Instant ways to glam up the most mundane salon tasks
Published
29th Jan 2013
by rachael
There are plenty of jobs in the salon that everyone wants to put off - from sweeping the floor to preparing foils and filing away the tax returns.
Unfortunately these jobs are a necessity for a clean, productive salon - but that doesn't mean they have to be boring.
Finding quick fixes and brighter ways to get those jobs done means more time for the fun things - cutting, colouring and creating fantastic show-stopping hair.
Laundry
Doing the laundry is one of the biggest jobs for any salon, but it's an important job and something that clients instantly pick up on - who wants a dirty old towel slung round their shoulders?
Solution: Switch to disposable towels. All the comfort and efficiency of a regular towel, with the added benefit that you can throw it away after use and recycle it.
These days disposable towels look the part too - choose a colour to match your interior, a luxury waffle finish for pamper treatments or extra-large towels for beauty treatments.
Tracey Devine of Angels, Aberdeen says: "Our assistants used to spend long, boring hours on towels - sorting, washing, drying and folding them, which cost money and hit morale. It was hardly the most glamorous job in the salon. They didn't choose hairdressing to work in a laundry. The best thing we did was throw away our noisy, time-consuming dinosaur washer-dryer and concentrate on creating a modern progressive salon with Easydry towels. Our assistants are much happier now spending their time looking after clients and learning the craft."
Mixing colour
Mixing colour might not be boring - you're bringing to life a client's dream or recreating an on-trend look that you love. Still, it's not the most glamorous job in the salon and wheeling out a trolley of plastic pots may not exactly excite your clients.
Solution: At Andrew Barton in London, vintage glass bowls take the place of branded mixing bowls and instead of retreating to a back room, a colour bar takes pride of place in full sight of clients.
Why not bring colour up front and celebrate your technical and creative skills with an open bar where clients can watch the magic happen? At Rae Palmer, the colour bar has stools where clients can sit and enjoy a free consultation while watching technicians at work.
Sorting your kit
Sorting your kit bag out is never fun, particularly after a busy show or trip when pins and grips are everywhere and your bag is full of hair and who knows what else.
Solution: If you haven't already, invest in a toolbox, haberdashery kit or session bag from your manufacturer - basically you want something with LOTS of different sized pockets and compartments.
Visit Lakeland, a pound shop or haberdashers - or do some recycling - and find lidded containers where you can store individual items; different-sized pins in different pots, pouches for grips... anything you can find to make your life easier.
Magnets come in handy too - either for keeping grips in one place when you're out and about, or for picking up loose odds and ends from the darkest corners of your kit bag.
Cleaning
Cleaning is a dreaded job for anyone in the salon but another one that can't be avoided if you want clients to enjoy a sparkling welcome every time.
Solution: OK, so it's not much of a solution but there are ways you can make the job more fun. Why not give everyone in the salon one job that they have to take charge of - stocking up on new magazines, polishing the shelves, sweeping the floor. Sharing the load always makes a job easier and also serves as a great team-building exercise.
Pick up cool cleaning bits in stores like TK Maxx - a leopard print broom and feather-trim rubber gloves make even the most mundane jobs feel a little more fun.
And don't forget that music makes all the difference - download or get the team to compile a cleaning playlist. We love Cleaning Songs and this vintage-themed Spring Clean Soundtrack.
Cutting foils
If your days are filled with cutting countless foils, it's not all bad - you're obviously a colour whizz who's in demand! Still, all that folding and cutting can be repetitive and probably isn't the most productive use of your time.
Solution: Why not consider investing in one of the new breed of automatic foil-cutting machines like the ProCare 24*7? Type in the size and quantity and you're all done - foils cut precisely to size and ready when you are.
And if you want to make the job even more enticing, opt for coloured foils - as well as being practical for keeping track of multi-coloured styles, they'll make things a bit more fun for your client.
