As salons and barbershops are reopening, many shop owners face new health and safety concerns from their staff and clients, as well as mounting overhead costs for how to pay for it all. That’s why Victory Barber & Brand™ Founder Matty Conrad (@mattyconrad) spoke with BTC’s Editorial Director Lauren Rees to explain how he’s handling Canada’s sanitation and PPE guidelines for his four Vancouver-area barbershops and how to use retail to keep your revenue up.
]]>As salons and barbershops are reopening, many shop owners face new health and safety concerns from their staff and clients, as well as mounting overhead costs for how to pay for it all. That’s why Victory Barber & Brand™ Founder Matty Conrad (@mattyconrad) spoke with BTC’s Editorial Director Lauren Rees to explain how he’s handling Canada’s sanitation and PPE guidelines for his four Vancouver-area barbershops and how to use retail to keep your revenue up. Keep scrolling to watch the full conversation below!
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Click here to download Victory Barber & Brand™’s custom sanitation signage for free!
]]>With salons and barbershops reopening under enhanced safety guidelines, shop owners are faced with a new challenge: Making sure clients feel safe and still give them a great experience. For Victory Barber & Brand™ Founder Matty Conrad (@mattyconrad) the value of service has changed: “It’s no longer about how fast your services are, but how well you navigate these new obstacles,” he shared.
For reopening his four Vancouver-based barbershops, Matty focused on three important factors:
Keep scrolling to read how Matty has implemented these factors when reopening his barbershops.
Communication Is Key
Before reopening his shop doors, Matty contacted his local health board to educate himself on the enhanced sanitation guidelines for reopening. This way, he could clearly communicate new shop policies with his staff and clients.
When it comes to sharing these new policies, maintaining the vibe of the shop and client experience is a top priority for Matty. “Hanging a bunch of policy lists around just doesn’t make sense for us and it also makes the shop look like a hospital. We want to maintain as much consistency in the guest experience as possible,” he explains. So, he designed shop decals that are both informative and fit the Victory aesthetic. Click here to check out downloadable coronavirus resources from Victory Barber & Brand™ and download them for your shop.
Matty encourages his clients to follow the new safety guidelines by making sure extra supplies including masks and hand sanitizer are readily available. Here are the two areas he paid close attention to:
1. The Front Desk
Matty wants his clients to feel safe as soon as they enter his barbershop. So, he makes sure that the Victory Safe Hands Hand Sanitizer and masks are available at the front desk and at every barber’s station.
2. Client Restrooms
To reiterate shop policies, Matty placed decals on the bathroom mirror reminding clients to wash their hands thoroughly before returning to his chair, and also placed a bottle of BARBICIDE® Spray for clients to use on any surfaces before and after bathroom use.
To cover the extra costs for sanitation supplies and products, Matty charges a mandatory fee of $1.50 CAD to each service.
Click Here To Purchase An Apron From Victory & Receive A FREE Safe Hands!
Since his station is where he has the closest contact with clients, Matty took extra precautions to make sure they feel safe in his chair. Check out how he upped sanitation for every station:
“I only take out the tools I need, that way everything else in the drawer stays sterile and I know exactly what I have to clean at the end of each appointment,” he says. Drawers are also equipped with a wipeable, rubber insert that can be sanitized at the end of each day.
Pro Tip: Matty begins his cleaning process by placing his tools in the UV cabinet first. That way, by the time he is finished with cleaning the rest of his station, the uv cabinet has finished its cycle.
]]>Looking for ways to supplement the extra revenue you’d normally get from double booking and longer appointment times? Look no further than your retail shelves! Ready to learn more? We tapped Victory Barber & Brand™ Founder Matty Conrad (@mattyconrad) to share his tips for successfully reworking your retail space and how to get clients comfortable with choosing the right products. Scroll down for some serious retail therapy.
Disclaimer: Although most safety guidelines discourage clients from sampling and touching products, you can still implement the tips below and download safety signs to hang in your retail space for communicating with clients!
Clients, especially men, can feel insecure talking about their hair care needs, so asking permission to look at products or check out a certain area of the shop, can be a huge turn off. Below, Matty shared his tips to make your retail space more inviting AND noticeable:
Pro Tip: Always make sure the retail area and products are clean and dust-free. “Nobody wants products that have been sitting there,” says Matty.
