The Shear Madness Franchise Advantage!

Some of our readers may recall that the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids Salon Franchise in Albuquerque was voted Best of the City in 2014, 2015 AND 2016. We are excited to say that they've done it again, and have been voted by readers as Albuquerque The Magazine's Best of the City for 2017! This is quite an honor to be sure, as numerous votes were cast in order to spotlight those businesses, organizations, restaurants, and people that help make Albuquerque such a great place to live!

Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque is noted as not being just another kids' salon, but as a unique place where mounted cars for styling chairs, televisions and Xbox games at every station help make the haircutting experience fun and special. Additionally, Shear Madness also has an award-winning YOUniquey Boutiquey where kids and parents can shop a fantastic selection of toys, jewelry, kids hair products, hair accessories and more. And to top it off, by mixing in ShEAR Dazzled Ear Piercing (a unique ear piercing experience), the La De Da Spa, themed parties, and a great styling staff - customers are sure to find something to bring a smile to their face! 

Kimberly Abeyta, owner of the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque says that, "We are grateful for being voted 'Best of the City Children’s Salon' 4 years in a row! Thank You Albuquerque for making Every Child Matter!" Kimberly also notes how hard the Shear Madness team works to bring smiles to their customer's faces each and every day by building up personal relationships and striving to create a special memory and fun atmosphere for kids and parents alike. Additionally, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque has really perfected the art of not only giving a great haircut, but also hosting fabulous kids Birthday parties! For example, the spa party concept has been a real hit in Albuquerque. Girls are treated to wearing spa robes, getting mini manis, twisty updos, glittery makeup, and a glitter tattoo. They sing Karaoke and get to choose a headband from the YOUniquey boutiquey to take home!

Janon Otto, CEO of Shear Madness Franchising noted that, "Shear Madness in Albuquerque has always been so concerned with excellent customer service since day one!  We are so proud of this store, the stylists are excellent, the parties - the best, and now they are doing an excellent job with ear piercing as well!  We see this store continuing to build its clientele and remaining - The Best in Albuquerque!"

Welcome to Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids Franchising! Not only do we offer an amazing franchising system that can potentially offer an impressive return on your investment, but we really do value being able to help make a positive difference in the lives of kids and their parents. From stylists who truly care about their customers, to franchisees who work hard at helping make a positive difference in their communities, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids is THE kids hair salon where EVERY child matters! But we also understand that while the concept is important to a potential franchisee, they also want to know how owning a Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids might be a sound business investment too. That's why we thought we'd put together the following list of ten reasons why Shear Madness isn't just a cool place for kids (even though it definately is that), but it's also a concept that may potentially translate into long-term financial success! 

A Record of Success: Franchisors like Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids will have a proven record of success. Through years of experience marketing to their customers, they usually understand what works - and what doesn't. Through becoming a franchisee, you automatically gain this valuable business advantage.

Robust Industry: Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids offers services that are in high demand. The children’s segment of the recession resistant Hair Salon Industry is one such example, It's currently worth around $19 billion. To date, there are around 45 million kids in the Shear Madness age group – and this is expected to grow by about 7 million by the year 2020! 

Marketing Support: Ask anyone who runs a business, and they’ll tell you that marketing not only takes a lot of time – but can cost a lot of money too. However, an effective marketing plan is critical in letting the community know about what your business does, where it’s located, and so much more. For example, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids understands this, and offers great resources and strategies to help businesses attract new customers.  

Buying Power:  Franchisors usually have experience in knowing what products sell well and what don’t. Additionally, they have the knowledge on how to negotiate for the best prices on everything needed for the successful operation of the business. Many times the sheer number of franchise locations allows the franchise to negotiate for better pricing.

Store Location: Where to locate is an important question any business owner should consider. Franchisors help study your community in order to help you find the best possible location for success.  They know the numbers and other criteria that allow for the possibility of a successful franchised business.

The Brand: A franchise brand is a powerful tool. As an example, the Shear Madness Brand is one that is instantly recognizable as being fun. Those who own a franchise with Shear Madness are automatically connected to the tens of thousands of parents and children who love who we are and what we do. This translates into many repeat customers who share with friends and family about their great Shear Madness experience! 

Building your Store: One of the benefits in buying a franchise is the franchisor's expertise  in designing the layout of a prospective business, working with the right contractors, and knowing how much furniture and equipment will be needed. Again, this helps a business owner save time, money, and keeps the headaches to a minimum! 

