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CREATIVE <strong>HEAD</strong> ADVERTORIAL<br />
All I want f <strong>Christmas</strong> is...<br />
SOFTWARE<br />
TO SOLVE<br />
<strong>HEAD</strong>ACHES<br />
RICHARD AND HELLEN WARD<br />
FROM RICHARD WARD HAIR<br />
& METROSPA REVEAL WHY<br />
THEY TURNED TO SHORTCUTS<br />
TO ENSURE THEIR SALON<br />
RUNS AS SMOOTHLY AS<br />
POSSIBLE THIS CHRISTMAS<br />
THE FESTIVE SEASON is the most hectic time of the year for salons and Richard and his wife Hellen<br />
run one of the busiest salons in the UK, with more than 1,000 clients coming through the doors each<br />
week. They reveal their inspirations and how embracing technology has made their lives easier.<br />
CREATIVE <strong>HEAD</strong>: How has Shortcuts salon software<br />
helped you run your business?<br />
RICHARD WARD: Since we’ve had Shortcuts<br />
it’s changed everybody’s lives in the salon –<br />
especially mine. Like a lot of hairdressers I’m a<br />
technophobe and I was reluctant to take<br />
on software, but we had to do something.<br />
Before Shortcuts, we had appointment<br />
sheets and filled them in by pencil. I<br />
can now log on wherever I am in the<br />
world and see what my day ahead looks<br />
like. Now we can track everything – just<br />
today, I found out with a click that we<br />
have improved our customer rebooking<br />
average from eight weeks to seven.<br />
CH What do you like the most about<br />
Shortcuts salon software?<br />
HELLEN WARD: The back end; I like to<br />
look at the statistics to find out if we<br />
were up and down on takings that<br />
day. I used to have to compile all that<br />
information by hand, so to be able to log<br />
on and see it a glance makes my life so<br />
much easier. It used to take me hours,<br />
calculating average bills and how often clients<br />
came back, but now I can get an instant snapshot<br />
whenever I want.<br />
CH: How has Shortcuts helped your team?<br />
RW: All team members have access to Shortcuts<br />
on their mobiles. There’s no more running<br />
up and down the stairs asking someone<br />
when their next client is in. It really frees up<br />
the receptionists.<br />
HW: Like it or not, stylists are going to have<br />
their phones on the shop floor! You might as<br />
well embrace this. Stylists being able to access<br />
Shortcuts on their phones mean they can look at<br />
their day and find out if their client has arrived.<br />
We used to have to employ someone to do that.<br />
CH: What keeps you feeling inspired?<br />
HW: Two things – music and food. I’m the biggest<br />
David Bowie fan and he’s been a massive<br />
influence on me. I also like to cook as it helps<br />
me unwind and escape from my day.<br />
RW: When you get to my age you realise you need<br />
to keep fit – I have quite a strict regime and I love<br />
running alongside the Thames each morning.<br />
Find out how Shortcuts can help your salon business, call 0161 9724900 or visit shortcuts.co.uk<br />
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