Let’s call out the kangaroo in the room: Ireland is a long way from Australia. Nobody casually “pops over” from Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, or Perth for a two-day business event… especially when there are flights to book, teams to brief, clients to reschedule, calendars to wrestle, and the tiny matter of running an actual salon, spa, or clinic back home.
But Australian Phorest clients have made the trip, some more than once. They crossed the world, walked into the room, met business owners from across the globe, soaked up the ideas, felt the buzz, and came home with more than jet lag and a camera roll full of Irish scenery.
They came back energised and connected. They came back full of ideas. In most cases, they came back wondering when they could do it all again.
First, what actually is the Phorest Summit?
The Phorest Summit started in 2015 with a simple idea: bring ambitious salon owners together, give them space to think bigger, and send them home with ideas they could actually use. This was to offer salon, spa, and clinic owners sharp thinking, honest conversations, and a healthy dose of Phorest-style craic.
Since then, it’s grown into Phorest’s flagship client experience event. In 2026, we celebrated 10 years of Summit with nearly 650 attendees from across Phorest’s global markets – an increase of 100 attendees year-on-year, and proof that this little Irish get-together has become one of the industry’s most sought-after tickets.
Across two days, attendees hear from world-class keynote speakers, join practical workshops, meet other business owners who understand the beautiful chaos of running a salon, spa, or clinic, and get direct access to the Phorest team behind the product they use every day.
And in 2027, Summit begins a new chapter. After a decade in Dublin, we’re heading west to Killarney, one of Ireland’s most scenic destinations, for two days at the Gleneagle Arena on 24-25 January 2027 for big ideas, better questions, global connection, and a reminder that you’re not building your business alone.
“A fabulous, fabulous place to be”: the Aussie owners who made the trip
One trip could be curiosity, but five trips? That’s a review. Just ask Kristian Tognini from Tognini’s and Hey Hair in Brisbane. Kristian has been with Phorest for eight years, and has crossed the world for Summit more times than most people would cross town for a business event.
“Summit – what a fabulous, fabulous place to be,” Kristian says.
Australian salon owners don’t travel halfway around the world for stale sandwiches, a lanyard, and a few polite networking chats near the coffee station. They do it because something about the experience keeps pulling them back. For many, it’s the feeling that hits once they’re in the room – the rare, energising reminder that they’re part of something bigger than the day-to-day.
Yes, it’s a long way. That’s exactly why it works.
Sometimes, the best thing you can do for your business is get very, very far away from it. Not forever – let’s not send the team into a panic, but far enough to step out of the daily noise, stop half-answering emails between clients, and actually think.
For Australian salon, spa, and clinic owners, the journey to Ireland takes commitment. Flights, cost, time away, team cover – none of it happens by accident. In a year when travel can feel like a bigger decision than ever, that commitment counts. Because once you’re there, you’re there, fully in the room, listening, and surrounded by people who understand the beautiful madness of running a beauty business.
As Stefanie from Organic Ministry in Adelaide put it: “We’re halfway around the world. And we can actually come back and go, ‘Yep, Phorest taught us that these are the features and this is how we can use it… Let’s do it and hit the ground running’.”
That’s the magic of making the trip. The distance creates space, which creates perspective. And in 2027, with Summit moving to Killarney for a more immersive, retreat-style experience on Ireland’s west coast, the destination becomes part of the reset.
You can’t livestream the energy in the room
You can watch a recording of a talk, and scribble down the key takeaways. You can even send your team a “very inspiring, lots to discuss when I’m back” voice note from the hotel lobby… but you can’t livestream the feeling in the room.
You can’t recreate the moment when someone from the other side of the world describes the exact problem you thought only you had, or when the room starts laughing, cheering, swapping notes, and realising, “Oh, it’s not just me.” That’s where the Summit becomes more than an event.
It’s the corridor chats, shared ambition, new friendships, jetlagged-but-buzzing conversations, and yes, the occasional burst of “Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi oi oi” from the Australian team. Not especially subtle, but extremely effective.