Networking: Franchising can be a little like a group of trusted friends, and should be a great environment of sharing and building each other up. Franchise owners who work with other franchisees and communicate what works and what doesn’t will have a competitive advantage over those who don’t! 

Training Support: Great franchise systems have worked hard to develop many training resources to help you achieve success. For example, with Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids, we provide our franchisees with in-store training with stylists, and encourage opportunities to network with other franchise owners. Because of this, you’ll have access to a wealth of business knowledge at your fingertips.

Minimizing Risk: Ultimately, as a potential owner of a franchise, the success of your store will be up to you. But through being a part of a franchise system like Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids, the risk of starting a new business is significantly reduced. Sure, there will still be challenges that come your way, but as a franchisee, you’ll have greater confidence and know-how in how to succeed. 

After having recently written about what it is that Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids is about (which can be read right here), we thought it would be fun to follow it up with an actual account of a parents review of a first-time visit to one of our stores! Following is what a father and his son had to say about what it's like to visit a Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids!

Matt describes that after learning about Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids from a friend, he made an appointment for his son to visit on a Sunday afternoon. "The receptionist was very friendly, and really sounded interested in what was going on," Matt noted. "This was a great first impression, as sometimes I've called stores and gotten ahold of people who weren't overly enthused to talk to me. It made a difference."

Matt then discussed that on the day of their appointment, he tried to arrive with his son a few minutes early. "When we walked in, I could tell this was the kind of place I would have loved coming to as a kid. And I could tell my son was really liking it too. He was drawn to the diecast vehicles and action figures in a cool retail area in the front of the store, and spent a few minutes checking these out while we waited just a minute or two for our haircut. There were a lot of toys and games for boys, but there was also toys and stuffed animals for girls -and there was jewelry, hairbows and hair products too, which was great. I also really liked the look of the store, as it has a lot of bright colors and fun artwork hanging on the walls. And there was a birthday party going on in the back, with karaoke, which added to the fun atmosphere of the place."

"My son pretty much knew what to expect for his haircut, but this was the first time he was able to play a game while he was getting it cut. He also could have watched a movie too, but he couldn't resist one of the building games that was available on the game console that he also plays at home. Meanwhile, I was able to stand nearby and watch, and we both gave our input on what we were looking for regarding his hairstyle," Matt explained. "The stylist was very friendly, and talked to my son about how his day was. She also talked with me too, and seemed like she really enjoyed her job. I saw that there were a variety of vehicle type chairs for kids to sit in while they were getting a haircut, but as my son is older, he sat in a normal sized chair. I later learned that I could have gotten a haircut there as well if I had wanted, and that sometimes adults will come in and get a haircut with their child for the sake of convenience. There's also various haircutting packages, where a mother and son can get a haircut together for a special price, or a daddy and daughter can get one too. I'll definitely plan on coming back again the next time my son needs his haircut!"

When Matt's son was asked about his visit to Shear Madness, he smiled and said, "My Shear Madness trip was so fantastic, it felt wonderful to get manly-scented hair gel put into my hair. I enjoyed playing the games while getting my haircut. I also liked how vibrant everything was, and had fun looking at the toys. I would definitely recommend this place, because it's good!"

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Are you interested in learning how YOU can join the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids family and run your own successful small business? We are one of the fastest growing kids hair salon franchise systems in the industry today! If you would like to learn more about small business marketing, kids salons reviews, kids hair salon reviews, great marketing strategies, resources for small businesses, how to grow your small business, or how to become a successful owner of your own kids hair salon franchise business, please click below or call 1-888-98 GONE MAD.

People are requesting information about our franchise on a daily basis. The two most often asked questions I get are, “how much does it cost?” and “how much can I make?” These are questions that most interested franchise buyers have the right to know. If I may, I'd like to offer prospective buyers a question that would answer the other two and save everyone a lot of due diligence and research. You see, I think the most important question that franchise buyers should ask is, “How many of your locations have closed?”

Closing locations are the BIG RED FLAG of franchising. Why? Closing locations are a sign of several franchising problems.

Number one (and the one most people don’t ask enough) is that closings are caused because the franchise may not make enough money. This may not even be the fault of the franchisor, it’s just that it may not be a franchisable business model with enough demand from its customers. Remember: most franchising systems need several key components to be successful. The system must be easily taught to someone else, and that person in turn can teach it to someone else. Most successful franchising models create a recurring revenue model that continuous to expand and produce more and more revenue over time. That’s called scalability.

