Former Lavender & Stone owners launch business consultancy
The former owner and manager of salon chain Lavender & Stone have launched AB Beauty Consultancy to advise other salon owners on recruitment and business growth.
Anna Nickless (pictured, right) owned and operated four salons across the home counties under the Lavender & Stone brand, before selling the group to Cove Spa earlier this year.
She and her former salon manager Bonnie Platts (pictured, left) launched AB Beauty Consultancy this week, with the mission statement: “Two friends turned business partners, helping beauty salons and spas maximise their potential, supercharge operations and recruit high-quality candidates.”
“After 12 years of building Lavender and Stone Beauty Rooms, the time came to sell and start a new venture,” said Nickless. “We ran four high street beauty salons for over 10 years with more than 40 employees and feel we have all the experience, knowledge and passion to create a profitable and happy salon or spa. We will work in depth to analyse your current business, listening to what your issues and pain points are and setting out clear goals of how we are going to move your business to the next level. We will then formulate a strategy to make this happen.”
While running their own salons, Nickless and Platts found that one of the main challenges was recruiting quality beauty therapists and managers, so the initial focus of the business will be recruitment, but without the high fees often charged by agencies. AB Beauty Consultancy plans to build a database of beauty therapists, vetting each applicant in advance and advising them on how to behave in interviews and on the salon floor.
Moving forward, AB Beauty Consultancy will offer a full range of services, including analysing finances to advise salon owners on how best to grow their businesses, and advising on the efficient scheduling of both therapists and client appointments to maximise profit.
This month, FIona Brackenbury is leaving skincare brand Decéor after 21 years to set up a skincare and spa consultancy business.
For more business advice, don't miss out guest blog on how to fund your first salon business.
