3 Essential Steps to Approach Premium Salons
As a distributor, getting into the business of hair industry might require you to choose between the professional line and the retail one. When you choose the professional line, standing in front of you are branches of professional category which will become your target market. This article will introduce you to the land of premium salons and the 3 essential steps that you need to know to before choosing them as your business partners.
- Understand the Market
The initial step of approaching premium salons is basically the same with every initial step of a business, which is to understand your target market and its universe. The importance grows from the need of mapping out the whole business journey before making the first step in order to have a clear picture about what you are going to do and how do you want to do the business. As salon cultures differ from one country to another, developing strategy that works with the country’s market situation is very crucial.
Regardless, some basics that are generally important in understanding market, which also apply to understanding premium salons are the market size, preferences, and also competitors. Knowing the first two will allow one to totally grasp what’s needed in the market and the possible gaps that can be filled in. As premium salons are affiliated with premium class of services, their preference in service types, fashion trends, or even ingredient trends is most likely different than regular salons. And as a trend usually does not stay long, decoding the specific preferences and implementing the actions really require fast thinking as well as fast moving. In addition to the first two aspects, being able to read the competitors’ move is also a piece of puzzle that will bring the complete business picture. Being a distributor to salon, stealing the heart of salon owners is a competition. A salon can be loyal to one particular brand and deem itself associated with the brand. Looking at how the competitors are doing will give comparison on what’s successful or failed, and it is an essential ammunition in creating a strategic approach.
If we have to draw a line between premium salons and regular salons, the biggest gap that should be addressed would be their customers’ different profiles. No matter how good a regular salon is, a premium salon is not called premium simply for its premium standard of services and facilities, but also because it is “dedicated” to serve premium customers who are more than willing to pay high price to simply look good. Customer profiling is part of understanding the market of salons as, again, different country and different area have different characteristics of salons and this also applies to their customers’ characteristics. Another reason why this is important is because a demand in the market works ‘push and pull’. A market demand can emerge from the increased demands from customers, resulting varieties of demands from one salon to another, even between the premiums.
- Know the Pattern
Every country has different festive days and some got different seasons. The euphoria of festive days and certain seasons usually is translated as seasonal hair trend by salons. Some salons give seasonal discounts and provide certain package as part of their promo. For example, during Chinese New Year salons in China might be heavy with promo to greet the festivity, and there might also be some common hair trend that Chinese people usually demand during the time as part of the celebration. This example shows that just one single event can have so many opportunities for salons to explore their relationship with customers.
As a distributor, you can own those moments too and maintain relationship with salons. By knowing salon habits during certain moments of the year, you can arrange your strategy following the trend. One country might be heavy on straightening during the beginning of the year, but heavy on treatment in another season. Paying attention to the general pattern of the salons will give you a chance to tap into them.
- Provide Premium Support
The high demand of premium-ness by salon customers automatically leaves salons with responsibility to always maintain their standard. As a form of support, a distributor can provide high-quality marketing support to the salons. Ensure that the quality meets the required level and align them with your marketing agenda.
The last but not least important in how to approach premium salons is by giving products with high quality and have met certain standard of safety. Salon customers nowadays are not only beauty-conscious but also health-conscious. If you are an international distributor, choose products that are considered safe internationally, and choose a company that support international shipment and marketing.
