How to Elevate Guest Experience, Retention & Revenue (Without Selling Hard)

When you've got somebody sat in that chair and they're in front of you, they are there for your creativity. They are there to listen to all their problems. They are there to listen to all their wins. And you have a very personal relationship with them and they trust you. And so what we try and do now is have a product. And this is right from day one with Damon. We made a product for him and his trusted clients. That's what we're still doing today. We try and fit that need and requirement with the product. And I go away and I think, like I'm making a product at the minute. I must have made it 50 million times. And every time I go to show it to a client, they go, not good enough. It'll do the job, Heather. It can't just do a job. It's got to be beautiful. It's got to work. They've got to want to come back. And that trust that that stylist has got, that barber's got with their client, they've got to give them a product that is equal to that trust and that's sort of what drives it all the time good morning well we're we don't know if it's morning or night time because i'm recording and joined today on brazen and bold by the brilliant louis hayes davies and victoria harrington of damon barber we're joining each other on the show from across a big blue sea morning for me, afternoon for them. Thank you so much for your flexibility in coordinating our timing together and joining me on Brazen and Bold. Welcome to the show. We're super excited to be here, Heather, and to talk to you and be part of your show. So yeah, we are across that big blue expanse of water and how exciting to be able to be brought together on screen like this. I love it. I was introduced by a friend in the industry to the two of you and your beautiful product just a few months ago. And as we were chatting before we started recording, I was just sharing with the two of you, I got this beautiful package in the mail. And when I opened it, I was promised to experience and receive some lovely samples of your product. And I opened the box and I was honestly astounded. It was absolutely beautiful. I've worked with barbering products before or you know grooming lines that are catered to the masculine population and they're kind of basic if i'm being honest with you a lot of them they feel clunky to me they don't look sexy on a shelf and i'm not really excited by what i'm seeing and when i opened the box i felt like i had just stepped into a luxury high-end department store experience it was beautiful it was wrapped beautifully. Everything about it felt luxury and high quality. And I just can't say enough about that beautiful packaging and delivery. So thank you for sharing it with me. Thanks, Heather. That's okay. It's very nice. Yeah. Now the two of you have blended science, nature, environmental conscientiousness, and super good vibes in this product. And I want to hear a little bit about the journey, starting with you, Louis. Louis, excuse me, starting with you. Tell me about how you got involved in this world of beauty. Yeah, it's an interesting one. I was very lucky, but I think both Victoria and I to work with some amazing sort of houses and some amazing beauty houses. So from creating the brand with myself to then be able to work with somebody like Victoria, whom I knew anyway, to be able to bring it all to life and ensure that the practicality of what we were trying to achieve would translate to people. And I think growing up in the beauty industry and working for people like Dior, being very lucky to help and design products for Formula One, and also working for a really interesting lady who was at the time the queen of cleansing called Eve Lom. So I was always on that journey in the beauty industry. I found it the most amazing place because you can be anybody and as long as you it makes you feel and look better and you feel yourself and it gives you a bit of confidence it was always the sort of journey if you wanted to be part of it because it was positive endorsements it was making you look good and giving you that element of uh edginess or you can change how you feel so when it then started to come into thinking about Damon Barber, it was just a chance meeting. That's all it was. It was a chance meeting with a barber that said, I've overheard you're making product for people. Can you make some for me? And I sort of was like, well, yeah, what are you trying to do? Because I was very lucky. And I always say this to people, you can go and buy ingredients from anywhere and they're at your fingertips these days. It's where you buy them from, and the trusted sources and from other independents that then can create things that you can use in a formula that makes it very different, or very effective, or it does what it says on the tin. So it was a chance meeting with a barber, we created a couple of products that then started to gain some momentum. And from that momentum, I thought I quite like the fact that we can buy really beautiful ingredients, we can ensure that they're going to be sustainable, I can make sure that they work. And then when you are using them for the professional, it gives the best finish. But also you can recreate it at home. And then they can wash out because it's got to be water soluble. So it was that chance meeting with a barber in the professional industry that inspired the story really. And then the story is something that has grown and we've grown into different categories. So if you're Damon Barber in hair, why not be Damon