Editorial

Crossing The Line

Rules are made to be broken. At least that’s what two human resources executives believed when they took their master’s degrees and crossed the line to franchised business ownership—franchised hair salons, no less.

Robert (Bob) Bell and Marie Bates, now multiple and growing location owners, each purchased Great Clips Franchises in the Pittsburgh market and never looked back. They didn’t abandon the skills and expertise amassed in their combined 37 years in human resources; instead, they continue to build on their skills, are celebrating their decisions and look forward to what each day brings for additional opportunity.

While owning a franchise is a business in itself, a hair salon Franchise brings multiple dimensions that must be carefully managed. Hair salons are service businesses focused on customer satisfaction delivered from service-minded employees, and successful operations run the scope of understanding human relations, managing human resources and building a business. Who better to handle that combination than highly educated, successful human resources professionals?

Bob Bell’s Chronicle
With a master’s degree in organizational behavior and various vice-president positions in companies beginning in 1982, Bob Bell became a statistic of corporate downsizing in 2003, opted for an exit package and abandoned his position as the director of HR for a large telecommunications company. He did look for new HR opportunities and did some contract HR consulting, but he soon realized that baby-boomers were at the peak of optimum positions. More importantly, Bell realized he wanted more control of his life and schedule.

“A friend was also downsized...outsized...,” says Bell, “and bought a matchmaking company for franchises and potential owners. I served as a ‘guinea pig’ for him in his new business, and the results of a six-page questionnaire revealed seven to eight Franchise Opportunities that piqued my interest.” Bell narrowed the selections to three—hair salon, orthotics retail and HR training. He signed on with Great Clips in 2004.

“I felt Great Clips communications, systems and processes were well defined, and I was impressed with the corporation’s strategy and philosophy—it was clean, exact and had an executive feel,” Bell maintains. “I could be, rather than report to, the CEO. As Mel Brooks said, It’s good to be king,” he adds, laughingly. Furthermore, as a new adventure for Bell , he says the low failure rate and recession resistance for Great Clips franchises attracted him. He did visit with 12 franchisees in his due diligence and was impressed that their views were similar to his own philosophy.

In his year of transition, while consulting in HR, Bell spent much of his time opening his first salon. He had aggressive plans and wanted three salons open in three years—most franchisees open one salon every two years. “I accomplished three in one year,” Bell declares, “and I’m on track to have six by the end of 2007 and 10 by 2010, with some possibly outside the Pittsburgh market.”

He currently spends the majority of his time on business development, site selection and developing managers and management talent. The Great Clips business model encourages multiple-unit owners to have a general [business] manager on board to oversee the day-to-day operations of the salons, so owners can spend more time on the business rather than in it, and Bell concurs. “It’s a steady learning curve in real estate and operations—you don’t know what you don’t know. I’m looking to step out of the day-to-day role and focus on strategy, and I have good general manager candidates in line.” He does, however, participate in most of the hiring, staff meetings and disciplinary reviews to demonstrate full support for and aid in the development of the salon [staff] managers. Bell is in the salons one or two days per week and has 40 employees to-date.

Marie Bates’ Chronicle
Marie Bates held a master’s degree in human resources management with an emphasis on human resources development. She led in multiple corporate positions for 16 years, including areas of performance excellence, HRIS, total quality management and quality/productivity processes. But Bates says she was looking for a different direction in her career and wanted to have her own business without starting totally from scratch. She considered being a training consultant and looked into becoming a dealer for a training franchise. But that was still in the corporate arena and quickly diminished as an option.

“A consultant from FranChoice identified three franchises that could be good for my husband, Bill, and me based on our background, interests and financial resources,” says Bates. “Bill is an information systems consultant with financial aptitude, but I made it clear that I wanted to utilize my strengths in managing people, and I wanted to interact with employees and customers. The three finalists were computer outsourcing, a motor vehicle transmission service and Great Clips.” Even though Bates had no background in hair salon operations, Great Clips aligned more with her interests and skills—she did know about people, customer service and managing a business. She contends she knew that signing with Great Clips was the right choice when the day after committing to the agreements in 2004, she received a call from a headhunter with a job she could have immediately stepped into and felt great telling the recruiter she started her own business and was no longer available.

Stressing that the corporation’s sound process during the due diligence phase led her to conclude that its approach and systems were logical and solid, Bates also says, “The franchisees I spoke with were very willing to help and provided me with good information about what owning a Great Clips would really involve. The financial model made sense, and the risk was within the range we were willing to accept. Overall, the firm values including respect for the stylists, people management and exceptional customer service really appealed to me.”

With her third salon scheduled to open in the fall of 2006, Bates plans to build to 10 salons with two general [business] managers running five salons each. She currently leads her franchises full-time and has two salon [staff] managers, both of whom she is developing for the future opportunity of general manager. A third salon manager is to be hired shortly. Great Clips corporation supports running your business while maintaining another career, but Bates feels that would be difficult for her; as by choice, she is extensively involved in the salons and wants her four-year-old son, Jonathan, to benefit from a mother with only one other focus.

