HJ VOICENOTES

Director of Hair Management in Warwick, Stephen Morley talks team longevity – he has a team of 12 with a combined service of 168 years!

STEPHEN MORLEY

I MEET MY TEAM MOST DAYS. IF YOU’VE GOT A PROBLEM, COME TO US FIRST. WHEN IT’S A SMALL PROBLEM, DON’T LET IT SNOWBALL. UNLESS YOU’RE OPEN AND HONEST WITH ONE ANOTHER IT’S NEVER GOING TO WORK.”

I’ve been running my business since 1967. I was 21 when I set up. Back then it was called Stephen Morley Hairdressing. I was a great hairdresser, but not a good businessman… yet.

Ten years after I opened, my wife and I married, and I realised I had to step the business up a gear. Things turned around when we met Lesley Spears, who was the founder of 3.6.5 salon education. We were amongst the first 50 people to join 3.6.5. and Lesley trained us – he called it a business club for hairdressers. It was a huge success. We wouldn’t be where we are now if it wasn’t for his guidance and the programme. We continued to meet up in groups three to four times a year. It was a real support system. I always said that we learnt as much in the bar as the conference rooms!

You need that kind of outlet as a business owner, someone to share the same problems and commonalities with. We have had issues over the years, but always found support.

We had five salons at one stage, and we’re at one salon now as we wanted to simplify our lives. I put part of our success down to our fabulous manager who has been with us over ten years. She’s also our part time receptionist, which I believe makes her the best type of manager. She looks after guests and clients, and the team.

I’ve always had people who have taken on multiple roles. Another member of the team we’ve had 15 years, and she’s brilliant at thinking about the little touches that set us apart like the coffee and snacks we serve, to the latest treatments. We have an amazing re-booking rate of 67% thanks to our team. I think part of this is the personal service. Three of our clients get picked up for their appointments, I drive them from doorto-door. They’ve been loyal to us over the years, so we want to help them now.

We have always had a fantastic relationship with our suppliers too, and received great education from them. We are an education-led business. We treat brands with respect, we pay on time, we don’t create arguments. It all helps to keep the business booming. When someone comes to sell something to me in the salon, I always ask them about what education they are providing as my team always ask. They are engaged and want to learn. We hold regular team meetings and education days. I’m a great believer in communication. I generally meet my team most days. If you’ve got a problem, come to us first. When it’s a small problem, don’t let it snowball. Unless you’re open and honest with one another it’s never going to work.

We used to have our own training school which is a great way to build a team – I look around the local area and see how many competitor salons’ stylists we’ve trained! A lot of the time we train our staff, but employing people from outside of the academy is a great way of telling people what it’s like on the outside – and that the grass isn’t always greener!

I would never profess to be perfect, but we aim to continually go the next step, even if it’s a little one.