I’m Shejal, I’ve known and worked for Alan for over 25 years after training with Alan d back in the very late 80’s and therefore I’m really delighted that I’ve been asked to write a guest-blog for the Alan d website.
As you may be aware, we have 2 schools of hairdressing in London and Ipswich, but here in London we use an area of the school as a commercial salon.
MEET THE TEAM myself, Elke, Edward, Hanisa and Nina (who joined us recently).
Over the years we have a loyal following of clients, so when a new client comes in we like to hear what we are doing right and how we are doing it right!
Recently, we seem to be getting a few new clients who love our mixed creative and learning space.
I was thinking about what to write and then this happened…
I started chatting to a client at our reception a few weeks ago about what we did; a haircut as a model by a student is one price and will take ‘x’ amount of time or with a stylist will take less time but cost more. I got the feeling that she wasn’t overly happy with the service she had been receiving elsewhere, but her hair looked ok and I simply offered some advice.
A week later she did call back and booked an appointment. And this is where my blog begins!
In a very short space of time and during the consultation I found out she’d been a regular client at a big chain for a long time. But as time progressed, she felt she was just a number. Never the same stylist twice and always an excuse as to why not, regular double-bookings and even a delay at Christmas when she was forgotten about whilst her colour developed! We chatted more during this consultation and she even told me what colours had been used previously! I felt confident enough with my wealth of experience to tell her that I would like to discard her past colour recipe and start again and she felt confident enough in me to trust my judgement.
During the service, she liked the fact that I made her feel individual, that the service was tailored for her. She liked the fact the salon area was quiet, and we had time to chat about her lifestyle and how we have a salon incorporated within the school. The client liked the fact that even though I have many years of experience I get regular updates of my skill through the school and other courses that working for Alan d allows me to do.
Whilst chatting to her she was pleased to know that I personally knew Alan and in fact, had she been there earlier she would have actually seen him!
By the end of the Alan d experience, the next appointment was scheduled and I had a delighted client with fabulous colour and a new, more tailored haircut; and this is the message I’m hoping to pass onto you.
I think experience/maturity and regularly updating your skills is the key here. Fashions come and go, and yes our industry is a young and ever-changing industry, but sometimes clients don’t need a ‘catwalk’ look; they want a suitable and professional look to suit them and their lifestyle.
