Phorest FM Episode 115: Charlotte Bradshaw & Leslie Healy On The Power Of Networking
Networking has long been recognised for its many benefits in the business world. It has the power to help you build awareness of your products or services, learn about people you might never have known otherwise and/or meet potential future employers or employees. Knowing more people is usually an advantage: itโs easier to share information and when your network comes together, the power of influence of said group is redoubtable.
To discuss the power of networking in the hair and beauty industry specifically, this weekโs episode features two women with years of experience in the trade: Salonetwork founders Charlotte Bradshaw, who has worked in the industry for the past ten years and Leslie Healy, who hails from a twelve year background in the corporate world.
Guests
Charlotte Bradshaw
A qualified Chartered Accountant with over 23 yearsโ experience managing the finances of numerous companies, Charlotte brought her skillset to the Dylan Bradshaw brand in 2000 and since then, working in tandem with the creative side, has secured a successful position for the Dylan Bradshaw brand in Ireland and international markets.
Charlotteโs financial and business expertise is the driving force behind Dylanโs creative vision. Having steered the commercial growth of the Dylan Bradshaw brand over the past 19 years, Charlotte has overseen the brandโs diversification into retail and developed what has become Irelandโs leading hairdressing education facility, the Dylan Bradshaw Academy.
Charlotteโs continued success has resulted in requests for her consultancy services to salons around the country and she is regularly sought out by business and industry forums to act as a speaker at events.
Leslie Healy
Coming from a background in the travel industry, Leslie moved into the Reward, Incentive and Loyalty industry, primarily focusing on sales. Her natural aptitude for operations became very apparent and she moved into the operational side of the business. With Leslieโs experience in managing client campaigns she moved into the role of Operations Director and transformed a company who outsourced all of their promotions into a company with a self-reliant in-house operations hub, allowing the business to expand.
Having nearly 20 yearsโ experience in the service industry, Leslie started her own Creative, Marketing and Loyalty agency in 2013. This business was a huge success and she moved from a start up to a well-established company with a multi-million euro turnover. Leslieโs success has seen a demand for her to work on a consultancy basis setting up in-house operations systems for companies, both here and in the U.K.
Transcript
Killian Vigna: Welcome to the Phorest FM podcast, episode 115. Iโm Killian Vigna.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: And Iโm Zoe Belisle-Springer. This week on the show, weโre joined by Salonetwork founders, Charlotte Bradshaw of Dublin Hair Salon Dylan Bradshaw, and serial entrepreneur Leslie Healy to discuss the power of networking in the hair and beauty industry.
Killian Vigna: So, grab yourself a cup of coffee, sit back, relax and join us weekly for all your salonโs business and marketing needs. Good morning Zoe.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Good morning, Killian! Interesting topic today.
Killian Vigna: The power of networking, yeah, yeah.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah! Whatโre the first three words that come to your mind when I say โnetworkingโ?
Killian Vigna: Oh, I have to say if you asked me this about two, three years ago, the first three words would have probably been dread, fear and anxiety. But, I like to think Iโve come a long way since, but you know what I mean. Youโve probably been in the same situation at your first networking eventโฆ Thereโs just so many people there, and you donโt know where to go and when youโre on your own, itโs quite hard.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah, not even just the first one. Even last year I was speaking at a conference in Seattle, and it was the first time I had that kind of pressure, speaking at a big thing, and I didnโt go into the speakersโ room because I was too terrified to meet and talk to people. I was standing in corners revisiting my notes or awkwardly looking at the agenda to figure out where I had to go next. Itโs just mad; it does have that impact on you. Now, bear in mind, I did get a grip over myself and managed to pull it off throughout the day and everything and do my talk, and everything was fine. And yeah, I donโt know about you, but Iโve learned over time, especially with the podcast and such and being at the Salon Owners Summit and all those things, there are two things that I try to remember.