Barber in skincare? And that was the piece that kind of got me. And it's something that, first of all, I want to hear a little bit about Victoria. How did you, when did you join this journey? And when did the two of you decide to collaborate? What made this union possible? And and what are your insights and what makes a good team? I said to her, please work for me. Please work for me. So you were on your hands and knees begging, anything, please. I was, yes. Well, tell me, how did you win your offer? Yeah, so I worked with Louis a number of years ago before children, when we were just looking at hair products and we got involved and were trying to really get the name and the brand out there. And then I left to expand my family. And then about a year ago, we were talking again and I was like, I really need to look for some more work. And, you know, we was like, just I've always, you know, we've always kept in touch. And I just said, you know, do you think it's going to be a job for me? I'd love to come and work back here again. So, yeah. So I came back in more of a sales and an education role. And my background is in skincare. And I was lucky enough to work for the Lauder Group and was lucky enough to go to New York can meet with some of the scientists and dermatologists. And that's something that's really been of interest to me. So we were able to look at the anatomy of the skin, look at how key ingredients would help to benefit the skin and the long-term use of those benefits and how the skin can help to repair and recover and the importance of like locking all that moisture in and things like that. So when we talk about the science and the nature element, I really enjoy educating our customers, distributors, salons, stylists, barbers around that sort of, you know, the ingredients and how they can help to benefit the skin and the hair and the scalp. And then that long term use so that they can pass that on to their clients. I think a really key point of that is when you get to work with somebody that understands you and you understand them, there are no barriers. So because we also have our own barber and salon here, you get to meet with people every single day. There's an honest and open relationship between how we create and how we translate it. And I think when you work for a brand and it's driven by profit and loss, which I'm not saying that that's not important. What I am saying is it's not my driver. My driver is to make a product that people can relate to. people can understand, people can use, and it will benefit them. And then that's a very different driven aspect than somebody saying, okay, you've got to do a turnover this year. What can we make to fill the gap? The difference then when working with Victoria, whom has that background in the technicalities of everything, it brings what I make to life. Because I'm like, you get that we use pentavitin and Victor was like, well, of course I do because it's going to do this. And I'm like, that's amazing. You get it. So when we then get in front of salons, as we did at Intercoiffure, you can bring it to life because we're not selling them anything. We're just saying, if you use this product, it's going to be great to use. It's going to give you a brilliant finish. This is how we use it in our environment. This is how you could use it in your environment that will help retain a client, bring extra revenue, and that will affect positively your bottom line. So I think coming from a natural enthusiasm to want to make something lovely, to make it into your own brand that's taken off from the back of my hallway in the UK, so now we sit in our own three-story townhouse with beauty beds and master barbers and lead stylists. It's crazy. But it comes down to how you work together and the people in your team that bring your thoughts and vision to life to reality. That is really brilliant. I think sharing this kind of insight into what motivates you. Clearly, you couldn't be in a three-story townhouse if you didn't have profit. If you only had loss, you've got to look at those aspects of a business in order to be right in order to bring what you want in your vision to the masses or to life. However, having your motivation beginning with the experience, the benefits, and the connected piece is a completely different way of approaching the business and what you're creating and bringing to people. And I think especially in our first meeting and the times that we've connected, that's been so relevant. And that's why I wanted to have the two of you on as guests on the show. Because I think with that kind of I would say that overlay or the overarching concept and inspiration behind what you do really drives the way it feels to engage with you. And I can't imagine that from the top down, starting with that as your priority, it's affecting everything from the packaging, the ingredients, how you source, how you deal with your team, and then how your team goes and deals with their customers or their clients. I mean, you know, when you've got somebody sat in that chair and they're in front of you, and we all know it, and we were already talking to a guy today in Washington who runs an amazing establishment. They sit in front of you. They are there for your creativity. They are there to listen to all their problems. They are there to listen to all their wins. and you have a very personal relationship with them and they trust you. And so what we try and do now is have a product. And this is right from day one with Damon, we made a product for him and his