December 6, 2022 • 34 mins
Michelle Holliman, Vice President of Franchise Development
futureoffranchising.com/podcast/ep-209
Michelle Holliman’s work within the franchising industry dates back to 1997. Throughout that time, she built experience by working for the parent companies of well-known brands such as Heavenly Ham, HoneyBaked Ham, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Planet Smoothie and P.J.’s Coffee. Michelle served as the Director of Franchise Development for Pigtails & Crewcuts before being promoted to Vice President of Franchise Development in 2017. In this role, Michelle evaluates prospective franchisees to help them determine if owning a Pigtails & Crewcuts salon is the right investment choice.
Our Values
At Pigtails & Crewcuts, we strive to be honest, fair, and be a business known for its integrity, and we seek owners who value the same things. We have a wealth of knowledge within our franchise leadership team, as well as seasoned owners eager to share their experience with the newest members of our franchise family. We’re all in this together to help you achieve success.
When Wade Brannon’s children visited Pigtails & Crewcuts, they immediately fell in love. Brannon had retired from a successful career in the franchise industry a few years before so he could spend more time with his family but saw great potential for the concept to grow with the increasing demand for services that cater to families with young children. He also saw it as a great opportunity to create a business that would allow its franchisees the family time that seemed to be missing from many existing opportunities and knew there would be owners who desired the same thing. Brannon was ready to head back to work in the franchise industry, and as fate would have it, the original owner of Pigtails & Crewcuts was ready to sell the salon.
What We Believe In
In addition to offering the best work-life balance possible, we seek to be honest, fair, and to be a business known for its integrity, and we want owners who value the same things. Being a part of the local community is also important to us, and we encourage our owners to get involved where they are. We also encourage philanthropy, either locally or nationally, to contribute and make a positive impact in the lives of others.
We’re a family and we’re all in this together. If you’re ready to join a fun franchise that will give you the support you need to be successful, we’re ready to talk to you!
First Haircut Package
Your child’s first haircut is an important milestone! Our first haircut package includes a souvenir card with your child’s name, the date of the haircut, a lock of h air and a photo to take home, so your family can look back on this day and smile.
Franchise Friday, where you can watch or listen as we explore franchising, entrepreneurship, and small business ownership, speaking with the franchise industry thought leaders and subject matter experts that shape the Future Of Franchising. #FranchiseFriday – For more about our podcast, visit our website: https://futureoffranchising.com/ Produced by Franchise Source Brands International and The Entrepreneur’s Source.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Unknown (00:13):
Hello everyone was a pang here with the entrepreneur
source. So happy to be here withMichelle Holloman, who is with
pigtails and crewcuts. Welcome,Michelle. So glad to have you.
Hi. Hi, Melissa. Thank you forhaving me. I'm so excited.
Absolutely.
I'm looking forward to ourconversation today. So, listen,
you've been at pigtails andcrewcuts. For a while I
(00:37):
basically since it startedfranchising, so definitely want
to dive into all of that. Andyou and I have been working
together now for several years.
I know, pigtails. And crewcutshas been a member with the
entrepreneur source. And it'sbeen fantastic, lovely working
with you and your team. We'llget into because we want to
know, you know, the team thatyou've built and the culture at
(00:58):
pigtails and crewcuts. Butbefore we jump into all that, do
you mind giving a little bit ofbackground on how you got to
pigtails and crewcuts? And yeah,where you're this little story?
Sure, sure. So after college, Imoved to Atlanta and started
(01:18):
working for a company calledheavenly ham. And it's a
national franchise supply chain,you know, specialty ham,
specialty meats. The principleof that company, one of the
principles was wait, Brandon,who is now the owner of pigtails
and crewcuts. So, onceHoneyBaked Ham acquired pigtail,
or I'm sorry, HoneyBaked,acquired heavenly ham, way, kind
(01:41):
of semi retired and I continuedworking with him HoneyBaked Ham,
and then I kind of moved toother other franchise companies
along the way. And then Wade,met the original founder of
pigtails and crewcuts, back in2003. And she approached him and
(02:01):
asked about, hey, I want tofranchise this. And he acquired
pigtails and crewcuts. And thenhe called me and he was like,
Hey, let's get the band bandback together. Let's start
working together. So I have beenwith pigtails and crewcuts.
Since day one, this Februarywill be probably I think, 18
years. So wait, and I have beenworking together for over 25
(02:22):
years. And it's been great. He'sa great boss. He's a great
leader. And so yeah, I've beenwith pigtails and crewcuts.
Since day one, Ifind that that in and of itself
is so so exciting and fun,because I it is sometimes rare
to find someone who's been witha brand for so long, and
especially since its inception.
(02:44):
So what was it about? I mean,you'd worked with Wade for a
year, like several years priorto what wasn't built in
crewcuts, that you were like,You know what, I am really
excited about this. And thenwhat is it that has kept you
going over the past18 years and well, I love
franchising. Franchising isjust, it's the great model, you
know, meaning it's somethingthat and I've done franchising,
(03:07):
I've worked with franchisecompanies that, you know,
HoneyBaked Ham, it's a largefranchise company, and then, you
know, heavily Ham was a littlesmaller, and pigtails and
crewcuts. And so it's that, thatemerging brand that's so
exciting. But it's also ourbrand is very unique, because
it's a kid's hair salonfranchise. And so the industry
isn't large, but it'sfragmented, it's recession
(03:31):
resilient, we've gone through arecession in 2007, and then a
pandemic, as well. So and we'restill surviving, we're still
showing great numbers, we'rereally having a great time. But
also, it's, it's about the kids,you know, pigtails and crewcuts.
It is a kid's hair salon, thatyou walk into, not something
(03:54):
that wasn't around when I wasyounger. And when a kid walks
in, they see the brightlycolored walls, those themed car
chairs, that we want to make ahaircut fun and memorable. And
it's not just for the kids, butit's for the parents too. We
want to make sure that theexperience is top notch. And so
that is something that is alwaysexcited me because one I like I
(04:16):
enjoy kids and I tell people youknow, to work, you know, in this
environment, whatever you haveto kind of like get it's not
just your own kids, but you gotto like kids, and also it's just
people spend money on theirkids, and everybody needs a
haircut. So it's somethingthat's just always welcomed in
every community in every marketand so we're seeing great
(04:38):
results and we're really I'mreally excited and I just love
the people that I work with andjust the brand as a whole on
that. No,I was looking at just some of
the different franchisee storiesand testimonials, and even Wade
story and of how we came toacquire pigtails and crewcuts
and one little red A thread thatI did see several times
(05:00):
throughout was a lot of thesefranchisees said, the support
was phenomenal. And like this,the culture of the the franchise
leadership team really kind ofdrew me in. That's what kept me
there. That's what keeps megoing. So, you know, kind of off
of what you're saying there aswell, like, how did you guys
build that culture? From thebeginning? Because that isn't
(05:23):
something that's like you doovernight, and it's not
something you can really put asystem in place for. So yeah,
how did that get there?
So absolutely. So our CEO,President way, Brandon, he, he
always tells everybody, we'renot in the hair cut, children's
hair cut industry, we're in thefranchise support industry, we
(05:44):
are a franchise support company.