“I can’t picture myself not being involved in the salon—I love to interact with the people—staff and customers,” Bates attests. She views it important that someone is the guide for the business, and she is enthusiastic about developing and actively coaching her managers to learn about business and people management. She offices from home, maintains contact with the salons daily via telephone and a few visits per week, holds management meetings in her home and completely encourages an open-door policy. “My staff knows I am there to make the salon run smoother,” she says. “When I am in the salon, I interact with customers to set a good example of the customer experience; I fold towels and I am the best hair sweeper this side of the Mississippi !”

Skills Transitioned
HR career skills and expertise Bell and Bates both found to be a good fit in changing to business ownership included: recruiting; developing staff managers, employees and business; business operations; negotiation; problem solving; motivation; budgets; finance; hiring and retention. Bell says, “HR people understand rolling down initiatives and strategic function in any organization. I’m learning advertising, marketing and real estate development along the way with terrific support from Great Clips corporation.” Bates agrees that every day brings new challenges and that she appreciates her reliable HR skills in coaching and dealing with people—whether staff, customers or vendors. She also specifically acknowledges the valuable assistance from the corporation during all phases of marketing, salon operations and strategic direction.

On-going Support
It is evident that Bell and Bates value the support offered from Great Clips corporation. But Bates says you need to be willing to use it. “The main reasons to own a franchise are to have the formula and to have experts help execute it,” she admits, “which is what Great Clips does well. In the beginning, you aren’t sure what to expect, but Great Clips resources are always available and willing to help—sometimes if just to verify that your thinking is sound.” Bell ’s view is that solid systems, procedures and on-going training were important to him early on, and he agrees that you expect support with a franchise, but says you can enhance your own business. “As you progress, you understand more and more phases,” he offers. “Realistically you are familiar with operations in one to two years and can fine-tune and grow your business in one to three years.”

An additional advantage for Bates and Bell is the assistance from other franchisees across the markets. The corporation encourages regional owner co-ops, and Pittsburgh has a strong co-op, according to the duo. “It’s like a big family whose members care about and look out for each other,” says Bates. Second-line support also comes from corporately sponsored on-going systems training, leadership conferences and a large annual convention that includes recognition, motivation and education. And proprietary advanced training for Great Clips professionally licensed stylists in one of the corporation’s 70 training centers ensures delivery of quality customer services, current trends and proficient techniques.

An Executive Decision
Smart decisions. That’s what successful business is all about. It is the result of thorough research, leveraging resources and surrounding yourself with proven leaders.

“I would do it all over again,” exclaims Bates. “Having the formula for success, a corporation and field staff to support you, as well as a strong brand, really puts you steps ahead when you open your business. There is always someone able to help you, and you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.” She advises that potential owners make sure their values align with those of a company they are considering, because it’s much easier to be motivated and involved. As a human resources professional, she found Great Clips to be a natural choice, where she can utilize her skills and be involved with people.

Bell adds, “A Great Clips franchise is a great opportunity…good to be your own boss…now you’re responsible. The skills critical to business operations are already there, and HR executives are prepared more than most. My words of advice—if you can, do it 100%. nd if you intend to be aggressive in development and growth, be well organized. I only wish I had started when I was younger!”

With variable approaches to their business operations, the philosophies of Bell and Bates merge. They believe you need to understand the culture you are developing, value your staff and keep a sharp eye on day-to-day operations and strategy for long-term results. “Do today what you can for growth tomorrow—but have fun,” encourages Bell.

The Great Clips Franchise
Established in 1982 and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Great Clips, Inc. has over 2,525 salons and is the largest and fastest-growing haircare salon chain operating under one brand in North America and is well positioned to continue its rapid growth. Market domination is a strategy of the corporation …more units operating in a single market results in greater brand awareness, convenience for the customer and higher individual unit sales. Great Clips CEO Ray Barton says, “Having your hair cut and styled is a necessity, and today’s consumer demands quality, service, value and convenience from a trusted brand. In our segment of the industry, only those companies that are well-managed and positioned for growth will continue to capture market share and dominate their markets. We’ll open about 200 new salons this year, and we’re going to continue that pace of growth for the foreseeable future. I’m pleased to say that Great Clips seeks and finds the best and brightest executives from corporations, as well as franchise owners from other business venues.”

Great Clips salons are conveniently located in strip malls in 138 markets throughout the U.S. and Canada and are independently owned and operated by people like Bell and Bates who possess the human and financial resources necessary to build a successful business.

The franchise’s consumer concept —no appointments necessary for men, women and children to get haircuts and perms at competitive prices — combines three elements: convenience, value and quality. The target market consists of middle class, middle-income families who value their time and are looking for a great haircut at a reasonable price.

Great Clips seeks to set itself apart by making sure it understands what customers want. How does the corporation know what customers want? Last year, it spent a tremendous amount of time and money conducting customer research that resulted in designing a new brand, new television and radio commercials and new print materials for franchisees to use based on what was learned—what the customers said is important to them. Relax, you’re at Great Clips. What does that mean? It means Be Our Guest - No Waits - Listening Counts ™ and is the well-defined and executed brand and strategy to dominate the value haircut segment of the haircare industry.