trusted clients. You know, that's what we're still doing today. It's just on a little bit of a larger scale with experts like Victoria that can bring it to life and then have the trust of the client that sat in that chair every four weeks, six weeks, perhaps they come for a blowout. every week what's new what's going on what's happening what can i use how can i extend the blower how can i get the best shape how can i get the best skin pain all of these questions we try and fit that need and requirement with the products and i go away and i think okay like i'm making a product at the minute i must have made it 50 million times and every time I go to show it to a client, they go, not good enough. It'll do the job, Heather. And as Victoria has seen it, yeah, it'll do the job. It can't just do a job. It's got to be beautiful. It's got to work. They've got to want to come back. And that trust that that stylist has got, that barber's got with their client, they've got to give them a product that is equal to that trust. And that's sort of what drives it all the time. I think that's awesome. I mean, listen, if you don't understand the products to start with, when you guys are talking about the ingredients, the whatever the thing is that you said that I don't know what it is, it was very cute how you guys got excited about this whatever ingredient, these skincare based ingredients, you know, Victoria, you've got to have this expertise. And maybe the stylist or barber doesn't need to know everything about every ingredient, but there has to be an excitement around what the results are and a basic understanding in order for them to infuse a similar excitement. Victoria, what have you done since joining the company to help enhance that and kind of create the energy around it or help your clients who use your products to be able to talk to their clients so they can use the products? Yes, so I've created a list of a service menu if you like and a list of protocols. So this service menu is a way of introducing Damon Barber products into services when you've got a client sat at the backwash, when you've got a client sat at the chair and it's just a really simple and quick way of demonstrating a product, getting a product onto the client's skin, the hair, the scalp in a lovely way that makes them look good but feel good and we start by offering these services they could be free to start with for example so if we just talk about our iRevitalize it's a two to three minute service it can be offered in the client's chair or it can be offered at the back wash and it's something just a little extra to make the client you know relax makes them feel good and and it's not complicated it's not over complicated so in terms of training a stylist or a barber on that protocol it's really simple it's really quick and easy to do but it stops that product just sitting on a retail shelf and you're then opening it showing the client how to use it they look they feel good afterwards and you've just given a little something extra so you know you're not there's no pressure there's no pressure to take it away that horrible awkward retail you know sales conversation that you don't want to have there's no pressure to do that you're just adding that service on you can then look to maybe charge for that service you might add it on to a scalp massage you know you might build it into that service you can then look to offer the service with a product as well so you can look to do and a service with a free product but you might charge for the service and vice versa and then we build on those so it could be something um like the scalp massage we might put in the hair growth galvanizer and then we start talking about like a follicle boost service you know customers that have clients that have seen a difference in hair texture changes or scalp health we can talk about those sort of things we might add the hydra surge hydrate and sheet mask in so you know when they're at the back wash and they're getting their hair washed we pop on the 100 bamboo sheet mask it can stay on there for up to 15 minutes you might do a head massage at the same time but again it's a lovely service that can be charged for so all of these services have a protocol to support them so I can help train the stylist the barber the therapist they're all there you know if they need to go back to them and think it's been a while since I've offered that service they're all there to support them but these are simple services that really help to elevate the service that is offered in a salon or a barber or a spa, but also help to create that client loyalty, as Louis said, but help to increase the revenue for the stylist. So, you know, when a client comes in and they're paying X amount of pounds or dollars for a haircut, how other than retail, how else can you really help to drive that revenue? What else are you going to do. So by offering these services, you're really helping to uncap the revenue that a stylist can earn. And then you're also future-proofing your revenue because you can book that client back in again. You know, you might offer that free eye revitalize service, two to three minutes. You might share a tip and technique on how to apply eye cream. We were at the event, the Fall Italian in New York in September. And I did a very quick demonstration on stage of the eye service, the eye revitalize. It took two minutes. The amount of people that came up to me afterwards and said, I didn't even know how to apply an eye cream. You don't put it on me. Okay, time out for