No matter what happens โ online is totally different โ but at events no matter what happens I have at least one thing in common with everyone thatโs there; the venue, the food, the whatever is happening on the day. Whether itโs a conference or someone speaking or workshop, whatever it is. And two, I donโt always have to do something. Sometimes you can just sit back, relax and enjoy and some people will make the first move for you. So itโs not always that big of a pressure that you have to put on yourself, and I suppose networking online is even easier.
Killian Vigna: Yeah, I find it funny that your solution is to sit back, relax and chill and embrace it. I found with mineโฆ I get so jittery that Iโve realised instead of trying to calm that down, just embrace it and use that energy and run around and talk to everyone.
Introducing Charlotte Bradshaw & Leslie Healy [02:45]
Killian Vigna: But, absolutely, even since setting up this podcast, itโs improved how we network with people so much. Youโre just so much more comfortable talking to people, and speaking of which, without further ado to chat about the power of networking in the salon industry with the pleasure of being joined by two women with years of experience in the trade. Salon Network founders Charlotte and Leslie, welcome!
Leslie Healy: Hi, guys!
Charlotte Bradshaw: Thanks for having us!
Leslie Healy: Yes, thank you for having us.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Pleasure to have you, thanks so much for being with us on the show.
Killian Vigna: So, Leslie, Charlotte, speaking of networking and meeting people and building those relationships, how did you guys meet? Because you both come from two different backgrounds, am I right?
Charlotte Bradshaw: We do, we do. We come from completely different backgrounds, and itโs actually, Iโm one of these people who really believes in faith. And Leslie was a mom, actually, in the school that I would see quite regularly, but never, ever, ever had a conversation like, โHi. Hello. Goodbye.โ Never had a conversation, and I had set up Salonetwork, not what it is now, it was a slimmer version of itself, and I had it set up, and I needed help. And I was actually going to interview somebody to give them a job, to give me a hand, and I was on my way into the school and Leslie was in her car, and when I came out, she was still in her car. And I thought she was waiting to go back in to meet the principal or something. My story, โYou going back in? At least itโs your turn now,โ type thing and sheโs like, โNo, my car is broken down.โ So Iโm a real believer in faith. I ended up talking to her as we waited for the AA, and sheโs normally really glamorous coming up to the school because she was always very corporate.
She had a successful business, and I just said to her, โHow come youโre not going to work?โ And she was like [crosstalk 00:04:28]. Civvies, she was in her civvies, she was actually in workout gear, and I was like, โOh, I havenโt seen you all dressed up in a while, whatโs going on?โ And she said, โOh, I sold my shares,โ so I just sort of, โWhat do you do?โ She was like, โOh God; I donโt want to go back into corporate, Iโd love a startup.โ I was like, โOh my God. You need to come around to the house for a cup of tea.โ So I came around the following day for a cup of tea, and I explained to her what I was trying to do with Salonetwork, and the rest is history!
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Geez, thatโs a really cool story, I didnโt expect that at all!
Leslie Healy: Very romantic [crosstalk 00:05:04]!
Charlotte Bradshaw: Itโs a very romantic story. No but Iโm one of these real, true believers in faith and my husband kept saying to me, because the person I was meeting was in the hair industry and he kept saying โI donโt think sheโs the right fit, I donโt think sheโs the right fit,โ and then lo an behold I had this conversation. And the funny thing is, both of us had the same car, the same year. And itโs never broken down since [crosstalk 00:05:26].
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Wow!
Leslie Healy: Never broke down since.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Love it!
Charlotte Bradshaw: Iโm telling you, itโs faith. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So thatโs howโฆ
What do we mean by โnetworkingโ? [05:31]
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Well, so listen, youโre both in the field of bridging the gap between salon owners to create a network of individuals working together, but what does the word โnetworkingโ mean to both of you?
Charlotte Bradshaw: Okay well, Iโll go first because I like to talk. So for me, I do a lot of networking events because, and like you said earlier on, you get nervous when you go into a room, and you donโt know where to look, and you get really self-conscious. So when I go to a networking event I kind of think, look Iโm taking time out of my day, I really donโt want to do this, Iโm really embarrassed, Iโll just go in, Iโve got a bag full ofโฆ Not a bag full, but a handful of business cards, and I just basically walk in the room. I try to not go with somebody because I find when you go with somebody you kind of hang on to them for a crutch.
