SALON SMART 2016 – DAY TWO (AFTERNOON)
Day two of Salon Smart 2016 commenced with the all-new Showcase segment, giving attendees not only the opportunity to meet leading brands including Windle & Moodie, Treatwell, 3.6.5 Hair, Viviscal Professional, the National Hairdressers’ Federation, BaByliss PRO, Santander, Goldwell, Millennium, Heat Treat, Nicka K New York, Hairaisers and Salon iQ, but also to win the chance to chat with Errol Douglas MBE and Trevor Sorbie’s Johanna Cree Brown (when they weren’t larking about with the bartender’s gear, that is…).
After a spot of lunch, it was over to George’s Hairdressing, who were on hand to provide a unique insight into their super-salon’s talent producing capabilities. “We base our salon ethos on Disney,” they explained, “the aim is that everyone who walks through that door – client or staff – will have a good time.”
“Invest in people,” the trio added. “Sharing knowledge is huge and although platforms are amazing, salon team performance is more important.” They further proved they live by their word by giving a touching video shout out to their salon’s star staff – past (including Rita Ora’s stylist Chris Appleton) present (Layered Salon Star Natalia Maxwell) and future.
Attendees then took part in the Think Tank discussion, which gave the opportunity to ask the panel of experts their most pressing questions. Mitchell Wilson, PR guru Laura Glazebrook, Shane Bennett, Richard Phillipart and Goldwell’s Head of Education Irene Meikle were the day’s experts, who covered everything from how to market a new salon to how to deal with staff who have a bad attitude. “Make sure the issue is dealt with as soon as you have the opportunity in order to minimise impact,” said Irene. “Get the staff member to realise the impact of their confrontational actions on other colleagues and clients… They need to understand that their actions are wrong to stop the cycle.”
The final Famous 4:5 segment saw Tony Wood, founder of the astonishingly successful Magic Scissors charity initiative tell his story. Explaining how he brought an abstract idea to life, engaged top hairdressers across the UK and managed to raise £15,000 for disadvantaged children in Uganda, he had the audience transfixed and in awe of his modesty.
The day finished with the big name interview everyone had been anticipating: Nicky Clarke OBE. After presenting the winner of the Salon Smart 2016 selfie competition (Charlotte of Nottingham’s Hair Emporium) with her bottle of fizz, the legendary hairdresser sat down with Editor Amanda Nottage and gave the audience an honest, and frequently hilarious, account of how he came to be one of the most well-known and successful hairdressers of all time.
“Everybody will put a different label on me – TV, session, salon – but… I think my tongue in cheek persona wasn’t actually that bad a thing for the industry,” he admitted. “It brought hairdressing up a bit in the eyes of the public, the fact that there could be a celebrity hairdresser.”
“Some of the headlines now we’d laugh at – ‘Who does he think he is, charging £78 for a haircut?!’” he added. “In reality, on the eve of my ‘opulent’ salon opening, I was still cleaning at midnight… in a tracksuit.”
Of Princess Diana’s surprise appearance that very night, Nicky said he was completely unaware she was attending. “I made an off-hand comment… I didn’t know she was going to turn up! She went ‘Nicky, where’s the ribbon?’ It was December so we grabbed a ribbon off the Christmas tree and she responded ‘Scissors?’”
But for all his fame, fortune, flamboyance and flirtations with royalty, he still remains grounded. “The thing is I love being on the salon floor – the banter etc… I love it so much I may start teaching again,” he teased. “Watch this space!”