And our job is to support ourfranchisees and by creating a
great culture, by managingpeople, by leading being leaders
by caring, you know, part of ourcore values, is making sure that
you create a great environment,you know, you respect we work
with integrity, and respect. Andso that is something that we
(06:08):
emphasize a lot when we when weevaluate prospective
franchisees, when thoseprospective franchisees hire at
at the local level, you know,because people want to work for
good people, people want to workfor leaders, people want to work
for people that care about them.
And by creating that culture,then it will, it will, you'll
(06:30):
have a ripple effect, and peoplewill want to work for you. And
so that's we I'm very excited.
And I'm I'm proud of the teamthat we've created here in
Atlanta, but it also reflectsbased on, you know, in the 23
states that we have locations,and that's you know, that's it's
huge for us, as is the culture,I again, I love it, because I
(06:51):
think too, it's something withbrands at really all stages,
it's something that you we say alot like culture is kind of a
big buzzword these days, andfinding it but to actually bring
in franchisees who do, like,match the culture that you've
built is not as easy as itsounds. So were there any things
(07:11):
that happened over the over thepast years, as you've built this
from like, the ground up, wewere like, this is something we
did that really, like kind ofhelped. And these are some
things we did that did not help.
And now we know.
You always try to learn fromthem. You know, I mean, we have,
(07:31):
you know, we have grownorganically over time, we have
over 70 locations in 23 states.
And some people were like, wow,that's not a lot of units. But
we're also want to make surethat we find the right people
that we understand what theirgoals and objectives are. So
there are certain times where wehad to tell people, you know,
you just didn't fit our culture,you just didn't fit. And that's
(07:53):
okay. You know, I mean, andmaybe it's better for them,
maybe it's better for us. Butthere are certain things that we
look for. And that's what's beenso great about working with T
yes to is just thatcollaboration with the coaches,
and having the understanding,and you guys doing the DiSC
Profile recognizing ahead oftime so that we know how the
(08:14):
conversations going to roll andeverything. So there are certain
things that we along the way wehave recognized, we could always
improve on you know, everycompany, if you're not self
reflecting as a company andfinding ways to improve, then
you're you know, you need to dothat. Right. So there are
(08:35):
certain things that we havealways improve. I don't know if
I answered your question.
No, it's just good to see like,I think an important piece is
that saying no? To peoplebecause it can feel in the
moment? Of course, you you wantto grow the brand. You have
someone who's saying, Yes, Iwill. I'm gonna pay you the
(08:56):
franchise fee. I'm ready toinvest. Like I love it. And it's
hard to say no to that. But whenyou look long term, you're like,
No, no, it really is gonna bebecause also you look down the
road. And yes, you want to havethese great stories from your
franchisees they're going to bevalidating with other potential
franchisees. So it's just thatcommunity that you're building
(09:16):
that is really important longterm.
It is cliche because we I mean,we're a family. And some people
say, Oh, that's cliche, but wetruly are. And I think it stems
from the very beginning. Andthere's that respect there. And
that is why our validationsgreat, you know, when when I
whenever I speak to a clientfrom CES or whatever, I always
(09:39):
want them to talk to ourfranchise owners. I want to I
want to put them in touchbecause the validation is there.
The peer to peer support in oursystem is enormous. I mean, I
love the the fact that they talkconstantly and they are
constantly bouncing ideas,commending each other for great
achieved That's, you know,lifting each other up when
(10:02):
they're just having a bad daybecause they're a small business
owner. So it's the norm. Butthat peer to peer support is, by
far the best I've ever seen inall the years of franchise,
that's a big statement. Andthat's something that as you're
talking, I'm thinking aboutpeople who you know, the clients
that we're working with,oftentimes, it's the first time
they're going into businessownership there. So there's
(10:24):
gonna be a lot of fear. Andthere's also a lot of
misconceptions where I thinkthat a lot of these people until
they talk to you until they talkto the franchisees, they don't
understand that this isn't justa business model. And you know,
it's specifically in the child,children's hair cut industry.
Yes, that's what it is on thesurface. But underneath, it's
the community, it that peer topeer support. It's the support
(10:48):
from the franchise leadership.
And there's this whole cultureand story behind the brand, that
I think people when they look atfranchising, never realize.
Right, right, absolutely. Imean, we just did a survey, an
entire assistant survey with ourfranchise owners, you always
want to be in touch with howeverybody feels and what they,
you know, give them a guidelineof where we're going in the
(11:10):
future. And we just had ournational franchise conference.
So we all got together. And thatwas our first one since the
pandemic. So we were all veryhappy to be together just like
the one in Savannah with T S.
And so it's always great tounderstand, you know, how they
feel what's going on. And,again, so for fun, how can we
improve to help you again, ourjob is franchise support. And if
(11:33):
we're not supporting them to thelevel of success, then we are
not successful. 100%. AndI think it's clear that you
guys, pigtails and crewcuts. Andjust, you know, you and Wade,
and the whole team have had thatsince the beginning. And that's
another reason why we loveworking with you guys. Because
we're connected in that way ofwanting to bring in the right
(11:56):
people and find that the personwho's going to be right for you,
and that your brand is going tobe right for them. And that
makes all the difference. And itdoes lead to success just under
is not always on the sametimeline. You know, but it does
at the end of the day.
Absolutely. I mean, I've, I'vefound such great relationships
(12:19):
with all of the T 's coaches, Imean, just having that
conference in Savannah andputting a face with the name and
you know, just being able tojust have conversations face to
face, it was so much fun. Thespeed networking was great. And
then I've made we've made someconnections, and I have made
connections after the fact. AndI'm very pleased, and we've just
(12:41):
had a great relationship,I am very glad to hear that. And
you know, it's exactly the sameon our side as well, because
that's who we're looking for towithin the you know, was just
within the fringes andcommunities, you want to find
those people who are connectedon that level. And at the end of
the day, it is, you know, wealways say it's at the client is
the focus. And so if we can helpthem, maybe they move forward
(13:04):
with the friendship, and maybethey don't, but at the end of
the day, it doesn't, it doesn'tmatter.
No, and that's exactly why wechose T Yes, I mean, you T 's
fit our core values, you know,work with integrity and respect,
build positive relationships,our job is to make sure that,
(13:29):
you know, educate the clients,educate them to know what
they're getting into. Because ifit's not a good fit, that's
okay. But having thatconversation, and I feel like
the collaboration between Te ESand US has been positive,
because we're on the same page,we have the same goal. And by
talking to each coach and theirclient, and making sure that we
(13:52):
there are times where I justhave a conversation with their
client. And they were like, youknow, I love your concept, but
it's not right for me. And I'mlike, I understand, it has to be
the right investment, we have tobe the right people that they
want to get involved with. Andvice versa. And if it's not, we
just made a new friend inMissouri or something. It was
not about, you know, just grewup. We want to grow the brand,
(14:16):
but it's not always just aboutunits. It has to be right, which
again goes back to our cultureand why we have such a positive
environment. And so working withevery T S coach, talking to them
collaborating with them, thosethree C's, that's huge, you
know, and so I respect andcommend to Yes, because that's
really what's connecting us andhaving a better understanding
(14:41):
and growing and working withmore coaches along the way. So
it's been positive forsure. Thank you. And yes, I can
agree wholeheartedly. And it isinteresting to when you look at
what the coaches do, a lot oftimes they've been in their
client's shoes, so they alsohave that and then they really
truly Do you want to have thatthe clients, they have the
(15:02):
client's best interest at heart.