everyone listening we uh may i trouble you to give all of us myself included as i was explaining to you before we started recording and that we paid me a very high compliment about my 32 second makeup job because i don't know how to do any of it um actually i do not i am certain i do not apply eye cream correctly if i remember to do it ever so can you give all of the listeners give us a little mini teaser about what this iRevitalize service might look like behind the chair or at the back wash versus how we can also incorporate this into say our own meager grooming routine. Give us a little something. No, absolutely. So this is the nice thing when you are offering this service to the client, you share in those free tips and techniques that make them feel good. So it's a free tip and technique that they've gone home and they've gone, I feel really good about that. And when I put my eye cream on at home, I'm doing it right. And then they'll keep coming back because you've given them that free tip and technique. So when you apply your eye cream, you want to be applying it to the orbital bone, which is this bit here. Size of a grain of rice is enough to do your eye. So you don't want to overload the eye area. And because the skin around the eye is so thin, it's a lot thinner than anywhere else on your face, you just want to treat it with care. You don't want to be rubbing and tugging the eye area. The reason it's really important to use a specific eye cream and not your moisturiser is because your moisturiser has different benefits and ingredients in. We want something that's nice and lightweight, something that's going to boost the eye area, but it's going to add those essential oils because we don't have any pores around the eyes so that's why we need to use an eye cream and people will say oh I use I drink loads of water I don't need to use an eye cream but we know that when you drink water your skin is the last organ to get it it goes everywhere else before your skin is going to benefit from it so that's why we use something topically so if we start with your the best finger to start with is this one here just because it applies the right amount of pressure so you're not rubbing and dragging and you don't want to be applying the eye cream into this area here keep it away from the tear duct and it doesn't need to go on the lid either so pop a size of a grain of rice and you're just going to dot it around the orbital bone and then you can do some patting movements you can take some of the cream in here just give yourself a little bit of a massage you could massage your frown lines here you're going to work it into the eyebrow here just lifting it helps to get rid of any of that tension in the brow and it helps with lymphatic drainage so if you've got any um brow tension any puffiness around the eyes you want to be working it to the um outward area here and patting you could pat and roll and working it towards the temples and a little bit of a massage at the temples press and release. And Heather, that is why I love working with Victoria. I can see why. Yeah, I definitely have been doing it exactly like that my entire life. So relieved to know that I've done it. Oh my goodness. So if I'm thinking about this from a guest experience, no matter the gender of the guests that you're seeing they're reclined you're doing their shampoo maybe it's a scalp massage a hair mask or in our case at our salon a lot of times we're doing a gloss service or something whether it's hydrating or with a color overlay to harmonize the color at the end of the service we're reclined we're relaxed we leave the lights dim you know i'm already kind of feeling relaxed as you're describing like the pat and the roll the orbital bone the temple massage such an easy little something to add in and i can imagine someone there feeling just more indulged more catered to more thought of and i live in arizona um so i don't know if you've ever been out this way but just imagine you've got like an oven and a dehydrator and then um you know like a blow dryer running all the time and then that's just how it feels to open the door and go outside and so you're You're mentioning hydration and water. Hold on. I think this is ridiculous. I'm just going to show you. These are just two of the 45 beverages on my desk to start my day off. And that's after I've already guzzled this much in greens and green powder. And it's a thing in Arizona. Okay. So wherever you might live, if you're not by a coast, if you're in a dry area, somewhere that's an arid climate, how much more important it is to add these revitalizations. If I'm a guest in a place, I don't even really care where at this point, if I'm a guest in any salon and I'm, and there's a captive audience and you offer an eye revitalizing service. I've got one question. This kind of sounds cheesy. Like I don't wear a ton of makeup usually, but is it going to mess up their makeup? No. I mean, I can, you can pop it on and it's going to give like a little hydration boost. So it's going to make their makeup look lovely and rehydrated. It's not going to mess up their makeup. But there's other services that you can add in that if they do come in with the makeup on and they don't want to, that's where you could tailor the service. So you might add in the hair growth galvanizer while you're doing your gloss service. You might think, I'm going to put some hair growth galvanizer on at the end. Just before you take them over for styling, it doesn't leave the hair feeling really greasy. It's really nourishing