By Kathy Hosler
November 4, 2013
Yes, the holidays are coming. Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas—the wonderful times of the year when all of us shop, bake cookies, decorate, go to parties, as well as relax with our buddies as well as family. Yeh, right… Not if you are a typical groomer. For most groomers, ‘tis the season to work, work, work with extremely bit time for relaxing or anything else, however it doesn’t have to be all work as well as no play this year. It’s all in exactly how you prepare for it.
How do you look ahead to the holidays? With excited anticipation as well as the confidence that you will be able to handle whatever comes your way? Or does the believed of the long hours, overbooked days, as well as short-tempered clients make you cringe as well as want to state “bah humbug”? Do the demands of the stress-filled season overwhelm you as well as make you feel like the frantic fairy tale character poultry Little, who aimlessly ran to as well as fro while shouting, “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!”?
Let’s make this the year you truly enjoy a successful holiday season. The decisions as well as options that you make right now will determine the type of holiday season that you as well as your salon will experience. Wise, advance planning can have your money registers filled to overflowing.
First, take stock of all your supplies—shampoos, styling products, ribbons, etc. as well as make sure that you have sufficient to bring you with this peak season. stock your retail area as well as fill your shelves with an attractive assortment of holiday toys, gifts, as well as great deals of impulse items.
Always utilize products as well as devices that will assist you speed with your grooming. It is extremely true: time is money, as well as every minute that you save is precious. If you can save five or ten minutes per dog, you will see a considerable boost in the number of dogs your salon can groom, as well as you can recognize a higher revenue per pet by decreasing the time needed for every grooming.
Make sure that all of your devices is in great shape. This is crucial. Take the time to do the maintenance on your clippers, dryers, as well as bathing as well as vacuum systems – cleaning filters, altering brushes, eliminating built-up hair deposits, etc.
Always keep spare parts on hand to ensure that you can quickly take care of a breakdown. If at all possible, have some back-up devices – a new pair of clippers as well as great deals of blades, a couple pairs of scissors, or an additional dryer. There’s nothing worse than having a salon full of pets as well as nothing to groom them with.
Pre-book as many of your clients as possible. let them understand that your holiday visits fill up quickly as well as you cannot assurance that they will get in if they don’t book now. Pre-booking visits makes it possible to routine your days in a method that works the very best for you as well as not have six full-coated Cocker Spaniels or hand-scissored basic Poodles on the exact same day.
As the holidays get closer, many salons let their answering machine pick up all their calls. Their outgoing message specifies clearly yet pleasantly that all of their holiday visits have been filled however that they have a waiting list. hearing that message when she phone calls your salon informs Mrs. Super-Picky that her bit Poopsie will have to be on your waiting listing if she is expecting a holiday grooming visit (maybe she should have pre-booked a holiday visit like you suggested at Poopsie’s last grooming).
Allowing your answering machine to take all phone calls while you are grooming means that you don’t have to stop as well as talk to people who are price-shopping, the ones who want to tell you their pet’s entire life story, as well as the ones that just must get their dog in today – after all, they are a routine client of yours… They got him groomed at your shop last Christmas!
Having a waiting listing likewise provides you the advantage of being able to choose the clients that you want to work into your hectic schedule. frequently you can in shape in two or three simple dogs instead of one difficult, time-consuming client.
The holidays mean long hours on your feet for most groomers. Make sure that you wear comfortable, supportive shoes as well as have anti-fatigue mats at every grooming station. Ergonomic equipment, like adjustable tables as well as bathtubs as well as hand- as well as wrist-friendly tools, will assist boost your efficiency without taking a toll on your body.
Make yourself a priority. You are not a machine that can work 24 hours a day. You’ve got to get adequate rest as well as nutrition if you expect to make it through. working long, difficult hours can truly be difficult on your staff, too. show them that you appreciate them, as well as reward them adequately for all of their work.
If you can make this a time of pulling together as well as working as a teanull