So it's, you know, the, the morewe can collaborate, the better.
And that's really what'simportant. Not at the end of the
day, you know, did my,it's that trust factor, you
know, I mean, I'm trusting youguys to bring clients to even to
me just to talk about our brandand just having that awareness
(15:24):
that we're out there. And those,you know, the clients are
trusting us to have theconversation of educating them
about what franchising is allabout, a lot of people don't
have experience in franchising,and they need to know what
they're getting into. Because Ilove the idea of someone wanting
to build something, you know,yes, we give them the footprint,
(15:45):
but building, it's the Americandream, right? You know, you want
to build something for yourself,and create that portfolio and
that, you know, that additionalasset for your family. And we
have some that have zeroexperience in franchising, and
then we have multi brand multiunit operators to that
understand it, they just want todiversify a little bit, and grow
(16:05):
into something else. So we haveall different types of ownership
structures in our, in ourbusiness, which is great, you
know, it's, it's about, again,talking to them and
understanding what their goaland objectives
that you have, even within yourI mean, franchising in itself is
so diverse on one level, youknow, you have so many different
(16:25):
industries and brands and peoplewho are going into it with so
many different backgrounds, butlove that even within the just
this one brand pick peaches andcrew cuts, you do have that so
much diversity, and I'm sure youcan speak a little more to this,
you know, who your owners are,and where they're coming from
and what they're like, but alsoand how you're finding them and
(16:46):
finding that kind of right fit,as we call it. Um, but I'm sure
they come from so many differentbackgrounds as well. You know,
it's not just someone who hasthat haircut experience or
someone who has worked with kidsin the past, there's, I'm sure a
red thread, but which if youwant to talk about that a little
bit in terms of yourgrandchildren. Well, it's
(17:07):
funny, because we alwaysthought, you know, when I first
started here, I was like, Idon't even know anything about
the hair industry, other thanit's a $70 billion industry with
the Children's segment of $7billion. That's a lot. You're
like, Okay, people get haircuts.
Regardless, you know, it'sthere, it's always gonna be
present. And so surprisingly,none of our franchise owners are
(17:27):
hair stylists. Crazy, right?
It's not that we'rediscriminating them. It's just
that we are finding people withbusiness backgrounds, and just
ret ready to do somethingdifferent in whether they were
in the corporate world, whetherthey were the stay at home mom
that's ready to get back intothe workforce. And over the
(17:51):
years, we have seen a shift ofless full time operators, more
semi absentee, because thisbusiness kind of lends itself to
being able to have a semiabsentee ownership structure, we
have some that are the keyholders, they want to be there
day in and day out, that isfine. If that's what you want to
(18:13):
do, that's great. But then thereare some that are looking at the
big picture, owning multipleunits. And so the way we are
looking, you know, aren't ourtarget audience and who we're
looking for, it's just peoplethat can manage people that can
lead be leaders, you know,again, going back to the
culture, creating that cultureworking with, you know, how to
(18:35):
handle hourly employees, how tohandle HR scenarios, how to
handle parents that get upset,because they don't like the
haircut that that child justreceived, you know, it's just
really educating them trainingthem. And, you know, again, as I
said, it used to be a veryfemale oriented business. Now,
we're seeing, you know, a lot ofcouples, a lot of males coming
(18:59):
in wanting to do somethingdifferent in diversifying their
portfolio, you know, differentmulti brand operators, that's it
recognize it's a low investmentwith a high potential return.
And it's also giving back to thecommunity, you know, you were
talking about providing aservice for children that may or
may not enjoy getting a haircut,as silly as it sounds, it's like
(19:24):
it's a haircut or whatever. Itcould be seriously traumatic for
a child to get a haircut. And soa lot of our training a lot of
our discussions with ourfranchisees and their discussion
and training with theiremployees is how to handle
children that are afraid or mayhave special needs and we really
(19:45):
take pride in accepting all kidsall you know ethnicities, and
identifying if okay, if someonehas special needs, how can we
make this experience? Great forthem and We have so many stories
in in our system. And when wehad a story about our franchise
(20:05):
owner in Tennessee, the momwould bring in her child who had
special needs, would bring inher child and brought her
brought him in four times, tonot even get a haircut, but just
to get familiarized with the,the environment, and wanted to
make sure that they were okay.
And on the fifth visit, just tojust to see the environment, he
was like, I'm ready to get myhair cut. And mom was crying
(20:28):
franchise owner was crying,stylists are crying, we were all
like, this is such a big dealthat we don't think about what
this means to that family tothat child, just something as
simple as getting a haircut. Soit really is, you know, we have
a lot of feel good stories outthere about that. Because
(20:48):
something that just as simple asa haircut could mean just a
huge, you know, momentousoccasion for that particular
family.
I got some chills, I lovebecause, again, this goes back
to like what I was saying beforeabout when you think about
franchising, you only thinkabout certain things. And I've
(21:10):
said it before, to where I thinksometimes brands can focus so
much on the income piece of it,like, what is this franchise
going to do for you, it's goingto give you XYZ income, or you
have this possibility, thispotential, and that's really
what we focus on. But what Ilove about what you just talked
about is there's so much more toit than that to vote like to
(21:30):
focus on as to what thisfranchise and this brand, this
one in particular. But also ingeneral, when you're thinking
about franchising, what it cando for individuals, what it can
do for community, and like atthe same time that the franchise
owner is creating, you know, wetalked about income, lifestyle,
(21:51):
wealth and equity, but they'recreating wealth and equity for
their family, but also they'redoing all these other things
within the community that'smaybe not always talked about as
much as it should be.
That should be right. Well, andit provides that work life
balance as well, we all alwaystalk about work life balance,
how important it is. And, youknow, it is exactly I mean, I
(22:12):
talked to people about ROIs, youknow, and I'm like, you know, I
understand you owe everybodywhat they're gonna invest in
something they want to see anROI. It's fair, but it's
something always bigger too, youknow, you don't necessarily have
to be at pigtails and crewcutsthe salon day to day. And but
you know, it's really about thegiving back. And that's another
(22:35):
core value is you know, givingback to your community, whether
it's something as simple asgiving that great haircut and
understanding that child's needto we have another franchise
owner that grew up in fostercare, she gives every foster kid
in the foster care system, afree haircut, she doesn't care,
she's like, this is somethingthat I am doing as giving back
(22:56):
it's not about monetary ROI, itis about emotionally feeling
good. And making sure that thatI care, you know, and so, a lot
of that those feel good storiesor, you know, in existence, but
it's also a business,the ROI, we will not argue with
the fact that the ROI is veryimportant. And I think too, when
(23:16):
you look at, you know, peoplewho are coming to look at the
business looking to possiblybecome a franchisee, and invest.