for the scalp. But you talk there about protecting the skin and locking the moisture. And it does that for the hair and scalp as well. So it would be perfect in that environment. And to Victoria's point with that, and again, Heather, this is when it comes down to when you design the product seamlessly to work with a protocol is you make them so they're easily absorbed. You make them so they're going to work. And you make them so that if anybody puts it on with makeup, whether you're men, female, and you want to put some glow on, it's not going to dissolve it. Because this particular product line that we try and promote and keep clean, it's all about that. So we're able to use it in a service that will benefit the client that will want to come back because it not only feels great to the touch, it looks great because it doesn't affect anything else. Hey, business owners. Yes, you. I know you're juggling it all. Marketing, admin tasks, websites, podcasts, social media, the list never ends. That's where Spark comes in. We're a virtual assistant company built just for small business owners. Because once you're able to delegate, we know you'll be able to dominate. Our clients are seeing up to 30% increase in social media engagement and sales, all by letting us handle the behind the scenes work. not to mention an incredible boost in flexibility, profit, and time. So scan the QR code right now to schedule a free chat with my team. Let's make you Efficient AF and help you focus on what you do best, growing and leading your business. I really, really like that. And I think the reason I'm asking is because I'm sure some guests, you know, they're inmate up, they're here in the middle of their workday or whatever it is, and they don't want to leave with everything all messed up. So to be able to offer something like that and be able to speak to this is just going to add a dewy, refreshing look to your current makeup or whatever's already on your face. And I'm just thinking, I don't know about you. This is something we see a lot in the salon. The guests will sit down. And in my case, typically, it's our, our guests that are maybe middle age or a little older, and they sit there and you've got to have a lot of lights in a salon so that you can see what you're doing and all this. And they kind of go like this. There's a lot of times where this. Is that me? They start doing this in the mirror? Or they'll be like, oh, does it time for my neck lift? My Botox has worn off. How many times have I seen people kind of go like this? Like they'll even like tug at their neck like, oh, is it like you got the cape too? So people have a frog neck. They're like, oh no. You know, so you got someone going like this, or they'll say, do I really look this tired? Or is this lighting harsh? That line is ideal. That's what I'm thinking. These people who are so self-conscious can leave with more hydration, and you're like, oh, just a little dewy refreshment, especially if they're midday. I'm just thinking of all these people who sit there and they're a captive audience, and I hate to say it, but a lot of them are picking themselves apart because most of us don't sit for two hours staring in the mirror. I sure hope we have better things to do with our time. But if you're sitting as a guest getting a color service, a cut and a blowout, you're just staring in the mirror, starting to pick apart those fine lines or whatever. This is a great time to say why don't we do this i revitalize service and i think that little extra enhancement whether it's done as a complimentary gift for uh you know kicking off the new year or if this is the treat yourself and pamper yourself for valentine's day and then to be able to offer that as an enhancement at our salon we've been speaking a lot about how we can enhance the guest experience increasing the perceived value of what someone is what someone is there to engage in if we can have more of this and these little ideas these are these are small pieces and you've already said, oh, you don't want to mess with your skincare, maybe you're very sensitive, or you're allergic to things, or you're paranoid about what you put on your face. Let's do the scalp. What is it called? The galvanizer? Yes, hair growth galvanizer. So the hair growth galvanizer. Yes, a follicle boost. Things like this where people can be maybe, maybe we can offer something just as a loyalty. It's your birthday month. Thanks for coming into us. Or, you know, congratulations. Thanks for for being with us a full year or whatever thing that you might need to enhance. This is a way we have a loyalty program we work with for a salon software and they have what's called the treat card. We call it the love club and we just interviewed them on the podcast and we've made the love club. You can try things that you haven't received before in the salon. We look for more ways to enhance their service and offer them something they might not have experienced. And these little luxuries sound like an amazing addition to someone's menu like ours if a salon listening has these kind of offerings and if they don't what a way to start offering something to enhance loyalty and and the perceived value and then rebook it for the the fee what would you charge for the i revitalize treatment more or less what is like a range do you have a range in us dollars because most of our listeners are based in the us of what you would say that i revitalize experience would be added on for the ticket now it's interesting with with that because we speak to lots of