Number two is that closed locations can be a sign of poor support and training. Franchisors that don’t properly train and then support their franchisees usually suffer from lots of closed franchise locations. Running a business is hard and franchise systems that don’t help get their franchises “over the hump” and through the most difficult part of business, the startup, usually have closed locations.

So how do you know how many of a franchisor’s locations have closed?

The FTC requires that a franchise list all of their closings in the back of their Franchise Disclosure Document (also known as the FDD). If there are no closings listed, then make sure that you ask the franchisor to make sure. Under the FTC’s guide for buying a franchise, which you can find online, they'll say that if the numbers show that more than a few franchised outlets have closed, transferred to new owners, or transferred to the franchisor - then it could be due to problems with the franchsor’s support or because franchises aren’t profitable. 

This is not to say that there is a franchising system that exists with no closings. All franchising systems have locations that close. Running a business is hard and it takes lots of time, effort and perseverance to succeed, no matter how good the systems are. Plus, many people just lack the skill it takes to run a business. But if it were me, I'd always be sure to ask the question, “how many of your locations have closed?” Asking that one question will save you a lot of time and money!

Shear Madness Franchising franchises Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids salons. We have worked with franchise stores in providing franchisee support (in order to encourage continual growth), and have sometimes seen the unexpected happen!  When it does, we help by identifying and helping with challenges that might arise for franchisees. Additionally, we work to present options that can help prevent these events as well. As many franchise owners may not have opened a business before, having someone who can advise them is a significant advantages of franchise ownership!

Are you interested in learning how YOU can join the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids family and run your own  small business? We are one of the fastest growing kids hair salons and franchise systems in the industry today! If you would like to learn more about small business marketing, great marketing strategies, resources for small businesses, business tips, how to grow your small business, or how to become a owner of your own kids hair salon franchise business, please click below or call 1-888-98 GONE MAD!

Ever heard the saying, slow and steady wins the race? It applies a lot to franchising. When I was a stockbroker, guys in the office were always coming up with a “hot” stock pick. Most of the hot stock picks my clients and I invested in never worked out. Sure, they may have gone like gangbusters for a while, but they usually flamed out after a while and plummeted back to earth - and took my money with them! Meanwhile, the older guys in my office were always buying Blue Chip stocks, which means that these were stocks with steady companies in steady industries that did well in any environment. This is why I think there's an interesting comparison here between franchising and buying stocks.

Because when you're out there researching franchises  - it's a good idea to start with the following question: What do people consider a necessity rather than a luxury? Or put another way, if the economy slows down or even goes into a recession, will my franchise business survive? One example of this is how haircuts are something that most people consider a necessity and not an option, and no matter what the economy is doing hair is always growing - and it always needs to be cut! Child care is another one. People will always have a strong desire to have a family. If people spend money on anything in good times or bad, they will ALWAYS spend money on their kids. We can probably all think of companies whose products have either gone out of style or are no longer relevant. The most recent example is Blockbuster entertainment. The video rental store has been replaced by Netflix and other on demand movie services. Another example is Borders. Borders book stores unfortunately didn't keep up with Amazon's on line book stores, and recently closed most of its locations as well.  Again, it's hard to imagine a time when hair care is no longer a need - no matter what happens with technology.

Additionally, be sure to take a little time to determine if the business model you are looking at makes money. Seek out a reliable franchise system that currently has a long track record of success. Keep in mind that the franchise system itself may be younger than the actual concept itself.  Find out how long the franchisor has had a history with the concept itself.  Have they really figured it out before offering the franchise? As we live in an ever changing and fast paced world, consumers demands change by the minute and are greatly influenced by technology! Look for businesses that are being done the same way today as yesterday, and will be done the same way tomorrow. Luckily haircuts (and hair care in general) is a pretty hard industry to imagine being completely taken over by technology!  This is why over the last decade more and more salon concepts have begun to franchise.

The bottom line is, just like those Blue Chip stocks, when it comes to franchising, those long established businesses that have stood the test of time are usually the best place to start looking for a business. That's why when it comes to searching out a reliable and successful franchise system, sometimes the steady concepts that do well in any environment are a more reliable investment over those that claim to be smoking hot!

Interested in learning more about how you can become an owner of your own exciting Shear Madness location? As one of the best kids salon franchise systems out there, we're also one of the fastest growing kids hair salons in the industry today! And we're always working hard to share our many great resources, small business marketing strategies and business tips so that our franchisees will have the tools to succeed! If you're interested in learning how to become a successful owner of your own childrens salon franchise business, please click below or call 1-888-98 GONE MAD!