During busier hours, take notice of where clients gravitate to when checking out retail. Is there a shelf or section that is getting more love than the others? Utilize these high-traffic areas to push specific products. For Matty, products include:
Pro Tip: To get even more traction, place these products at eye-level. This way, they will get the most attention naturally.
Remember, clients are coming to a barbershop, not a warehouse. Don’t overload a retail space with excessive products that need to be sold, it is unwelcoming and overwhelming to the average client. Instead, showcase what is available (leave some back stock!) and fill in empty space with design elements that fit your shop’s aesthetic. For Matty, this included small wooden boxes and of course—a bronze trophy statue.
Where’s the best place to talk about products? For Matty, it’s behind the chair. “When styling, talk to clients about why you chose this product, what it is doing to help create their style and educate them on how to use these products at home,” he explains.
After giving clients all of the information they need to recreate their style, Matty will take them to the retail area, but that’s where the sales pitch stops. “I tell them, ‘If you want to check out any of the products used today they are right here.’ Then I walk away, I always let them make the decision about purchasing and I don’t pressure them or tell them this is something they need because I don’t want them to regret it later. It’s all about their experience and pushing them into a sale can make them uncomfortable and not come back,” says Matty.
]]>Shop/Suite Owners: It’s time to reopen your salon and get back to work, now what? At least in the short term, the way we operate our businesses will need to change—don’t be scared, get prepared—to protect the safety of our clientele, staff and ourselves. We need to acknowledge that our clients are coming back to us with new expectations, and possibly some reservations, so we can proactively implement plans that reduce risks and prioritize safety first.
We are working closely with Leslie Roste, BSN, RN—Barbicide® National Director of Industry Relations and Education—who specializes in infection control and chemical safety, to provide you with tools that will help your salon business. Let’s do this, fam!
Implement a rigorous cleaning and disinfecting schedule that outlines the responsibilities and expectations of every staff member.
Click here to purchase Safe Hands Hand Sanitzer from Victory Barber & Brand!
Reduce risk by implementing contact-free payment and scheduling systems to protect the safety of salon staff and clients.
Stylists should never feel pressured to get someone in their chair quickly, without enough time to properly disinfect their stations.
Both your clients and staff members will appreciate you prioritizing their health and safety first.
Your clients have new expectations of you, so let them know how you are going above and beyond to exceed them.
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Barbershop and suite owners, we know you’re ready to get back to business (doing what you love most!), but there is some important preparation that need to happen first. The reality is, when we get back into the shop, the virus will still be here. That’s why it’s essential that we get prepared ASAP and act diligently to make our spaces as safe as possible BEFORE we reopen our doors—but, where to start?
We are working closely with Leslie Roste, BSN, RN— Barbicide® National Director of Industry Relations and Education—who specializes in infection control and chemical safety. Here’s why: To provide YOU with helpful guidelines, checklists and information!
Keep reading for everything you need to know about cleaning and disinfecting your salon prior to reopening, then download a salon checklist that will guide you every step of the way!
Click here to purchase Safe Hands Hand Sanitzer from Victory Barber & Brand!
The short answer—everything. Prior to reopening, it is imperative that you thoroughly clean and disinfect everything in your work space. Let’s break down some important info on disinfection vs. cleaning, what it means to properly disinfect and how to make sure you don’t miss a spot.
Cleaning vs. Disinfection
The difference between cleaning and disinfection? Disinfection kills germs and cleaning does not. Cleaning an object or surface will remove/reduce germs, dirt and impurities with soap and water. Disinfecting actually kills the germs on surfaces and objects, but this is KEY—disinfection only works on a clean object, so you must do both!
Non-Porous Materials Require Cleaning + Disinfection:
Porous Materials Cannot Be Disinfected, But Can Be Cleaned:
Important Note: Read your product labels. No product will be labeled for COVID-19 yet, but many will have human coronavirus efficacy either on their label or available on their websites.
What is contact time? “[It] is the amount of time that the chemical disinfectant must be in contact with the surface to inactivate or kill all pathogens on the surface,” shares Leslie. “It is also referred to as ‘wet time’ because it refers to the amount of time something must be immersed or wet.” Contact times vary widely—most commonly, between 2 to 10 minutes—so make sure to check the disinfectant’s label.