here’s a look at five subjects hitting the stage… 

1. How to boost your profit 

It’s the number one, business 101, isn’t it? Making sure you’re making money? Well, Boss Your Salon owner, Maddi Cook, will be giving a masterclass in maximising on missed potential and divulging her top tips for topping up your profit in 2024. She’s helped over 15,000 professionals unlock business growth, putting over £30 million back into pockets of people just like you. 

Then this year we’ve also introduced a brand-new Profitability Partner in the form of Vish, who are all about reducing colour waste and increasing coin. They’ll be taking to the stage with some awesome advice. 

This isn’t just about conserving cash, but how to actively make more money – pretty pertinent in a financial crisis we think! 

2. Maintaining mental wellbeing 

A recurring concern across the industry has been prioritising wellbeing. Hayley Jepson, aka The Resilient Hairdresser will be deep diving into burnout and how it is a gateway to spiralling mental health, providing essential facts and tips to keep yourself and your team fighting fit.   

3. Navigating the recruitment crisis

Falling apprenticeship starts, a widening skills gap and unfilled vacancies ranked highly in hairdressing business owner worries, so Neil Maclean, owner of five Edinburgh salons and Charlie Collinge, director of six Collinge & Co salons, will come together to discuss how they find, train and retain young recruits and what that’s meant for their teams and approach.

4. Exploring untapped texture potential

From our reader survey to our most viewed articles, you continue to tell us that you want more access to education on textured hair. In 2023, Winnie Awa, founder of AI-driven platform Carra, unveiled its first Texture Gap report, drawing on millions of data to identify common concerns for the Type 4 hair community, along with their needs, and goals, to uncover opportunities to better serve them. Winnie will be joining us to provide insight and advice on the untapped potential in the textured hair market and how professional hairdressing businesses can provide what clients are currently missing.

5. New rules = New revenue

The shape of salons is shifting, could you be missing out on a new revenue stream? Following on from the launch of her multi-use space Stā Studio, Samantha Cusick will delve into the potential on offer when you dare to diversify your business offering.

Have we tickled your interest? Then head HERE to get your ticket to Salon Smart 2024 – spaces are limited! You can make a cheeky £20 saving on the ticket price if you sign-up to the Creative HEAD newsletter and if you do, you’ll also be in for some incredible content direct from our team, including a load of exclusives not seen anywhere else…

Salon Smart 2024 | Monday 18 March, 9.30am to 5.30pm | The Chain and Buoy Store, London

FULL EVENT INFORMATION >

Related

SALON SMART 24 – LET’S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS

SALON SMART 24 – LET’S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS

Feb 23, 2024 | SALON SMART

CATEGORIES > CONNECT

SALON SMART 24 – LET’S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS

For salon owners and managers there’s nothing else like it.

Lots of business events inspire, but Salon Smart, Creative HEAD’s business networking event for salon and barber shop owners and managers, aims to do this and more. The speakers are peers – people who are navigating similar circumstances, the topics are targeted to hair professionals and what is impacting your businesses right now, and the advice is relatable, action driven in a way that could make a genuine difference to your goals.

Salon Smart will return to London on Monday 18 March 2024, with a packed one-day agenda. It provides the chance to get together to share real experiences, explore new ideas and discuss big topics. Whether you’re a start-up or long-standing brand, solo venture, or growing chain, coming along will be a great investment for future success.

Hear how to diversify your business and reap the rewards, zone in on mindfulness and better mental health and gain tips on making young talent an invested part of your team. Get the latest insight on building a social media strategy that delivers on business results, explore the untapped potential of the textured hair market and revisit the client connection, as we go beyond hair, delving into inclusivity, community and giving back.

Speakers include influential industry experts including Winnie Awa (Carra), Maddi Cook (Boss Your Salon) Samantha Cusick (Samantha Cusick London and Stā Studios), Chris Foster (The Profile Guy), Hayley Jepson (The Resilient Hairdresser), Neil Maclean (Neil Maclean Hair Studio), Jordan Massarella and Ben Jones (Massarella & Jones), Alison McRitchie (The Head Gardener), Tom Smith (hairstylist and trend forecaster) and so many more. Click for the full speaker line-up >

Every topic and session on the Salon Smart agenda is carefully selected to help you build a better business, and that extends to the brands supporting the event, too. In addition to opportunities throughout the day to network with your peers, you’ll also have the chance to connect with leading hairdressing and business brands – including L’Oréal Professionnel Paris, Phorest, Vish, Beauty Works, GLOWWA and Moroccanoil – to learn about transformative products and services and gain important market insight. Read more about the brands here >

A ticket to Salon Smart costs £95 plus VAT, which includes access to the full business agenda, a hot buffet lunch, refreshments breaks and a goody bag containing products and offers from our event partners. Better still, sign up to Creative HEAD emails and get a £20 discount on your first ticket.

Salon Smart 2024 | Monday 18 March, 9.30am to 5.30pm | The Chain and Buoy Store, London

FULL EVENT INFORMATION >

Related

THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT LEARNING

THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT LEARNING

Feb 22, 2024 | SALON SMART

CATEGORIES > CONNECT

THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT LEARNING

“Hairdressers are stupid,” says educator Conor James Doyle

“Hairdressers are stupid,” was the provocative slide in educator and three-times L’Oréal Colour Trophy winner Conor James Doyle’s thrilling presentation at Salon Smart Dublin yesterday, on why education needs to be approached through the lens of our industry’s specific (but largely overlooked) needs. Neurodiversity, an overarching term for learning difficulties or differences, is prevalent amongst hairdressers, not only compounding some of the stigmas around our craft, but also resulting in various triggers that deter or hinder future learning and progression

Conor James’ informal study of 1,343 hairdressers revealed that more than 55 per cent had either been diagnosed with, or related to, a neurodiversity such as dyslexia, autism or ADHD. While this often led to negative experiences at school (51 per cent) and anxiety around learning (also 51 per cent), neurodiversity is also closely linked to strengths such as problem-solving, crisis management and creative thinking – skills that emphasise the advantages of diversity and which should be celebrated.

Conor James argues that awareness of the obstacles around teaching hairdressers with neurodiversity can actually create a better structure for learning. What’s key is an injection of dopamine into lessons (Conor James describes it as “rocket fuel for focus”) – lots of hands-on practical tasks coupled with regular breaks – plus a ‘safe space’ approach, where students are encouraged to ask questions and share ideas and teachers are not afraid to admit to making mistakes.

Conor James’ presentation included some clever practical demonstrations in how this collaborative approach can improve learning. The audience was presented with some memory tests. When invited simply to observe, the success rate was just 10 per cent, but it rose to 90 per cent when shared learning techniques were involved.

“If you’re paying £300 for a colour course, that’s the difference between getting £30 of value for money and £270,” said Conor James. “We need to take more time to familiarise ourselves with the hugely varied needs of our industry, and to create spaces for students to transition to ‘active contributors’ in their continued learning. Only then can we go back to the drawing board and generate new spaces to allow true collaborative learning to take place.”

Related