THE SALON CONVERTER

Following several years working as vice president of marketing and communications for Mastercard in the Middle East, Karen Hargreaves decided to return to her beauty roots in the UK, investing in her friend’s two Beauty by Barnett salons, in Cheshire.

The pair decided to split the salons into separate entities in March 2016 and Hargreaves refocused her site, moving the emphasis from nails and brows to skincare, thereby transforming her Bramhall salon into a luxury operation with new clientele.

“I knew I would have to invest – in refurbishment, new equipment, branding, stock – and to make staff changes to suit my vision,” she explains. “I was already working with Guinot, alongside other brands, and found the company very supportive. When I heard about the franchise opportunity, I immediately made an appointment at head office. I knew Guinot would bring expertise and knowledge to the table and I wasn’t sure I wanted to do this alone.”

Guinot offers two franchise opportunities – for the conversion of existing salons and for new start-up salons. The conversion took around five months and the new, four-floor, six-treatment-room establishment, fully designed and refurbished by Guinot, now employs seven Guinot-trained staff members. It offers a full treatment menu from facials to nail services.

Financially, Guinot’s one-off franchise fee is £7,500, along with an ongoing management service fee of 2.5% of monthly turnover on all services (excluding retail and VAT). Guinot estimates start-up costs of £35,000 for a typical salon conversion and from £90,000 to £130,000 for a new business. However, Hargreaves says she is already seeing the monetary benefits: “It’s early days but business has already increased by 7% year on year in the last quarter,” she adds.

As part of the agreement, franchisees receive ongoing support that includes recruitment assistance, business planning and tailored training. There’s also ongoing access to Guinot’s national marketing collateral, including six-weekly franchise-exclusive promotions, preferential trading terms and discounts.

“You never feel like you’re on your own,” says Hargreaves. “I am 100% the owner of the business but Guinot is only a phone call away. So, if I have computer problems, for instance, I can phone them for help and don’t have to search for an IT company.

“Becoming a Guinot franchisee has enabled me to streamline my business strategy. I am only able to stock Guinot treatments and products (with the exception of CND for nail enhancements) but this has been a positive. I am not trying to be all things to all people and I am only dealing with one supplier for billing, ordering, stocktaking and promoting – it does make life easier and I now feel like I am going out with a more consistent message to my customers.”

Going forward, Hargreaves is already making plans to open a second Guinot franchise salon. “It’s been a wonderful experience so far,” she concludes.