So if you go on your own, you have to walk in. So I just go over to the person whom Iโm most frightened of, looking at in the room, and I will just go over put my hand out and go, โHi, Iโm Charlotte. This is what I do, who are you?โ And I just break the ice that way. And I think sometimes when you come across quite confident like that even though I have imposter syndrome myself, but I think sometimes you come across quite confident when you walk into a room, put your hand out and shake them. You know, people are very nice because theyโre all in the same boat.
But I think that networking, for me, is brilliant. Iโve met the most amazing people at networking events, people that you wouldnโt meet in your everyday life. So I think itโs a super thing to do.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: What about yourself, Leslie?
Leslie Healy: I think would have been like Killian where I would walk into a room and tremble and say, โOh God, I really donโt want to talk to most of these people.โ [crosstalk 00:07:10] just because I was nervous about approaching, but I haveโฆ I started in the last couple of years going to a lot more networking events. Iโm putting myself out there, in situations that I wouldnโt normally. And it really, really does work. You do make fantastic contacts, and it is the only way to build your business. And build yourself. And build your own confidence as well.
Killian Vigna: It is interesting because as much as you worry about how people are going to react to you by going over, everyone is kind of in the same situation where theyโre waiting to be approached.
Leslie Healy: Absolutely.
Killian Vigna: So by being that person that can approach someone, youโre probably going to, instead of talking to one or two people, youโre going to end up talking to five or six.
Leslie Healy: Exactly. I think you do look unapproachable if you stand in the corner.
Killian Vigna: [inaudible 00:07:56].
Leslie Healy: Iโm looking over at this spacey person standing in the corner [crosstalk 00:08:01]. You just have to put yourself out there and bite the bullet. Youโll reap the rewards, is what I would say.
Becoming part of a hair and beauty networking group [08:10]
Killian Vigna: Okay, so letโs take it online for a second. Well, not necessarily online, it could be groups as well, but itโs easy to tell someone you need to be part of a networking group, but what does it entail? How do you find your way into one that feels right for you? Does it come down to culture?
Charlotte Bradshaw: Well, I think what you should do is tryโฆ There are great ways of looking for different network events, whatโs going on. And if youโre industry-specific and, for me as you said earlier, my husband is Dylan Bradshaw, and Iโve been in the business for 20 years, and sometimes I think the hairdressing industry is a little bit discombobulated. And also, the beauty industry, when you put the whole industries together like hair and beauty, thereโs not a huge amount of support out there for the industry, hair and beauty as a whole. And there are such talented peopleโฆ I should say, actually before I go any further, my husband is the hairdresser, not me. Iโm an accountant, so I look after the business side of the business. Heโs the hairdresser, so sometimes people would say, โOh, what do you think I should do with my hair?โ Hence the why weโre not on camera at this point.
So for me, being in the business in the last 20 years, I notice thereโs a huge gap in the market for support. So before I went in full time, I went full time into the salon 10 years ago, and prior to that I worked as a financial contributor for the hospitality industry for a guy who had pubs, clubs, restaurants, and I worked for him for 20 years and if I ever had a problem with the restaurants, I had the Restaurants Association and if I had a problem in one of the pubs or clubs, I had the [inaudible 00:09:45] Association.
Now, in hairdressing and beauty, they donโt really have a one-stop-shop for anything, and I just felt there was a huge gap in the market. Because if you think about it, the amount of people that are in the hair and beauty industry in just Ireland, letโs forget about the UK and the rest of the world. Just in Ireland there is an abundance of people. And theyโre all doing their own thing. So can you imagine if you are on a platform, say for example every single one of us in the business, whether itโs hair or beauty, whether youโre a salon owner, an individual, a freelancer, we all need insurance. And weโre all doing our own thing going to individual insurance companies, and there are hundreds of insurance companies out there, and weโre going out, and youโre bantering with them to try and get your insurance reduced, and all of us have been hit by huge insurance costs recently.