Yes, they're definitely broughtin by there's certain things
that resonate with differentpeople. And I think to once I
can see, okay, this is gonna bea profitable, profitable
business, or I have thepotential to make it profitable,
then I feel like it's thoseother things that kind of fill
(23:37):
it out. So they say, you know,what, it's pigtails and
crewcuts. That's the right onefor me. And because of the
culture and the support, and thegiving back, you know, with
these other things that kind ofmake it real for them as I mean,
otherwise, they can really gointo any business. Why is it
that they're choosing yours?
(23:57):
Right? Well, it's, again, itgoes back to that having those
conversations, you know, I can'tconvince someone that doesn't
want to do a kid's hair salon,because they don't like kids.
And but they really have theirheart set on doing a restaurant,
you know, that's their personalchoice. And that's fine. It's,
it's, it's when we when theyexperience when I tell I
(24:18):
encourage all of them, go to asalon, if you don't have one
nearby you let me know come toAtlanta, when you know you come
and visit us or whatever, we'lltake you to a salon because when
you when you walk in and you seeit, you feel it, you understand
what the model is. It's not justa hair salon that you're walking
into. It's just the theexperience as a whole. You know,
(24:39):
we want to make sure that youunderstand and willing to be
open minded to it. And so,again, it's not something that
has been around forever. Ididn't have it growing up. And
when you see it, you're like,Okay, people enjoy spending time
experiences and money on theirchildren. You know, that's
(25:02):
something as a parent, peopledo, they spend money on their
education, they spend money ontheir experiences. And so an
unknown there, you know, thewell being. And so it really,
really is about the experienceand visiting that we. And then
also understanding the supportthat they get, you know, part,
(25:23):
that's the great thing aboutfranchising is, if you don't
have the franchise supportbehind you, then why can I open
this up as a mom and pop? Whycan it be, you know, Melissa's
hair salon? Well, because youhave to think of everything
that's entailed. And we've donethat for them. And we've made it
easier for them, andunderstanding how to get to the
(25:46):
SEC to the next level, so thatthey're thinking, Oh, I could do
multiple units, I could, I couldreally make this an empire. If
I, you know, follow themarketing guidelines and follow
all of the things and we getsimple, you know, make it sound
simple, but we find thosepersonalities and we regret we
recognize immediately, you know,hey, I think this would be a
(26:10):
good fit, and the markets a goodfit. So that's part of our
dialogue with with clients andprospective owners. Yeah, 100%,
looking at all, all thedifferent pieces. And also, you
know, you've mentionedexperience, so many times where
this whole kind of journey thatsomeone goes on to invest in a
(26:31):
franchise, it's, again, youcould simplify and say, you
know, you just, they'reinterested in the franchise, you
go through the process, and thenyou sign, but it does have to be
an experience for that potentialfranchisee as well. And if
you're not building that, thenyou're probably missing out on
people, because they're notfully understanding what the
brand is about. So if you aren'tkind of like pushing people
(26:53):
through and not creating anexperience for them, then yeah,
they're not really going to everconnect with
you, well, they got to feel likethey're part of something, you
know, they have to connect withyou. And your coaches, they have
to trust them, then they havethem, they have to connect with
the franchisor. And if theydon't feel that connection, then
(27:16):
it's not right for either party.
And so part of that along theway, is is all about education,
you know, you got to make surethat they understand what
they're getting into what an FTDis all about making sure that
they understand, you know, whattheir investment is going
towards what that sort of whatthe expectation is on both
sides. And that's part of myconversation with them is this
(27:38):
is what you can expect from me.
And this is what we expect fromyou. And if we are good with
that, then we can have asuccessful partnership, you
know, we will help you along theway your success is our success.
And if you're not successful,whether it's monetary, or
whether it's just self, youknow, evaluation or whatever, we
(28:01):
want to make sure that youunderstand what you're getting
into fully. And so there is notimeline for that, you know, if
they're like six to nine months,or hey, I'm thinking about it,
but I'm not going to make adecision until next year. Great.
I'm okay with that. You know,just because it's not within
that two week, four weekprocess, it's fine. Just don't
(28:23):
rush into it. And you justcontinue talking because more
than likely, they'll do anadditional unit. Or they'll know
somebody just like everythingelse. There's always referrals,
there's always having thatexperience and making sure. And
if you can provide thatexcellent relationship and
feeling and connection. It's awin win. Yes,
(28:45):
exactly. To your point, even ifit doesn't move forward right
away or on our timeline, it wasnot a waste of time, there was a
good investment of time, andenergy. So now going a little
bit into a different differentarena. But I know you mentioned
about you know, you guys wentfrom owners, owner operator to
semi absentee, you've seenthings where I feel like you
(29:09):
mentioned something else that'sthat's changed. But basically my
point is, there have beenchanges evolving, you know, as
time goes on, what do you see?
Whether it's pigtails andcrewcuts evolving, or even just
on a bigger scale, franchisingevolving, like what do you see
as the future of franchising?
And I will throw this in therehere if you want to mention that
(29:31):
as well. But I also think womenin franchising, it's a really
great time as well. I've seen alot of change happen there. So
if you do want to touch on thatat all, but basically future
franchise Yeah, it's alwaysgreat time for women to be in
franchising. I mean for sure,right every there's a lot of
opportunity. There's a lot ofmoney lending opportunities. We
see a lot of opportunities withwith veterans too. We have a lot
(29:52):
of veterans on our system, butit is evolving and with pigtails
We're always, you know, makingsure we're technology wise and
innovation. You know, eventhough we are a kid's hair
salon, how can we cutting hairsimple, you know, you got, you
have your employees, they wentto cosmetology school, they know
(30:13):
how to cut hair, there's not alot of change in kids haircuts,
it's pretty much three ways tocut a child's hair. But it's
about the experience as a wholethat that parent is
experiencing, and when they walkinto our salon, so how can we
make it easier for them? Whatcan we do? So a lot of that
technology and innovation willcontinue changing for us making
(30:36):
sure that the app is, you know,we have an app, that that's the
best app that it can be how wecan the timeline of checkout
process and what we whatservices that we can provide in
the future. So that's alwaysevolving with us and making sure
that we are understanding, youknow, the way of the world and
(30:57):
how, again, it goes back to it'sjust a haircut you're walking
in. But how can you make this acommodity? How can you make sure
that the customer experience istop notch? And so that's kind of
what we're always evaluating themarketing and just the
innovationportion of it amazing. And I
think too, that's something forany brand to take away is, hey,
(31:19):
you're just you're doing an oilchange, or you're doing whatever
it is, you're mowing someone'slawn?
How can you make that experiencebetter? How can you, you know,
if it makes them, hey, I canmake a book a book an
appointment now, you know, andthat's the thing is, we have to
(31:39):
be open minded. It's funny, I'lltell you a quick story. But back
in the day, when we firststarted this, we were a walking
salon only, we we did not wantto take appointments, we were
adamant about parents andchildren are never on time for
anything. So why would we takeappointments and you know, back
everything up, if someone is ano show or whatever? Well, over
(32:02):
time, markets dictatedappointments were necessary. And
then the pandemic hit. And thenwe had to completely shift and
our thought process because nowwe had to take time for cleaning
and making sure that the thecustomers felt safe. And you
(32:23):
know, and just making sureeverything was sanitized and
everything. So appointmentsmakes sense. And now 100% of our
our salons are appointment base.
