Inspiration from outside hairdressing

As part of his on-going Fit for Business scheme, Barrie Stephen of four-strong salon group Barrie Stephen Hair, Leicestershire, has been linking up with other local businesses to help motivate his team members to excel.

Here, Barrie offers a rundown of the scheme, outlining what he has learnt so far, and how it is already helping to motivate his staff and benefit his business.

Find business coaches on your doorstep

We pinpointed businesses in our area that we admired for their brilliant customer service or sales techniques, and asked whether one of our stylists could shadow them for a morning. Most were open to working with us. The hairdressing industry is fantastic, but I'm all for widening the team members' horizons and allowing them to see how the basics are done in other successful companies. After each visit, the stylists talk about what they learnt, what they thought was good, and how it can be applied to the salon. That way, the whole team benefits.

Look outside the hairdressing business

We recently sent two team members to an upmarket Mini showroom to learn about selling luxury cars. The product is obviously a lot more expensive than a cut and colour, but the stylists came away totally inspired after time spent with the managing director learning how to clinch sales deals, how to sell themselves, and how to communicate to secure a purchase from the client. We also plan to spend time at a Marriott hotel and an award-winning boutique city hotel, so we can gain ideas from how they welcome and look after visitors.

Be open minded

To experience an environment totally different from hairdressing, we're hooking up with a city farm and a tourist attraction, the Great Central Railway. Our most recent collaboration was with the council-funded project EcoHouse to learn about sustainable business. The idea is to get our team mucking in with work far removed from the daily life of the salon, to give them a fresh perspective and new ideas.

Listen and learn

While beautiful styling and expert service are top of our hairdressing agenda, the nature of the stylist/client relationship often requires us to lend a listening ear to clients' trials and tribulations. Responding appropriately to those who need sympathy and support has never been part of our formal training, so we are sending our stylists to learn first-hand from the medical and nursing staff at the local hospital to understand how sincerity and compassion play a significant role in wellbeing. Interacting authentically with clients delivers an emotional lift that is invaluable, so we want our stylists to return with the motivation and the skills to communicate more compassionately with clients.