And just for that alone, can you imagine if we all came together in the hair and beauty industry, like the whole load of us together? And went to the likes of Aviva or Axa or one of those big companies and said, โOkay, thereโs me, and Iโve got an army of 20,000 people behind me, and weโre all looking for insurance.โ I guarantee you, if you went as a group, you would get a much better deal than weโre getting at the moment. And thatโs what Iโd like to achieve with Salonetwork; itโs to build an army, build a tribe here, get everybody working together instead of as individuals.
Killian Vigna: I think a really good example of that, though, was the recent tax hike there in January and we covered that on the podcast. About getting salon owners together to, I suppose, voice as one because two, three, just a handful of salonsโฆ the governmentโs not going to hear that. But by getting everyone together and having those networking groups where you can reach out to everyone and say, this is whatโs going on, we need that support.
Leslie Healy: Correct.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Yeah! Look, do you know how it is? Do you remember a couple of years ago they did something with the old-age pension, I think they reduced it by a tenner, or they did away with some voucher they were getting. The old-age pensioners were out, and they were striking up Kildare Street banging on doors. Itโs an Irish thing, predominantly they go, โOh, itโs your luck, or itโll be grand,โ but if you can imagine, if we got every single person that was affected, it was only hairdressers because the beauty industry was always 13-and-a-half-per cent. The hairdressers were the only ones that are affected by the 50% increase in January. If you can imagine, if we got all of those people together and put them on the street and marched up to Kildare Street, they would take notice.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah, definitely. So, when we talk about networking, whether it be online or at events, what concretely would be the benefits? Like, do you have any success stories that you could think of that stemmed from the networking part of the connection?
Charlotte Bradshaw: Iโll give you one example recently. So for us, weโve got 36 staff at the moment. I think weโre at 36. And I just worry about the young people coming through, not necessarily just as staff, but I just worry in general about young people coming up today because of the influence of social media and all the outside interferences. And I worry about peopleโs wellness, mental health and part of the site on Salonetwork we have courses and stuff like that for wellness. Just for keeping your mind clear and your body clear and I met a girl at a networking event who owns SpectrumHealth, herself and her husband.
I took her number, went for a coffee and said, โLook, youโre missing a huge trick here, people in the hairdressing industry and the beauty industryโฆ Theyโre stressed, theyโre anxious, it is a stressful job, and younger people coming through are having issues with anxiety and stress.โ I just felt that there was a gap in her market for something to do with wellness for the industry. So, anyway, she came back to me recently with this app, and itโs amazing. I just put it into the salon. Itโs an app. Basically, the staff download it; the company pays for it, the staff download it andโฆ Want for a better word; itโs a wellness app. So, there are recipes, menus; you can measure your weight, your exercise. You also have a call with a psychologist once a week, if you have any issues you might to talk about that you donโt want to talk to your boss about.
There are loads of different options. There are options to book a course, to go on for mindfulness, loads of different things. And that came out of a networking event where I met Angela; it was super. Super event. We just put it into the salon, we launched it on National Wellness Day and the staff are delighted about it. So, thatโs just us looking after our staff, and Iโm sure loads of other people can do it. But thatโs available on Salonetwork, but I definitely think younger people coming through now need a little bit more help than I did when I was growing up.
Killian Vigna: Itโs like that information overload, I think thatโs similar to a book that youโre actually reading at the moment, Zoe, where thereโs just so much hitting us all at once that itโs like youโre not actually understanding things and youโre getting overwhelmed. I donโt know if thatโs whatโs being covered in the book, but thatโs kind of how I feel sometimes, is that thereโs so much information youโve access to, itโs fast and hard, that you almost forget to sit back and take a breath. Like Zoe does before her talks.