So for so many years, we werelike No, no way. We don't want
to do that. Why would we do thatyou have to be open minded to
make sure and you evolve towhere, you know what what things
are asking and what they'rerequiring, and what's best for
(32:45):
the company as a whole. And sothat's something that mate was a
huge shift since the pandemic,hey,
and the fact that you were ableto do that, I think yeah, being
open as well. And even now, asyou're saying that I'm like
thinking to our company, I'mlike, what are some things that
were like adamant about that,you can change. And I think
that's true, you know, justlooking at, especially just in
(33:08):
the past two years, how thingshave changed, and people have
had to evolve. And I know we'vetalked about it, I've everyone's
been talking about it for ages,but it's just a really great
example of a you do have to beopen, be quick, be able to
switch things, but also that isthe strength of a franchise as
well, as a franchise businessowner, you trust that your
franchisor is going to makethose changes and be able to do
(33:30):
it quickly in a way that as anindependent you probably
wouldn't be able to. Butanyways, well, thank you so
much, Michelle, fornodding with me a little bit.
Thank you so much for having me.
It's so much fun. It was greattalking to you. I love you know,
I'm so proud of ourrelationship. And I look forward
to much success with with thispartnership. It's been great.
(33:54):
Andthank you so much, Michelle. I'm
looking forward to the future.
Here we go.
Hello everyone was a pang here with the entrepreneur
source. So happy to be here withMichelle Holloman, who is with
pigtails and crewcuts. Welcome,Michelle. So glad to have you.
Hi. Hi, Melissa. Thank you forhaving me. I'm so excited.
Absolutely.
I'm looking forward to ourconversation today. So, listen,
you've been at pigtails andcrewcuts. For a while I
(00:37):
basically since it startedfranchising, so definitely want
to dive into all of that. Andyou and I have been working
together now for several years.
I know, pigtails. And crewcutshas been a member with the
entrepreneur source. And it'sbeen fantastic, lovely working
with you and your team. We'llget into because we want to
know, you know, the team thatyou've built and the culture at
(00:58):
pigtails and crewcuts. Butbefore we jump into all that, do
you mind giving a little bit ofbackground on how you got to
pigtails and crewcuts? And yeah,where you're this little story?
Sure, sure. So after college, Imoved to Atlanta and started
(01:18):
working for a company calledheavenly ham. And it's a
national franchise supply chain,you know, specialty ham,
specialty meats. The principleof that company, one of the
principles was wait, Brandon,who is now the owner of pigtails
and crewcuts. So, onceHoneyBaked Ham acquired pigtail,
or I'm sorry, HoneyBaked,acquired heavenly ham, way, kind
(01:41):
of semi retired and I continuedworking with him HoneyBaked Ham,
and then I kind of moved toother other franchise companies
along the way. And then Wade,met the original founder of
pigtails and crewcuts, back in2003. And she approached him and
(02:01):
asked about, hey, I want tofranchise this. And he acquired
pigtails and crewcuts. And thenhe called me and he was like,
Hey, let's get the band bandback together. Let's start
working together. So I have beenwith pigtails and crewcuts.
Since day one, this Februarywill be probably I think, 18
years. So wait, and I have beenworking together for over 25
(02:22):
years. And it's been great. He'sa great boss. He's a great
leader. And so yeah, I've beenwith pigtails and crewcuts.
Since day one, Ifind that that in and of itself
is so so exciting and fun,because I it is sometimes rare
to find someone who's been witha brand for so long, and
especially since its inception.
(02:44):
So what was it about? I mean,you'd worked with Wade for a
year, like several years priorto what wasn't built in
crewcuts, that you were like,You know what, I am really
excited about this. And thenwhat is it that has kept you
going over the past18 years and well, I love
franchising. Franchising isjust, it's the great model, you
know, meaning it's somethingthat and I've done franchising,
(03:07):
I've worked with franchisecompanies that, you know,
HoneyBaked Ham, it's a largefranchise company, and then, you
know, heavily Ham was a littlesmaller, and pigtails and
crewcuts. And so it's that, thatemerging brand that's so
exciting. But it's also ourbrand is very unique, because
it's a kid's hair salonfranchise. And so the industry
isn't large, but it'sfragmented, it's recession
(03:31):
resilient, we've gone through arecession in 2007, and then a
pandemic, as well. So and we'restill surviving, we're still
showing great numbers, we'rereally having a great time. But
also, it's, it's about the kids,you know, pigtails and crewcuts.
It is a kid's hair salon, thatyou walk into, not something
(03:54):
that wasn't around when I wasyounger. And when a kid walks
in, they see the brightlycolored walls, those themed car
chairs, that we want to make ahaircut fun and memorable. And
it's not just for the kids, butit's for the parents too. We
want to make sure that theexperience is top notch. And so
that is something that is alwaysexcited me because one I like I
(04:16):
enjoy kids and I tell people youknow, to work, you know, in this
environment, whatever you haveto kind of like get it's not
just your own kids, but you gotto like kids, and also it's just
people spend money on theirkids, and everybody needs a
haircut. So it's somethingthat's just always welcomed in
every community in every marketand so we're seeing great
(04:38):
results and we're really I'mreally excited and I just love
the people that I work with andjust the brand as a whole on
that. No,I was looking at just some of
the different franchisee storiesand testimonials, and even Wade
story and of how we came toacquire pigtails and crewcuts
and one little red A thread thatI did see several times
(05:00):
throughout was a lot of thesefranchisees said, the support
was phenomenal. And like this,the culture of the the franchise
leadership team really kind ofdrew me in. That's what kept me
there. That's what keeps megoing. So, you know, kind of off
of what you're saying there aswell, like, how did you guys
build that culture? From thebeginning? Because that isn't
(05:23):
something that's like you doovernight, and it's not
something you can really put asystem in place for. So yeah,
how did that get there?
So absolutely. So our CEO,President way, Brandon, he, he
always tells everybody, we'renot in the hair cut, children's
hair cut industry, we're in thefranchise support industry, we
(05:44):
are a franchise support company.
And our job is to support ourfranchisees and by creating a
great culture, by managingpeople, by leading being leaders
by caring, you know, part of ourcore values, is making sure that
you create a great environment,you know, you respect we work
with integrity, and respect. Andso that is something that we
(06:08):
emphasize a lot when we when weevaluate prospective
franchisees, when thoseprospective franchisees hire at
at the local level, you know,because people want to work for
good people, people want to workfor leaders, people want to work
for people that care about them.
And by creating that culture,then it will, it will, you'll
(06:30):
have a ripple effect, and peoplewill want to work for you. And
so that's we I'm very excited.
And I'm I'm proud of the teamthat we've created here in
Atlanta, but it also reflectsbased on, you know, in the 23
states that we have locations,and that's you know, that's it's
huge for us, as is the culture,I again, I love it, because I
(06:51):
think too, it's something withbrands at really all stages,
it's something that you we say alot like culture is kind of a
big buzzword these days, andfinding it but to actually bring
in franchisees who do, like,match the culture that you've
built is not as easy as itsounds. So were there any things
(07:11):
that happened over the over thepast years, as you've built this
from like, the ground up, wewere like, this is something we
did that really, like kind ofhelped. And these are some
things we did that did not help.
And now we know.
