Creative HEAD UK Christmas 2020

Chair renting may seem like a big winner, but Simon Harris, founder
of Mysalonmanager, has seen many businesses burned by it. “The
problem is that historically ‘self-employed’ hairdressers who work on
a percentage commission split are not recognised as self-employed
by HMRC, as under these circumstances the relationship is viewed
as one of employer and employee rather than an independent
contractor,” he warns.
But if you do want to rent out your empty chairs, Mysalonmanager
members have exclusive access to a calculator that produces a
fi nancial model that works for both the chair renter and salon owner,
and keeps you compliant with regulations. “It can be an additional
revenue stream for a salon that has spare capacity for stylists whom
they have been unable to recruit under an employed model. We also
can produce a legal chair renter’s agreement personalised for each
situation,” he adds.
We’ve seen salons branching out and trying something new, and
reaping the attention and benefi ts from it. Rob Czlapka, owner of
RCNQ in Manchester, was happy to showcase the recent wigmaking
course he’s been on to broaden his repertoire of skills to offer
clients. Whether it’s investing in extensions, in wig services, in beauty
services – if you can’t use your space as you did before, how else can
you make it work for you?
Paul Percival
Owner, Percy at Percy & Reed
“READY is our new service that’s all about bringing our
expertise direct to clients’ homes. We’re known for our
creative colour and cuts, and that creative aspect is the
most important thing when something is more bespoke for
clients. What we’re offering is a platform, a proper booking
service for home visits with a much more personal touch,
and a lot of intelligence. Clients don’t necessarily know who
they’re booking in with, but they know the level of service
they’re going to get, they’re buying into the brand.
“It all started from talking to a couple of assistants last
July, and remembering that when I was an assistant you
were always basically juggling between trying to do amazing
creative work and paying bills. Stylists are signed off by us
– and it’s as much attitude as abilities – and they can go on
READY to enter the hours they would like to work. Clients
get access to creatives from a world they probably wouldn’t
be able to tap into normally… someone to come to your
house who might have been doing a pop star’s hair the
other night! Everyone will be vetted, capable of doing the
basics as well as the creative. READY has evolved from its
original idea, but it’s key now that there are people that don’t
want to come into the salon. So, from a business point of
view, it seems sensible to offer to our clients.
We also want the whole thing to be as
green as possible, so we’ve paired
up with an amazing electric scooter
company, too.”
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