The benefits of online and offline networking [14:57]
Killian Vigna: So you guys are predominantly on the online networking area, do you recommend there should still be a mix between going to real physical events or should everything be moving online? Because like you were saying with younger people, the Millennials and stuff coming on, weโre always online, so itโs almost removing that personal aspect?
Charlotte Bradshaw: I do think itโs very important to still have face to face interaction. I think itโs very easy to get to know somebody online, but do you get to know the real person? And I think you only get to know somebody well when you have a face-to-face meeting. So, I think, yes online will be predominantly there, but for Salonetwork, down the road, we will have events that we will be hosting, which will be a fantastic opportunity for everyone within the industry to come together as this community and network together.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah, bringing the online relationship back to the real world, I suppose.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Exactly. Because theyโll know each other, theyโll probably know each other from being on Salonetwork. As we all know, you only show online what you want people to see. You donโt show the real you all the time. So I think this will beโฆ When we do host our events, itโs going to be a fantastic way not to be the one standing in the corner, because youโll have an idea of who these people are already. So you donโt have that, I donโt want to walk into this room on my own because I donโt know anybody. You kind of know people, and itโs going to be a hell of a lot easier.
Leslie Healy: Also, people invest in people. And you canโt get your personality across online all of the time. When you meet somebody face-to-face, people get a different understanding of who you are than you are when youโre online.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Itโs going to be everyone from their own industry as well because theyโre always going to have something to talk about. So itโs not like walking into a networking event where it could be a corporate event, thereโs something slightly in there that you might be interested in, or you do want to network with people. Itโs going to be like-minded people that youโre going to talk to.
Killian Vigna: Yeah, itโs definitely a real benefit. You were saying, where youโd meet on the app, and then youโd meetโฆ arranged to meet up or say, โIโm going to this conference, do you want to meet up beforehand?โ Thatโs such a good example because we saw, with the Salon Owners Summit, I know I saw it myself where weโฆ I think Iโve attended three of them at this stage, but we do this pub crawl and stuff the day before we let salon owners become meet other salon owners or managers or staff because some people bring their teams, other people will arrive on their own. So the first year I went, I met a group of people who were there on their own for the first time, and then the second year they arranged to go to it with people from that same group that they were in the previous year. So, they met at the event but then moved it online, kept in contact and then arranged to go to the next one together.
And then we have the #30Days2Grow campaign whereโฆ This is salon owners from all over the world, and some people ended up arranging to meet up off of it. So you can mix both elements in, donโt just keep it online, donโt just keep it in physical. Mix both.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Absolutely!
Leslie Healy: Absolutely.
The doโs & donโts of salon networking [18:02]
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Iโm curious about this one: how should someone actโฆ Would you say that there are rules and things that you should be doing when you join a networking group?
Charlotte Bradshaw: Most people are voyeurs; they look. As in, they donโt participate. Iโm one of those people. Iโve got social media, and I very seldom post anything to it, my personal one. But Iโll be on it, looking, because I love to see whatโs going on, but Iโm not one of those people who post. Because there is that element of, maybe somebodyโs going to slag me off if I put something up, or maybe if I put something up, itโs not right. Again, as I said, I have the imposter syndrome where I think if I put something up, itโs going to be wrong or itโs not going to be good enough for whatever. So, there are so many people, but I think when you go to a networking event, and itโs face-to-face you canโt hide because youโre there. Itโs different when youโre online; youโve got the keyboard warriors, somebody who will post stuff because theyโre behind the keys and you canโt see, a bit like us today.
But then when you go to a networking event, youโre actually on the floor looking at people, so thereโs nowhere for you to hide.
Leslie Healy: From an online perspective on networking, I think the main thing is, donโt be afraid. Because your opinion matters, no matter what. And itโs never going to be wrong because itโs your opinion. So, I think itโs come out of your comfort zone and make your opinion known and show people that youโre there and you want to be involved. Because the more you put yourself out there, the more people are going to approach you.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: On the flip side of that, then, would you have any top three things that you shouldnโt be doing? Say online, in a networking group?