You always try to learn fromthem. You know, I mean, we have,
(07:31):
you know, we have grownorganically over time, we have
over 70 locations in 23 states.
And some people were like, wow,that's not a lot of units. But
we're also want to make surethat we find the right people
that we understand what theirgoals and objectives are. So
there are certain times where wehad to tell people, you know,
you just didn't fit our culture,you just didn't fit. And that's
(07:53):
okay. You know, I mean, andmaybe it's better for them,
maybe it's better for us. Butthere are certain things that we
look for. And that's what's beenso great about working with T
yes to is just thatcollaboration with the coaches,
and having the understanding,and you guys doing the DiSC
Profile recognizing ahead oftime so that we know how the
(08:14):
conversations going to roll andeverything. So there are certain
things that we along the way wehave recognized, we could always
improve on you know, everycompany, if you're not self
reflecting as a company andfinding ways to improve, then
you're you know, you need to dothat. Right. So there are
(08:35):
certain things that we havealways improve. I don't know if
I answered your question.
No, it's just good to see like,I think an important piece is
that saying no? To peoplebecause it can feel in the
moment? Of course, you you wantto grow the brand. You have
someone who's saying, Yes, Iwill. I'm gonna pay you the
(08:56):
franchise fee. I'm ready toinvest. Like I love it. And it's
hard to say no to that. But whenyou look long term, you're like,
No, no, it really is gonna bebecause also you look down the
road. And yes, you want to havethese great stories from your
franchisees they're going to bevalidating with other potential
franchisees. So it's just thatcommunity that you're building
(09:16):
that is really important longterm.
It is cliche because we I mean,we're a family. And some people
say, Oh, that's cliche, but wetruly are. And I think it stems
from the very beginning. Andthere's that respect there. And
that is why our validationsgreat, you know, when when I
whenever I speak to a clientfrom CES or whatever, I always
(09:39):
want them to talk to ourfranchise owners. I want to I
want to put them in touchbecause the validation is there.
The peer to peer support in oursystem is enormous. I mean, I
love the the fact that they talkconstantly and they are
constantly bouncing ideas,commending each other for great
achieved That's, you know,lifting each other up when
(10:02):
they're just having a bad daybecause they're a small business
owner. So it's the norm. Butthat peer to peer support is, by
far the best I've ever seen inall the years of franchise,
that's a big statement. Andthat's something that as you're
talking, I'm thinking aboutpeople who you know, the clients
that we're working with,oftentimes, it's the first time
they're going into businessownership there. So there's
(10:24):
gonna be a lot of fear. Andthere's also a lot of
misconceptions where I thinkthat a lot of these people until
they talk to you until they talkto the franchisees, they don't
understand that this isn't justa business model. And you know,
it's specifically in the child,children's hair cut industry.
Yes, that's what it is on thesurface. But underneath, it's
the community, it that peer topeer support. It's the support
(10:48):
from the franchise leadership.
And there's this whole cultureand story behind the brand, that
I think people when they look atfranchising, never realize.
Right, right, absolutely. Imean, we just did a survey, an
entire assistant survey with ourfranchise owners, you always
want to be in touch with howeverybody feels and what they,
you know, give them a guidelineof where we're going in the
(11:10):
future. And we just had ournational franchise conference.
So we all got together. And thatwas our first one since the
pandemic. So we were all veryhappy to be together just like
the one in Savannah with T S.
And so it's always great tounderstand, you know, how they
feel what's going on. And,again, so for fun, how can we
improve to help you again, ourjob is franchise support. And if
(11:33):
we're not supporting them to thelevel of success, then we are
not successful. 100%. AndI think it's clear that you
guys, pigtails and crewcuts. Andjust, you know, you and Wade,
and the whole team have had thatsince the beginning. And that's
another reason why we loveworking with you guys. Because
we're connected in that way ofwanting to bring in the right
(11:56):
people and find that the personwho's going to be right for you,
and that your brand is going tobe right for them. And that
makes all the difference. And itdoes lead to success just under
is not always on the sametimeline. You know, but it does
at the end of the day.
Absolutely. I mean, I've, I'vefound such great relationships
(12:19):
with all of the T 's coaches, Imean, just having that
conference in Savannah andputting a face with the name and
you know, just being able tojust have conversations face to
face, it was so much fun. Thespeed networking was great. And
then I've made we've made someconnections, and I have made
connections after the fact. AndI'm very pleased, and we've just
(12:41):
had a great relationship,I am very glad to hear that. And
you know, it's exactly the sameon our side as well, because
that's who we're looking for towithin the you know, was just
within the fringes andcommunities, you want to find
those people who are connectedon that level. And at the end of
the day, it is, you know, wealways say it's at the client is
the focus. And so if we can helpthem, maybe they move forward
(13:04):
with the friendship, and maybethey don't, but at the end of
the day, it doesn't, it doesn'tmatter.
No, and that's exactly why wechose T Yes, I mean, you T 's
fit our core values, you know,work with integrity and respect,
build positive relationships,our job is to make sure that,
(13:29):
you know, educate the clients,educate them to know what
they're getting into. Because ifit's not a good fit, that's
okay. But having thatconversation, and I feel like
the collaboration between Te ESand US has been positive,
because we're on the same page,we have the same goal. And by
talking to each coach and theirclient, and making sure that we
(13:52):
there are times where I justhave a conversation with their
client. And they were like, youknow, I love your concept, but
it's not right for me. And I'mlike, I understand, it has to be
the right investment, we have tobe the right people that they
want to get involved with. Andvice versa. And if it's not, we
just made a new friend inMissouri or something. It was
not about, you know, just grewup. We want to grow the brand,
(14:16):
but it's not always just aboutunits. It has to be right, which
again goes back to our cultureand why we have such a positive
environment. And so working withevery T S coach, talking to them
collaborating with them, thosethree C's, that's huge, you
know, and so I respect andcommend to Yes, because that's
really what's connecting us andhaving a better understanding
(14:41):
and growing and working withmore coaches along the way. So
it's been positive forsure. Thank you. And yes, I can
agree wholeheartedly. And it isinteresting to when you look at
what the coaches do, a lot oftimes they've been in their
client's shoes, so they alsohave that and then they really
truly Do you want to have thatthe clients, they have the
(15:02):
client's best interest at heart.
So it's, you know, the, the morewe can collaborate, the better.