different styles of barbers and salons. So if you are in a city location and you're in a salon, perhaps rather like yours sounds Heather, where it's established, then you're able to fit that into your established price list. So in other words, if you're already having services, it's a nice alignment. But what we always say is out of one little tube of eye formula, that will do at least 20 times the revenue as what it's cost you to buy. Now, if you've got a client that's established, and you what we call about retaining that client, because they're already with you, but you want to give them extra. If it's a chap, and he's never experienced the eye cream, it's about recruitment. And then if you're retaining and you are recruiting, it's giving you revenue. And I always say, sit it in the price point in which your salon sits in. Because we deal with some salons that have a more cost effective choice, especially if you're talking some of the barber locations. And then we deal with big city center locations and we I can think of one here in London. And for most people, it would be a treat. So I think when we talk revenue, we spoke about it earlier and joked about, you know, it's not just about the dollars, but it's about gaining more revenue. And as Victoria said, opening that ceiling and retaining clients by saying this simple little procedure will take two minutes. It will cost the salon very little, but the revenue that they will get from it sits very nicely at the end of their week. I was just going to add on to there as well and the the benefit of the adding these services in is that they don't have to go off and have weeks and weeks worth of training there's no modules to pass and things like that this is a service that can be added on to something that they're already qualified in so there's you know it's not extractions that are needed they don't need to go off and release staff and team members to go for lots of training and it's something that's really simple and easy to learn that was the the one of the the key reasons for doing it is that we we wanted to make the service element really easy to learn so that there's not lots of steps for them to learn and not lots of ingredients for them to learn because we appreciate you've got a lot going on you've got you know you've got to have a conversation with your client you're cutting hair you're thinking about colors and lots of different things we just wanted it to be really simple and easy to already slot into something that you already do and something that you already offer? I've just looked at our price list, Heather, just to give you an idea. So here at Damon Barber, you can come in and it'll cost you 20 pounds. So if we convert that to dollars, it's going to be still under about $28. Okay. And that would be the eye revitalized? Just the eye for three minutes. And then the revenue is whilst they're already stationary, and that you've got two minutes on your hands. You've got a captive audience. Yeah, you've just earned $28 for three minutes. This is actually very helpful because I think understanding that, would you say that your barbershop, your facility is in the more high end? Maybe it's more of a treat to go in there. Where do you say that that sits in the pricing positioning? Just so that people can say maybe, Oh, that helps me have an idea of where I would gauge what I could charge for something similar. I think this is very helpful for listeners. Okay, so if you were to come to the salon part here, you'd be probably paying about $200 for a cut and color. Okay, that is really helpful. For females. If it's for a male, and they're coming in for the Damon Barber experience, which is a shave, a facial and a haircut, you'll be talking about probably $110. Ooh, now that sounds amazing. How long is that shave, facial and haircut? I don't shave my face at this point. 60 minutes. 60 minutes. Amazing. So something that can be worked into a busy person's life, someone who wants to have an added indulgence without going to a full spa day. But this is a 60 minute cut, shave and facial. That's really nice. And And it's a one to one service. And you can have it, there's a drinks menu on an iPad, so you can choose what you like. It's you know, it's about the experience. It's about that client thinking, I cannot live my life without coming back in here. Yeah, that sounds incredible. I mean, especially I'm thinking I kind of need a drive through facial. That would be nice, like, you know, 30 minutes to just kind of refresh me and boost, you know, a little exfoliation, hydration, all the things. You've got one of those, Victoria's got one for you. This is really amazing. It sounds like the focus so much of what you do is on education, so that people can be empowered to add these services, elevate the experience, and then understand why, the why behind it, the driver of why I should offer this to a guest and what it does for them. So that sounds like a very, very complete offering. I want to know a little bit about, take it back to the very beginning a long time ago. What was the first product you ever made? You worked with a barber. Original pomade. There you go. He said, hey, I like you. You're cool. What is your background, Louis? You have your whole life in hair or in beauty, excuse me. So what is your background? Right. So my background was working with big brands. I started off really right back in the day on a counter, really talking and selling to clients. I then was very lucky in working with Christian Dior. It was amazing working