Charlotte Bradshaw: I think one of the main things is donโt be slagging other people off!
Leslie Healy: I was just going to say that.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Like, you know, if youโre standing in a room andโฆ youโre not going to stand in front of somebody and go, โOh, you think youโre amazing,โ or this, that, whatever. But then I find people online will say it, itโs just nasty, and itโs like they have their bowl of courage this morning, and theyโre sitting at a keyboard, and they feel they can say what they want. And they donโt realise that even though theyโre on a keyboard saying what they want, theyโre talking to a real person. So, itโs quite hurtful. I think they need to be very careful about what they are posting or what they are saying if theyโre a part of a networking group because the world is very small and I can guarantee you, if youโre posting something against somebody else on a networking group, you are going to come face-to-face with those people one day. Thatโs one of the things I would say anyway.
Leslie Healy: Yeah, I was actually going to say the same thing. Just donโt slag anybody off would be my main thing.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Participation is another one. I think what you must not do is constantly talk about yourself. Nobody wants to hear a know-it-all. Somebody whoโs constantly telling you, โOh my God got something amazing coming up, I canโt tell you what it is. Keep posted to my Insta feed or my feed, and Iโll let you know in weeks to come.โ I think people just getโฆ
Leslie Healy: And donโt not comment. Do comment and make them nice, like please everybody else up. As we said from the start, Salonetwork is a community for the hair and beauty world, and we want to create that sense of community for everybody. So letโs look after each other. Letโs pick each other up. Weโre not in competition with each other, so letโs help each other.
Charlotte Bradshaw: You see, thereโs plenty to go around and Iโm not always saying this, if I give an e-talk thatโs one thing I always say, Iโm a big advocate of passing it on. If somebody does you a favour and you do them a favour. I did a favour recently for somebody, and she was like, โLook, I canโt pay you,โ and I was like, โLook, I donโt want to be paid, but if somebody asks you for a favour, pass it on.โ And Iโm a big believer in trimming down the ladder for somebody, so for example, if somebody needs a hand to do something, just give them a hand. Iโm sick of listening to all these women goingโฆ Iโve been at these network events and women going, โOh Iโm such a big advocate for women supporting women,โ and then you ask that said woman for a favour and they basically say no.
That really bothers me. I just think, donโt pretend your something youโre not. I think thereโs room in this world for all of us to make a difference, and thereโs a thing we have in Ireland where, not everybody, but some people have this attitude where they like to see you doing well, but they just donโt like to see you doing better than them. And itโs a terrible attribute that we have here.
Leslie Healy: Itโs a true one, though!
Charlotte Bradshaw: I think people need to help each other out. I think to trim the ladder down, help people get a step up, or if you can help somebody, pass it on. Do a favour for somebody. Thereโs plenty to go around, and I just think this thing that we have where we donโt help each other, especially when it comes to business, it just bothers me. Itโs just one of my pet hates.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah, I love the pay it forward concept, Iโve been applying that to my life for a while now. I think it came from the movie โPay It Forward,โ I was in high school, and it just had a mega impact. And it does make a world of difference, you know? Do a favour to one person and then pass it on to three and then, at some point, you create this ripple of goodness in the world.
Leslie Healy: Yeah, absolutely.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Yeah. Yeah. And thereโs not enough of it!
Zoe Belisle-Springer: I agree, yeah.
Killian Vigna: Oh, God, just had a fear of karma. What if I do something bad, thatโs going to come right around and smack me.
Leslie Healy: [crosstalk 00:23:23] Totally believe in karma. I so believe in karma.
Charlotte Bradshaw: I live my life on karma. [crosstalk 00:23:27] It really does, trust me. It really does.
Salonetwork announcement [23:31]
Killian Vigna: Well, Charlotte and Leslie, thanks a million for joining us on the show. Before you leave, for anyone that does want to find out a bit more about Salonetwork, or get involved, how do they go about doing it?
