People are becoming increasingly aware of their eco-footprint and are trying to make more sustainable choices. As more people are actively looking for sustainable options, it’s only natural that they’re expecting a more eco-friendly experience when they visit their favourite salon, spa or clinic.
Making your hair and beauty business more environmentally sustainable gives your clients the eco-friendly experience they’re looking for, saves you money, and is good for the planet. So here are 7 tips for how to make your salon, spa or clinic more sustainable.
1. Consider sustainability with every decision
Take some time to research how you can continue to provide your clients with the salon experience they expect while also considering the environment. Look into basin taps that conserve water, and energy-efficient light bulbs and appliances.
Little changes like waiting to wash towels until there’s a full load and adjusting the air conditioning by a couple of degrees won’t affect your client’s experience, but they will add up to big savings for you and the environment!
2. Support eco-friendly transportation
Make it easy for your clients to arrive at your salon in a sustainable way. This might mean installing bike racks, or encouraging the use of public transport by providing a map of nearby public transport stops on your website and in the automated email you send before a client’s visit.
3. Offer eco-conscious products
Show your clients that you think green by stocking environmentally friendly products, for example, organic, eco-friendly, ammonia-free and not tested on animals. Studies have shown that consumers are actively moving to a more sustainable lifestyle, by choosing brands and shopping at stores that have ethical or environmentally sustainable values.
4. Ditch the paper and go digital
Replacing appointment cards with emails or texts is a great start, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to things you could make electronic in order to reduce your reliance on paper.
Digital forms
Instead of using paper, have your new clients enter their information into a tablet or other device and Kitomba will automatically update their client card.
If you need to obtain a signed consent, create a treatment plan or gather medical history, do it digitally. You’ll be saving yourself time and energy too, as you won’t need to copy information from paper forms into client cards, scan and save copies into Kitomba, or file the paper away.
Taking advantage of electronic forms creates a modern, streamlined and sustainable experience for the client. Find out more about Kitomba Forms.
Vouchers
Let your clients make a sustainable gift-giving choice by offering online vouchers. Kitomba allows you to easily sell branded vouchers to your clients through your online booking page, website, email, or social media channels. Kitomba allows you to send and use vouchers without needing to print anything, to find out more about our vouchers and how to use them, check out our blog.
Email marketing
Emails can be personalised so your clients receive messages especially for them, such as birthday messages or promotions for their favourite services. You can even use Kitomba to send these emails automatically, giving you more time to spend with your clients in the salon. Learn about automated email marketing and how to create segmented client lists with Kitomba.
5. Recycle as much as you can
Salons, spas and clinics create a lot of waste each day, a lot of which is unavoidable. Show your clients you care by making an effort to recycle everything you possibly can.
According to Sustainable Salons, up to 95% of salon waste can be recycled, which would mean much less waste going to the landfill. Having your hair clippings help clean up oil spills and allowing your aluminium foils and tubes to get a new lease on life is something you should be really proud of, and your clients will love that you are making the effort too.
6. Reuse your old containers
What’s even better than recycling? While recycling is definitely something you should be doing, it still takes energy to transform something old into something new. Reusing old containers takes only a quick clean and they’re ready to go again!
Let your clients see your commitment to the planet by reusing your empty containers for different uses such as plant or equipment holders. And ditch the disposable drink cups – your clients will prefer to drink from real glasses and mugs, and you’ll be reducing waste at the same time.
7. Set up a refilling station
Consider setting up a refill station at your salon, spa or clinic where clients can bring back their empty bottles and refill them. You could offer a small discount or loyalty points to incentivise refilling over purchasing a product with new packaging. This will increase your client’s loyalty to you and the products you sell.
Make it even easier for clients by refilling a few bottles in advance, allowing your clients to trade their empties for a refilled bottle without having to wait. When you reuse old containers it means fewer need to be manufactured, which is better for the environment.
Attract more clients by making your salon more sustainable
As more people are making more sustainable, eco-friendly choices, it’s important that you make appropriate changes in your salon, spa or clinic to do your part. Implementing any of the ideas in this article will help you to provide a more eco-friendly experience for your clients while reducing your environmental footprint.
If you’re going to make your salon sustainable, use eco-friendly products and recycle everything you can, don’t forget to let your clients know about it. Make sure to share your sustainability journey in your marketing, on your website and in your salon so that current clients are aware of your efforts, and new clients looking for a sustainable salon can easily find you. If you’re doing something unique you can even tell the press about it!
Read more about elevating your client experience with our comprehensive Client Experience Guide.
To learn more about sustainable salons, spas and clinics, we recommend reading the following articles:
- 8 ways to get sustainable with Kitomba
- Step up your sustainability
- Sustainability and your salon: Where on earth do you start?
Editor’s note: This post was originally published on 17 Sep 2019 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
