DAY TWO: MAINSTAGE (part 2) #SalonSmart19
After a delicious and fruitful Working Lunch, stars of Trevor Sorbie salons came together back down at the Salon Smart mainstage for Salon Smart’s much-coveted Team Talk session, during which an expert trio discussed how to run a heritage brand while still keeping things fresh.
Kick-starting the conversation was art director Tom Connell, who discussed the importance of an art team in determining a brand’s aesthetic.”The benefits of an artistic team and the creative edge it brings? It provides an authenticity to your brand,” he said.Indeed, the art team can set the bar for how your business looks from every angle. “From the teaspoons a client uses to stir their coffee, to the images seen on the screen at a huge event, these things can all be determined by a strong art team”.
Plus, an art team will also keep your staff feeling excited about the industry and being creative – no matter what level they’re at. “We avoid a hierarchy in the art team,” said Tom. “It’s given the younger team members an idea of possibility and spread the attitude of ‘I’m only one idea away from being on stage!”
General manager Bree Davie continued on the theme of a fluid hierarchy at Trevor Sorbie, revealing that Trevor himself will pitch in and sweep the floor or make a cup of tea if necessary. She also underlined the importance of continuous assessment within the salon group. “Our approach is to constantly evaluate the business,” she said. “What worked last year won’t necessarily work this year.”
And Bex Ohta, communications manager at Trevor Sorbie, emphasised the importance of knowing both your guest and your brand: “Don’t forget to keep looking at your customer data to get a flavour for them and to be able to tailor your marketing output”.
Talk about a wide-ranging career! Spanning movie sets and celebrity colour, to session styling with giants of the industry, our superstar Salon Smart interviewee, Nicola Clarke, has come a long way from a 13 year old from Billericay who was convinced that hair was the career for her. Her whirlwind interview with Creative HEAD editor Amanda Nottage began with her formative years spent, learning the ins and outs of all aspects of styling at the likes of the Barclay Hotel and Andrew Jose. Nicola found herself being “dragged out of the salon to do all of the styling jobs”, which, as it turned out, was a stroke of luck as it was on one such job that she met her idol, Sam McKnight. “He was my God. It was a lucky chance I got to meet him. I chased relentlessly until I became his assistant.”
With Sam came the introduction to the likes of Kate Moss, who remains a loyal client even now, along with a whole host of mega-watt stars including Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett and Kate Winslet. Before she knew it, Nicola was regularly jetting off to colour and style for hit films including Shakespeare in Love and The Beach. “It wasn’t my intention to do film, Gwyneth dragged me in,” she said with a laugh. Paltrow had recently chopped all of her long locks off for Sliding Doors, which meant Nicola had to learn fast how to make extensions, colour and styling work for film.
It’s a career which has seen her make a lot of personal sacrifice. “There’s no nine to five. I work Monday to Sunday. It’s not being able to make it to funerals, to weddings, to parties. I’m dedicated to my work,” she admitted. It was this dedication which actually saw her hesitate when offered her dream – her own salon under John Frieda. “The thing I love about John is that he never takes anything for himself, he encourages it for you,” Nicola mused, remembering how he badgered her for close to a decade about opening her own space, yet baulking at the same level of dedication and responsibility for herself being applied to a whole group of staff.
In the end it was Will Smith of all people who convinced her – or rather, a video on Facebook of him hyping himself up to jump out of a plane. “I was shitting myself about taking responsibility for other people’s lives. When I watched that video I realised that the jumping is the scariest thing. After that, what’s the worst that can happen?”
Heading up the salon has seen her really change her approach to team work. “Ask for help,” she advised, adding that “over the years I’ve always been quite self-contained, I haven’t really asked for advice. But coming into this, I realised you can’t do everything.” Indeed. Surrounding herself with likeminded creative souls, such as the recent announcement that Zoë Irwin will soon be joining the team, has seen Nicola Clarke for John Frieda flourish as one of the go-to salon spaces in the UK.
When questioned about the government’s cuts to training provisions for apprenticeships, the NHF’s Hilary Hall was sanguine, explaining that the expectation was that employers would negotiate with training providers on better costs, something they’re not willing to do in case it impacts the quality of education provided. “The government simply didn’t realise how much all this was going to cost,” she said of the various changes to modern apprenticeships and how they are funded. “It’s the age-old problem there’s just not enough money.”
When asked what one thing she would love to change for the future, Hilary urged salons not to forget older people who want to come into hairdressing as a career later in life. “And it’s a happy industry – let’s celebrate that!”
Carolyn Sweeney, founder of Creations salon, urged the industry to get serious about investing in people: “We have to build that into our financial plans, and that means charging higher prices.” She also talked about the need to excite young people, who often want to get hands-on straight away. “We have to make it interesting. We have a pre-school club where students come once a week to play with hair, and we show them the opportunities that are possible.”
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