Wella red business network live celebrates its 25 year anniversary in style

The Wella RED Business Network Live event is renowned for delivering an annual burst of inspiration and is without doubt one of the greatest motivational events in the hairdressing calendar. This year marked the 25 year anniversary of this iconic event, and more than 200 guests, including Wella RED members, salon managers and owners, headed to the West Midlands for two days of motivational speakers, networking and business building. Wella RED Business Network Live is a firm favourite with the Wella family and this year was no exception. Throughout the two days delegates enjoyed the perfect balance of inspirational content delivered by exceptional motivational speakers, networking with likeminded managers and business owners as well as plenty of entertainment. Industry influencer and podcast host, Dom Lehane, hosted the two-day conference, whilst Wella’s Senior Director Sales and Education UK & Ireland, Tatiana Suvorova, welcomed guests. “A year ago, I stood here and promised you a business networking club to help grow your business, and we made RED happen. This year celebrates 25 years of Business Network Live and I believe this is the best hairdressing event in the calendar. I hope that in the coming days we can find time to inspire and motivate each other.” The line-up of guest speakers was an impressive mix of business entrepreneurs, an adventurer, a customer service expert, a communication coach and an Olympic athlete. Each speaker had a compelling story to tell, with anecdotes that contained plenty of life changing advice, both on a professional and personal level. Highlights included a thought provoking talk from entrepreneur Priya Lakhani OBE, whose diverse career enabled her to share plenty of business building advice with the audience. “As a business owner you only ever feel two things, euphoria, and terror. My message to you is either disrupt or be disrupted,” she said. Communications coach Richard Newman delved into the way guests communicate with their teams, with practical advice on ways to improve team engagement. An interesting session with author and entrepreneur Sam Conniff Allende spoke about ‘being more pirate’, doing things differently and breaking the rules to make change for the better. “There are only two things that stop people in business. Fear and admin. If we continue to follow the same rules, then we are dealing with the past. Rule breaking is not the risky way to act, it’s the responsible way,” he said. Bringing the conference back to the reality of salon life, salon owners and business gurus Collette Osbourne, Salv Mule, Anya Dellicompagni, Carole Taylor and Liz McKeon led an interesting panel discussion, covering topics ranging from price increases to team resilience and retention to deposits. A powerful presentation from Olympic rower Sir Steve Redgrave touched on topics such as perseverance and teamwork as he talked through his story of becoming an olympic athlete. “To be the best you basically have to train more than everybody else, do more work than everybody else and try harder than everyone else. Try spinning everything on its head and think about what steps you need to take to get to where you want to get to,” he said. Other guest speakers included Caspar Berry whose spoke about risk taking, decision making, and embracing uncertainty, whilst customer service expert Linda Moir shared her top tips having previously headed up the award winning customer service at Virgin Atlantic. “When crew satisfaction goes up, the customer satisfaction goes up. Create the culture inside the team that you want customers to see,” she said. Finally, adventurer and expedition trailblazer, Oli France, relayed his life experiences and his moving journey to conquer his dreams. “Everything is a matter of perspective and we have the power to change it. The thing we rarely consider is the risk of not even trying. So many of us have hopes and dreams, and what a tragedy it would be if we didn’t fulfil them. Sometimes the only thing that is stopping us from success is us,” he said. To celebrate its 25 year anniversary in true Wella style, delegates tucked into an evening of celebration with cocktails, a 360-degree photo booth, dance simulator, poker table and entertainment from a close-up magician, before enjoying a celebration dinner and dancing into the early hours. The Wella RED Business Network Live 2023 event delivered the perfect combination of business inspiration and networking opportunities, with plenty of inspiration to take back to the salon and make 2023 a great year in business.