Salon Retail Reasoning
Want to create a retail area in your salon but aren’t sure the best way to go about it? Or maybe you’re struggling for space and don’t know how to incorporate retail into your existing space?
Whatever your dilemma, our retail expert Matthew Lutos, managing director of Vision Salons, has the answers. Here he tackles some of the most common questions when it comes to creating a salon retail area…
I have an existing salon retail area that is not doing particularly well, but I don’t have a huge amount of stock. Could this be the reason why are stock levels that important?
Absolutely – stock levels are a major factor and you should always have your retail area well stocked with a wide variety of different professional products to choose from. It is really important that you look like you are open for business and that you have the image of a professional retailer. You are never going to achieve this unless you are well stocked up.
Fully stocked shelves with variety invite people to reach out and buy, whereas shelves that are low on stock and minimal will look like a display that’s not for sale. People won’t buy from something that looks like a display but they will buy from something that looks like a professional retail area. Look at supermarkets and department stores and the way they display their products- there is a reason why they pay people to constantly fill the shelves. And ensure variety.
I don’t have prices on my products because I’m scared the price will put people off and stop them from buying. Am I right?
Actually the worst thing you can do is not price your products. Think of any other professional retail outlet and imagine if they did not price things. Instantly you would buy less because you would be too embarrassed to ask or would not be able to make an informed decision without the price knowledge. Research has shown that out of all the people who do nut buy professional products from a salon, more than 70% of them do not do so because they do not know the price.
In the UK in particular we do not like to ask how much something is, because we do not want the embarrassment of declining the purchase and looking as if we cannot afford it. My recommendation to salons is to buy a nice piece of acrylic and use it to display prices on. By pricing everything you are also immediately delivering the message that you are open for business.
Should I be displaying information about the salon products or is that not necessary? I don’t want to put people off with information overload…
Always display information on the products and don’t be afraid to educate people. In salons the retail area is usually by the waiting area/reception, so often clients have a few minutes to browse. Giving them information on each product is simply giving them a reason to buy that product- people need solid reasons to pay a considerably higher price for your professional hair care products. You need to make your retail area active and the only way you will do that is by clearly pricing and pointing out the benefits of each product. This should always be kept simple and concise- don’t blind clients with science, but simply tell them in bullet points or in a few words what the product does and who it is suitable for. By doing this you are instantly connecting with them and giving them reasons to buy.
Research tells us that over 75% of people buying in hair and beauty salons make their decisions in the salon at point of retail. People don’t tend to think about it and come back so you only have one chance to make a convincing proposition about the product’s benefits. After all you are asking them to often pay three or four times the price of a hair product in a supermarket. So education on professional products benefits is critical.
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