Five things you should be doing in your salon right now

Michael Riley is a partner at Keeping Account, a strategic financial management business offering bookkeeping services, HR support, payroll, ATO reporting and more.

Michael’s five top tips are:

1. Minimise any excessive, unnecessary spending. Lots of businesses end up with subscriptions all over the place and some of them are doubled up. For example, if you have GSuite and Microsoft Office, you probably only need one. 

2. Get a separate account for obligations of funds that aren’t yours. Things like tax, staff wages, superannuation. Put that money aside, pretend it’s not there and when you need to make the payment you’ve got the funds on hand.

3. Make sure you’re using the best software for your industry. Don’t think it’s an expense – it’s not. It’s saving you money because it’s doing stuff for you. That goes for Timely but also for accounting software – they are assets to your business.

4. Get support and advice from someone who knows what they’re talking about. It doesn’t have to be someone you see every month. You might do almost all of your own work and have a bookkeeper or an accountant come in and make sure everything’s done right. They can review your transactions and check everything is in order.

5. Make sure you’re maximising your tax situation and the structure of your business. Depending on the size of your business, Whether you’re a sole trader, partnership, company or trust, make sure you’re aware of what’s best for your business. This is where it’s great to get professional advice.

Jade Spehr is the founder of JadeStart, who provides coaching for aesthetics and beauty businesses around the world. She’s a qualified lawyer, has an undergraduate in accounting and worked for top accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers for nearly a decade.

Jade’s advice to beauty businesses is:

1. Implement strategies to grow. Six months down the line, you’ll wish you had. So, start implementing strategies to grow. 

2. Put cash aside. And with the extra money that you earn from growth, start saving. You’re going to want that cash runway if things turn south so you can make smart decisions.

3. Direct your focus. Instead of putting energy into what the competition is doing, bring that focus inwards to how you can improve your business. Don’t worry about the media, the news, what economists are saying. Just think about what you can do to create the life you want.

4. Get across your numbers. Your business isn’t going to grow if you don’t know your numbers. Track it and measure it, so you know exactly what’s happening and what to do next.

5. Enjoy the process! You’re not ever going to have the perfect business, it doesn’t exist. There’s always going to be something to work on, but it’s about the journey rather than the end goal. And that might sound corny, but we have to enjoy it along the way.

Find out how Timely helps salon owners run a successful business, deliver incredible client experiences and grow revenue.