In a bid to save their styles, Fleet salon owner Kerry Mather has turned into a one-woman hair hero, delivering products to their doors to prevent bad hair days and DIY disasters.
Kerry, who owns KJM Salons, had the idea for home delivery after a chance conversation with a client, who was looking for a bespoke package of products to look after her hair until the salon could safely reopen.
Testing the waters, Kerry reached out to a handful of loyal clients to see if they’d be interested in a similar service – and within 10 minutes, all of them had replied with a resounding yes!
The next step was to open the offer out to the entire KJM Salons client database. Again, the uptake was incredible and far beyond what Kerry had anticipated. Kerry used her extensive knowledge of clients, and their existing salon records, to suggest a product prescription to each client – varying depending on their hair type, length and any colour or perm services they’d previously had in the salon.
Each client received a tailor-made kit of products, as well as free samples, a personal note from Kerry and sweets and crayons for those with children at home.
Kerry has been hand-delivering her packages to clients with doorstep drops and disposable gloves and posting to those who live further afield. All transactions have been cashless to further limit contact.
To support the product deliveries, Kerry has been posting tutorials on Instagram of how to use some of the most popular products, so that clients know exactly how to use them at home. The tutorials have been a huge success, generating even more orders – and not just from existing clients. Thanks to the social posts being shared, complete strangers have requested product orders from the salon, too.
For Kerry, the new product delivery service is taking up three days a week – and as well as providing clients with a valuable service, is giving her a reason to visit the salon for regular security and stock checks.
“This has been the perfect venture for me during lockdown,” says Kerry. “I love to be busy, so this has been a great way of using my time. It’s also allowing us to generate a good income, even though the salon doors are closed. I’ve really enjoyed thinking carefully about each client’s requirements and creating a bespoke home haircare kit just for them. It’s been a really good way to maintain contact with clients and I’ve found that a quick message, call or even a wave from the doorstep can really make someone’s day during lockdown.”
What started off as a one-off favour for a friend has snowballed into a retail success story. With potential new clients ready to convert as soon as the salon doors reopen and existing clients grateful for the above-and-beyond customer service, Kerry has found that lockdown doesn’t have to mean losing out.