Kristan Tognini sums it up perfectly: “For me, Phorest is like a big warm hug. Everyone knows your name. You feel welcomed. You feel like part of the family, and more so you feel part of the wider community globally.” That’s the bit you have to be there for. The agenda gets you in the door, but the energy makes you want to come back.
What Australian owners actually take home
Of course, Summit should feel good in the moment. The lights, the speakers, the conversations, the Irish welcome – lovely. But Australian business owners don’t fly halfway around the world just to feel inspired for 48 hours and then return home with a tote bag and a vague sense of optimism. They need ideas they can use.
That’s where Summit earns its keep. Across two days, attendees dig into the topics that actually shape salon, spa, and clinic growth: client retention, leadership, marketing, team culture, technology, profitability, and what the future of the beauty business looks like when you stop guessing and start looking ahead.
They also get perspective. The staffing headaches, rising client expectations, pressure on profit, fear of falling behind, and constant need to keep the team motivated? Those challenges don’t stop at the Australian border. At Summit, owners hear how businesses across the world tackle the same problems – and often realise they’re not behind, broken, or doing it wrong. They’re simply in business.
Then there’s the practical access. In 2026, 40% of stage time was delivered by Phorest team members, with AMA desks giving attendees the chance to meet the people building the product, ask questions, and get guidance they could bring straight back to the business.
For Karla McDiarmid of Macquarie Medi Spa in Bathurst, that momentum makes a difference. “We’re moving forward and Phorest, I believe, is the right company to help us do that. Growing our team, our business, helping to build our retail sales. I’m excited for what’s ahead.”
The conversation that happens between sessions
Nobody flies 10,000 miles for small talk. But the right conversation, with the right business owner, at the right moment can change how you see the next 12 months. That’s the thing about Summit – sure, the agenda and the speakers and the product sessions all matter. However, some of the best ideas don’t arrive from the stage. These happen over coffee, in the queue for lunch, on the walk between sessions, or halfway through a dinner conversation when someone says, “Oh, we had that problem, too.”
For Australian owners, that makes a difference. You’re not just meeting people from down the road. You’re meeting salon, spa, and clinic owners from across the world who understand the same pressure, ambition, staffing puzzles, client expectations, and “how is it only Tuesday?” energy.
Kristian Tognini puts it beautifully: “I’ve met so many great friends in different salons and spas across the years of coming and it’s just a really great way of seeing what’s happening out there and how to do business better.” Call it networking, if you must. We’d call it finding your people.
Why 2027 is the year to go
If you’ve ever said, “One year, I’ll go,” 2027 is making a fairly compelling case for being that year. After a decade in Dublin, the Phorest Summit is heading west to Killarney. On 24th and 25th January 2027, the Summit lands at the Gleneagle Arena, surrounded by scenery that makes you think bigger, breathe deeper, and pretend your “business trip” wasn’t also a very good life choice.
This move marks a new chapter. Killarney gives Summit a more immersive, retreat-style feel: less city rush, more space to step back and look at your business from a different angle. It also makes sense that the 2027 theme is Beyond. Beyond business as usual, beyond reacting to change. Beyond wondering what AI, shifting client expectations, and new technology mean for your salon, spa, or clinic… and into actually understanding how to use them.
As Karla McDiarmid said, “Being here at Summit today, they’re already talking a lot about AI and what’s coming next. Lots of new features and tools, how to benefit the customers as well as the team.”
So, should you come?
If you want a quiet January, maybe not. If you want to stay comfortable, keep your head down, and tell yourself you’ll think about it next year, then sure – Australia is a very long way from Ireland, and no one is pretending otherwise.
But if you want fresh ideas, real connection, a proper business reset, and the kind of experience you’ll still talk about six months later? Then yes. You should come.
Kristan has made the trip more than once. “It is my fifth time this year coming to the Phorest Salon Summit,” he says. “And it just keeps getting better and better every year.”
That’s the thing about Summit. You come for the speakers, the strategy, the product updates, the people, the perspective, maybe even the Irish scenery. But you leave with something harder to pack and much harder to fake: momentum.
No one is pretending Ireland is around the corner. But maybe that’s the point.