And that's really what'simportant. Not at the end of the
day, you know, did my,it's that trust factor, you
know, I mean, I'm trusting youguys to bring clients to even to
me just to talk about our brandand just having that awareness
(15:24):
that we're out there. And those,you know, the clients are
trusting us to have theconversation of educating them
about what franchising is allabout, a lot of people don't
have experience in franchising,and they need to know what
they're getting into. Because Ilove the idea of someone wanting
to build something, you know,yes, we give them the footprint,
(15:45):
but building, it's the Americandream, right? You know, you want
to build something for yourself,and create that portfolio and
that, you know, that additionalasset for your family. And we
have some that have zeroexperience in franchising, and
then we have multi brand multiunit operators to that
understand it, they just want todiversify a little bit, and grow
(16:05):
into something else. So we haveall different types of ownership
structures in our, in ourbusiness, which is great, you
know, it's, it's about, again,talking to them and
understanding what their goaland objectives
that you have, even within yourI mean, franchising in itself is
so diverse on one level, youknow, you have so many different
(16:25):
industries and brands and peoplewho are going into it with so
many different backgrounds, butlove that even within the just
this one brand pick peaches andcrew cuts, you do have that so
much diversity, and I'm sure youcan speak a little more to this,
you know, who your owners are,and where they're coming from
and what they're like, but alsoand how you're finding them and
(16:46):
finding that kind of right fit,as we call it. Um, but I'm sure
they come from so many differentbackgrounds as well. You know,
it's not just someone who hasthat haircut experience or
someone who has worked with kidsin the past, there's, I'm sure a
red thread, but which if youwant to talk about that a little
bit in terms of yourgrandchildren. Well, it's
(17:07):
funny, because we alwaysthought, you know, when I first
started here, I was like, Idon't even know anything about
the hair industry, other thanit's a $70 billion industry with
the Children's segment of $7billion. That's a lot. You're
like, Okay, people get haircuts.
Regardless, you know, it'sthere, it's always gonna be
present. And so surprisingly,none of our franchise owners are
(17:27):
hair stylists. Crazy, right?
It's not that we'rediscriminating them. It's just
that we are finding people withbusiness backgrounds, and just
ret ready to do somethingdifferent in whether they were
in the corporate world, whetherthey were the stay at home mom
that's ready to get back intothe workforce. And over the
(17:51):
years, we have seen a shift ofless full time operators, more
semi absentee, because thisbusiness kind of lends itself to
being able to have a semiabsentee ownership structure, we
have some that are the keyholders, they want to be there
day in and day out, that isfine. If that's what you want to
(18:13):
do, that's great. But then thereare some that are looking at the
big picture, owning multipleunits. And so the way we are
looking, you know, aren't ourtarget audience and who we're
looking for, it's just peoplethat can manage people that can
lead be leaders, you know,again, going back to the
culture, creating that cultureworking with, you know, how to
(18:35):
handle hourly employees, how tohandle HR scenarios, how to
handle parents that get upset,because they don't like the
haircut that that child justreceived, you know, it's just
really educating them trainingthem. And, you know, again, as I
said, it used to be a veryfemale oriented business. Now,
we're seeing, you know, a lot ofcouples, a lot of males coming
(18:59):
in wanting to do somethingdifferent in diversifying their
portfolio, you know, differentmulti brand operators, that's it
recognize it's a low investmentwith a high potential return.
And it's also giving back to thecommunity, you know, you were
talking about providing aservice for children that may or
may not enjoy getting a haircut,as silly as it sounds, it's like
(19:24):
it's a haircut or whatever. Itcould be seriously traumatic for
a child to get a haircut. And soa lot of our training a lot of
our discussions with ourfranchisees and their discussion
and training with theiremployees is how to handle
children that are afraid or mayhave special needs and we really
(19:45):
take pride in accepting all kidsall you know ethnicities, and
identifying if okay, if someonehas special needs, how can we
make this experience? Great forthem and We have so many stories
in in our system. And when wehad a story about our franchise
(20:05):
owner in Tennessee, the momwould bring in her child who had
special needs, would bring inher child and brought her
brought him in four times, tonot even get a haircut, but just
to get familiarized with the,the environment, and wanted to
make sure that they were okay.
And on the fifth visit, just tojust to see the environment, he
was like, I'm ready to get myhair cut. And mom was crying
(20:28):
franchise owner was crying,stylists are crying, we were all
like, this is such a big dealthat we don't think about what
this means to that family tothat child, just something as
simple as getting a haircut. Soit really is, you know, we have
a lot of feel good stories outthere about that. Because
(20:48):
something that just as simple asa haircut could mean just a
huge, you know, momentousoccasion for that particular
family.
I got some chills, I lovebecause, again, this goes back
to like what I was saying beforeabout when you think about
franchising, you only thinkabout certain things. And I've
(21:10):
said it before, to where I thinksometimes brands can focus so
much on the income piece of it,like, what is this franchise
going to do for you, it's goingto give you XYZ income, or you
have this possibility, thispotential, and that's really
what we focus on. But what Ilove about what you just talked
about is there's so much more toit than that to vote like to
(21:30):
focus on as to what thisfranchise and this brand, this
one in particular. But also ingeneral, when you're thinking
about franchising, what it cando for individuals, what it can
do for community, and like atthe same time that the franchise
owner is creating, you know, wetalked about income, lifestyle,
(21:51):
wealth and equity, but they'recreating wealth and equity for
their family, but also they'redoing all these other things
within the community that'smaybe not always talked about as
much as it should be.
That should be right. Well, andit provides that work life
balance as well, we all alwaystalk about work life balance,
how important it is. And, youknow, it is exactly I mean, I
(22:12):
talked to people about ROIs, youknow, and I'm like, you know, I
understand you owe everybodywhat they're gonna invest in
something they want to see anROI. It's fair, but it's
something always bigger too, youknow, you don't necessarily have
to be at pigtails and crewcutsthe salon day to day. And but
you know, it's really about thegiving back. And that's another
(22:35):
core value is you know, givingback to your community, whether
it's something as simple asgiving that great haircut and
understanding that child's needto we have another franchise
owner that grew up in fostercare, she gives every foster kid
in the foster care system, afree haircut, she doesn't care,
she's like, this is somethingthat I am doing as giving back
(22:56):
it's not about monetary ROI, itis about emotionally feeling
good. And making sure that thatI care, you know, and so, a lot
of that those feel good storiesor, you know, in existence, but
it's also a business,the ROI, we will not argue with
the fact that the ROI is veryimportant. And I think too, when
(23:16):
you look at, you know, peoplewho are coming to look at the
business looking to possiblybecome a franchisee, and invest.
Yes, they're definitely broughtin by there's certain things
that resonate with differentpeople. And I think to once I
can see, okay, this is gonna bea profitable, profitable
business, or I have thepotential to make it profitable,
then I feel like it's thoseother things that kind of fill
(23:37):
it out. So they say, you know,what, it's pigtails and
crewcuts. That's the right onefor me. And because of the
culture and the support, and thegiving back, you know, with
these other things that kind ofmake it real for them as I mean,
otherwise, they can really gointo any business. Why is it
that they're choosing yours?
(23:57):
Right? Well, it's, again, itgoes back to that having those
conversations, you know, I can'tconvince someone that doesn't
want to do a kid's hair salon,because they don't like kids.
