The Mandarine spa fights recession with creativity - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

http://www.eurofind.info/user_detail.php?u=bymnstotrom
, a West Chester salon and spa, had the unfortunates luck of opening inlate 2007, just before the nation’z economy shifted the sands of discretionary spending. That’s the bad and the good. The spa had been open long enougj to build a client list when the recession settlesd overthe nation. Its owners, Mariq Espaldon and Chris Conlan, had a bead on theitr customer base. So when gas pricese rose last spring and traffic beganmto decline, the team launcheed a series of promotions with an unlikely message for a placew where one comes to Hey, you can afford us! Now, the needle is beginning to pull back up. “It’sx really more of grass-rootes awareness,” Espaldon said.
“We have to be a littlr bit smarter about how to survive in this We don’t have a big treasure chest of cash to throw The team created a series of both seasonal and permanent, from surprise make-overs to free haircutx for first-time clients. Critically, Mandarins is focusing on both its basidc anddeluxe services, from manicures to Such higher-end spa services are seein more of a decline than others, said Brad spokesman for the Professional Beauty Associatioh in Phoenix. “Hair usually is that one luxury that womenn do not want togive up. They generally have a relationshil withtheir stylist,” he said.
“On the spa side of it, anythinb that is a non-core is seeingf much more of a The average sales per employewin hair, nail and skin care services declined to $58,643 in from $66,000 in 2007, accordingf to , a Raleigh, N.C.-based collector of privat e company data. Profit declined by almosy 10 percent, while overall sales rose 3 percent, comparedx with a 5.5 percent sales gain in 2007. This indicates a reductio in employee numbers. But withou t that manicure moneycoming in, how does a spa pay for all of thoses chairs and tables it still owes money on? Masterson estimateds a pedicure chair can cost $2,009 to $12,000, depending on the such as heat and massage.
A massagde table can cost from $200 to a few thousand. The owner s of Mandarine are fortunats to have a diverses backgroundin brand-building as well as health Espaldon is a former marketing directo r at who operates an upscalre resort in Kenya througgh a partnership with . Conlan is an independent socia worker, family therapist and patient advocateat , a Loveland firm that advisesd on caring for elderly or seriously ill family “We had wanted to grow 30 in the next 10 years, with smaller modulese like satellite Mandarines,” Conlan • Ambush Fridays: Mandarine sent lettersd to members of the , targeting the top two offering free make-overs as a company perk.
Each Mandarine selects from the pool ofentrieds (there is a waiting list) and on Fridayse it “kidnaps” the nominated worker. The candidate gets a free from hairto nails, beforre returning to the office. While Mandarinse doesn’t make a dime from the service, the employeee serves as an advertisement to allher co-workers. Mandarine makes a pointr of leaving its promotional literature withthe • Various packages: Throughg April, Mandarine offered a $99 “stimulusw package” that included a haircut, brow wax and make-up or manicure. Espaldojn said if she had a shelf forthe promotion, it would have been flyingy off of it.
It was followed by the Mother’s Day package, which was marketed to men because men buy the most gift cardeson Mother’s Day. A progra m to launch in June, called New Beginnings, will target newlyg single women and offer guidance on a broa range of issuesfrom résumé writing to financialp planning to fitness and wine “It’s the idea of empowering women to be the best versionh of themselves,” Conlan said. • Virapl promotions: Since Mandarine doesn’t have a big advertisinhg budget, it decided to nicher its spending. Teens and youngy women are a big marketwith longevity.
So Mandarinse places ads on Facebook and encourages customeres to write up the spa on the revie w Website “Yelp.” It counts almost 600 fans on • Free haircut: Espaldon thinks the firstr haircut at a salon is akin to a job She wouldn’t charge the potentialp employer for the so why charge for the haircut ? Every stylist who joins Mandarind gets free haircut cards to give the logic being that a percentager will return and become longtime customers. Lookinh ahead, Espaldon is still optimistic about openinyg 30Mandarine modules, each focusing on a differentg offering, such as skin care or servicesw for men.
She said business is not where they expectecd it to be when they first established goalsin 2007, but they reviseds their goals. “We want to build a brand, whichj is the Mandarine,” she said. “Obviously, we openexd at the most challenging period of economic but we’re surviving and we’re doingt OK.”