Charlotte Bradshaw: Okay well, first of all, our website is www.salonetwork.com, itโs free to register. Itโs a couple of pieces of information, and once you register you have your login and then once you get in, thereโs aโฆ You can build your CV first of all. So you can go on and tell people where you work, where you have worked, what courses youโve done. And then you have your little profile, and then weโve got a feed so you can share. Weโve got some great people, very artistic people sharing their work on the feed and itโs great to see it from all corners of Ireland. And then we have a job section, so if youโre looking for any vacancies, if you own a business, or youโre only starting off, and youโre a sole trader, and youโre looking to get an assistant, we have a job section.
We have an events section, so if youโve got something coming up and you want to post it, itโs a commission for your platform, and then we also have a courses section. So if you want to upscale, or you have courses that you perform, you want to put them up to sell them to people. All of that is free. We have memberships where you can upgrade, and when you upgrade to memberships, we have downloadable documents: terms and conditions, policies and procedures, contracts, all that kind of stuff. And we also have a list of suppliers.
So Iโll give you a quick example, orders cost seven, eight grand a year? On our list of suppliers, we have a fantastic [inaudible 00:25:01], Doyleโs theyโre in Drogheda, and they offer a 10% to upgrade to the individual membership and a 20% discount to our Salon memberships.
So say, for example, I upgraded to a premium member, and I get 20% off my orders, which is like 1600 Euros in a year. It costs me 5.95 to upgrade, so Iโve gotโฆ Iโm 1100 quids in. So thatโs just a little example of what it is. Everything else on the siteโs free, so I mean you can access all these suppliers. You donโt get a discount if youโre not upgraded, but the suppliers we have onboard are fantastic.
Leslie Healy: I think one of the biggest things at the moment, though, as well, if you were to upload any events or courses that youโre putting out there, you have to pay to put them up or you get charged a commission. We donโt charge any of that. So youโre targeting all the people within the industry that you want to target, and itโs totally free of charge. So itโs a bit of a no-brainer, to be honest.
Killian Vigna: Sounds like a win/win.
Charlotte Bradshaw: Itโs a greatโฆ Weโve only just launched; weโre only a few months out in the market. Weโre hoping toโฆ Weโre going to the UK at the end of the year, then hopefully further afield next year. So, fingers crossed all goes well. We get support behind us!
Killian Vigna: Thatโs fantastic.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Best of luck with everything. Sounds great!
Killian Vigna: Guys, thanks so much for joining us on the show and best of luck with Salonetwork.
Leslie Healy: Thanks, guys!
Charlotte Bradshaw: Thank you so much!
Inside Phorest: reflections, upcoming events & final words [26:22]
Killian Vigna: So that was Charlotte Bradshaw and Leslie Healy of Salonetwork, and I believe, Zoe, you have an announcement yourself too.
Zoe Belisle-Springer: Yeah, absolutely. Just before we wrap up this episode, we have been working on something on the marketing team at the moment, with Valerie Delforge. I donโt know if you remember, but Valerie Delforge hosted for us last year, six masterclasses. One was around managing staff; then you had managing your salonโs operations, motivating team, HR, recruitment training, handling difficult staff and becoming an exceptional salon leader. So those webinarsโฆ Weโre working with Valerie at the minute, to re-package them in a way that youโll worksheets and workbooks to go along with them. And weโre going to create an email management course for you to be able to access this on a weekly basis. So stay tuned for that. Weโre going to have a promo video on YouTube, and weโre going to talk about it on social media as well as here on the podcast.
And I suppose thatโs all we got for this week guys. So as always, if you want to share your thoughts on this episode or have any suggestions, please send us an email at phorestfm@phorest.com or leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. We genuinely love feedback and are always looking for ways to improve the show.
Otherwise, have a wonderful week, and weโll catch you next Monday.
Killian Vigna: All the best.
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This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Great music makes great moments. Montrealโs cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Tune in every Monday for a mix of interviews with industry thought-leaders, roundups of our most recent salon owners marketing tips & tricks, all the latest in and around Phorest and what upcoming webinars or events you can join.
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