And but they really have theirheart set on doing a restaurant,
you know, that's their personalchoice. And that's fine. It's,
it's, it's when we when theyexperience when I tell I
(24:18):
encourage all of them, go to asalon, if you don't have one
nearby you let me know come toAtlanta, when you know you come
and visit us or whatever, we'lltake you to a salon because when
you when you walk in and you seeit, you feel it, you understand
what the model is. It's not justa hair salon that you're walking
into. It's just the theexperience as a whole. You know,
(24:39):
we want to make sure that youunderstand and willing to be
open minded to it. And so,again, it's not something that
has been around forever. Ididn't have it growing up. And
when you see it, you're like,Okay, people enjoy spending time
experiences and money on theirchildren. You know, that's
(25:02):
something as a parent, peopledo, they spend money on their
education, they spend money ontheir experiences. And so an
unknown there, you know, thewell being. And so it really,
really is about the experienceand visiting that we. And then
also understanding the supportthat they get, you know, part,
(25:23):
that's the great thing aboutfranchising is, if you don't
have the franchise supportbehind you, then why can I open
this up as a mom and pop? Whycan it be, you know, Melissa's
hair salon? Well, because youhave to think of everything
that's entailed. And we've donethat for them. And we've made it
easier for them, andunderstanding how to get to the
(25:46):
SEC to the next level, so thatthey're thinking, Oh, I could do
multiple units, I could, I couldreally make this an empire. If
I, you know, follow themarketing guidelines and follow
all of the things and we getsimple, you know, make it sound
simple, but we find thosepersonalities and we regret we
recognize immediately, you know,hey, I think this would be a
(26:10):
good fit, and the markets a goodfit. So that's part of our
dialogue with with clients andprospective owners. Yeah, 100%,
looking at all, all thedifferent pieces. And also, you
know, you've mentionedexperience, so many times where
this whole kind of journey thatsomeone goes on to invest in a
(26:31):
franchise, it's, again, youcould simplify and say, you
know, you just, they'reinterested in the franchise, you
go through the process, and thenyou sign, but it does have to be
an experience for that potentialfranchisee as well. And if
you're not building that, thenyou're probably missing out on
people, because they're notfully understanding what the
brand is about. So if you aren'tkind of like pushing people
(26:53):
through and not creating anexperience for them, then yeah,
they're not really going to everconnect with
you, well, they got to feel likethey're part of something, you
know, they have to connect withyou. And your coaches, they have
to trust them, then they havethem, they have to connect with
the franchisor. And if theydon't feel that connection, then
(27:16):
it's not right for either party.
And so part of that along theway, is is all about education,
you know, you got to make surethat they understand what
they're getting into what an FTDis all about making sure that
they understand, you know, whattheir investment is going
towards what that sort of whatthe expectation is on both
sides. And that's part of myconversation with them is this
(27:38):
is what you can expect from me.
And this is what we expect fromyou. And if we are good with
that, then we can have asuccessful partnership, you
know, we will help you along theway your success is our success.
And if you're not successful,whether it's monetary, or
whether it's just self, youknow, evaluation or whatever, we
(28:01):
want to make sure that youunderstand what you're getting
into fully. And so there is notimeline for that, you know, if
they're like six to nine months,or hey, I'm thinking about it,
but I'm not going to make adecision until next year. Great.
I'm okay with that. You know,just because it's not within
that two week, four weekprocess, it's fine. Just don't
(28:23):
rush into it. And you justcontinue talking because more
than likely, they'll do anadditional unit. Or they'll know
somebody just like everythingelse. There's always referrals,
there's always having thatexperience and making sure. And
if you can provide thatexcellent relationship and
feeling and connection. It's awin win. Yes,
(28:45):
exactly. To your point, even ifit doesn't move forward right
away or on our timeline, it wasnot a waste of time, there was a
good investment of time, andenergy. So now going a little
bit into a different differentarena. But I know you mentioned
about you know, you guys wentfrom owners, owner operator to
semi absentee, you've seenthings where I feel like you
(29:09):
mentioned something else that'sthat's changed. But basically my
point is, there have beenchanges evolving, you know, as
time goes on, what do you see?
Whether it's pigtails andcrewcuts evolving, or even just
on a bigger scale, franchisingevolving, like what do you see
as the future of franchising?
And I will throw this in therehere if you want to mention that
(29:31):
as well. But I also think womenin franchising, it's a really
great time as well. I've seen alot of change happen there. So
if you do want to touch on thatat all, but basically future
franchise Yeah, it's alwaysgreat time for women to be in
franchising. I mean for sure,right every there's a lot of
opportunity. There's a lot ofmoney lending opportunities. We
see a lot of opportunities withwith veterans too. We have a lot
(29:52):
of veterans on our system, butit is evolving and with pigtails
We're always, you know, makingsure we're technology wise and
innovation. You know, eventhough we are a kid's hair
salon, how can we cutting hairsimple, you know, you got, you
have your employees, they wentto cosmetology school, they know
(30:13):
how to cut hair, there's not alot of change in kids haircuts,
it's pretty much three ways tocut a child's hair. But it's
about the experience as a wholethat that parent is
experiencing, and when they walkinto our salon, so how can we
make it easier for them? Whatcan we do? So a lot of that
technology and innovation willcontinue changing for us making
(30:36):
sure that the app is, you know,we have an app, that that's the
best app that it can be how wecan the timeline of checkout
process and what we whatservices that we can provide in
the future. So that's alwaysevolving with us and making sure
that we are understanding, youknow, the way of the world and
(30:57):
how, again, it goes back to it'sjust a haircut you're walking
in. But how can you make this acommodity? How can you make sure
that the customer experience istop notch? And so that's kind of
what we're always evaluating themarketing and just the
innovationportion of it amazing. And I
think too, that's something forany brand to take away is, hey,
(31:19):
you're just you're doing an oilchange, or you're doing whatever
it is, you're mowing someone'slawn?
How can you make that experiencebetter? How can you, you know,
if it makes them, hey, I canmake a book a book an
appointment now, you know, andthat's the thing is, we have to
(31:39):
be open minded. It's funny, I'lltell you a quick story. But back
in the day, when we firststarted this, we were a walking
salon only, we we did not wantto take appointments, we were
adamant about parents andchildren are never on time for
anything. So why would we takeappointments and you know, back
everything up, if someone is ano show or whatever? Well, over
(32:02):
time, markets dictatedappointments were necessary. And
then the pandemic hit. And thenwe had to completely shift and
our thought process because nowwe had to take time for cleaning
and making sure that the thecustomers felt safe. And you
(32:23):
know, and just making sureeverything was sanitized and
everything. So appointmentsmakes sense. And now 100% of our
our salons are appointment base.
So for so many years, we werelike No, no way. We don't want
to do that. Why would we do thatyou have to be open minded to
make sure and you evolve towhere, you know what what things
are asking and what they'rerequiring, and what's best for
(32:45):
the company as a whole. And sothat's something that mate was a
huge shift since the pandemic,hey,
and the fact that you were ableto do that, I think yeah, being
open as well. And even now, asyou're saying that I'm like
thinking to our company, I'mlike, what are some things that
were like adamant about that,you can change. And I think
that's true, you know, justlooking at, especially just in
(33:08):
the past two years, how thingshave changed, and people have
had to evolve. And I know we'vetalked about it, I've everyone's
been talking about it for ages,but it's just a really great
example of a you do have to beopen, be quick, be able to
switch things, but also that isthe strength of a franchise as
well, as a franchise businessowner, you trust that your
franchisor is going to makethose changes and be able to do
(33:30):
it quickly in a way that as anindependent you probably
wouldn't be able to. Butanyways, well, thank you so
much, Michelle, fornodding with me a little bit.
Thank you so much for having me.
It's so much fun. It was greattalking to you. I love you know,
I'm so proud of ourrelationship. And I look forward
to much success with with thispartnership. It's been great.
(33:54):
Andthank you so much, Michelle. I'm
looking forward to the future.
Here we go.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.