there. And I was shown the world of luxury. And it wasn't until I got to Yves Lom that I started to get involved in ingredients, formulas. And you start to be put in front of people that are experts in that field. And you work for them. And by working with them, you become, when you're very interested in it, you become totally locked into it. I didn't want to do anything else. I just wanted to do that. Where'd you get that ingredient? What's he going to do for me? Why would I use it? How do I use it? And it just all of the time, it just gives your imagination like a free reign to do what you like. And then you think, I can make that for myself. And then somebody then phones you and says, oh, Louis, we've got this ingredient and it's a trademark ingredient. And would you use it in anything and I said, oh, leave it with me. Let's see what we can use it in. And like the eye cream, we've got something called Collalin. It's matte. It's natural. It comes from a plant extract and it is clinically proven to help eradicate those fine lines and wrinkles by filling it with moisture. And you think, that's amazing. Like, how clever is that? So then you mix that in with a few of other things that you know and you love and you trust. And then you start to get these formulas for an independent brand, because we are, we're just an independent brand. We're not owned by anybody. And then you can come up with these amazing, unique formulas that really work. And then I can squirrel away looking at all of that. And then Victoria goes, hey, you know what you can do with that, don't you? And I go, oh, that's brilliant. So you were just a regular guy, not a chemist. Your background is not in chemistry. No, I mean, I've had to take a few exams along the way. I mean, at this point, when it sounds like the back hallway where you're, you know, I can just see the little mad scientist lab going. But, you know, you go from your background in products, luxury, and then all of a sudden you geek out on ingredients and you meet up with your friend, Victoria. Next thing you know, you guys are like, we're the product geeks and we cannot wait to make this into something magic. Okay, that's really fun. A little bit, yeah. We started with one product. How many are in the line now? And I own a salon that mainly caters to people with long hair. We don't do a lot of barbering or masculine type of grooming. Now we do some. So tell me what's something that stylists and salons might miss or not understand about your brand if they're thinking, oh, the name Damon Barber. they must be for somewhere that caters to masculine grooming. Tell me what we're missing as stylists. So we have this all the time. They say, oh, you're a barber brand and say, yeah, we are part of the barber industry, but we're part of the cosmetics industry. So if you want to look and feel better, and when we're in a salon, Heather, we sell more products in our salon than we do in our barber store because the packaging, I would call it very unisex and it's very easy to a female to understand. It's airless packaging, the most clean packaging that you can get. So the formula goes in and nothing touches it until the next minute it's on your hand. The technology behind the product, the science behind the product, our female audience are more akin to. They understand it more. And what they do is then they educate their guys to say, look, you keep pinching my eye cream because you're complaining that you've got dry eye. So I found you something today. It's the Damon Barber eye formula. And so I think that if you're a stylist and you have clients in front of you, you can talk eye cream to anyone. You can talk moisturizer to anyone. You can talk serum, our award-winning serum to anyone. So it's not just about the styling products because we do hair, skin, shave and beard. So I think it's a very easy conversation when it comes to technical skincare. Would that be right, Lix? Yeah, absolutely. I've worked with the brand and I know the ingredients and I was using a different eye cream and tried to get my husband to start using an eye cream because you know we're into our 40s now and we were like need to start using an eye cream and um and i was using it and i just thought why am i using a female eye cream like the the ingredients in this one are so much better and they're so much cleaner and i just thought i'm switching so i'm a total convert now so these are not just for men at all and texture tonic for example the the volume the texture it gives. You know, it's a sea mineral spray, so you don't get that crispy, horrible finish that you get with a sea salt spray. The condition of my hair has improved so much since using it because it's got the kahainut oil in. And I think it was an education for me coming back as well because it made me look at the products that I had in my beauty cabinet in my bathroom. And I just thought, I thought I knew about brands, I thought I knew about products and ingredients. But when I've turned the bottle over, you know, and Louis says to me, have a look what's in there. You know, I've been looking from a skincare perspective, but maybe not so much for my hair. And I've really started to get an awareness, especially about long term protection of the hair and the scalp. You know, it's no secret my husband's been through a hair transplant about 12 months ago. So going through that journey with him, and using our advanced plus range with him and you know supporting him post transplant and the healing and things like that and it's really helped me to educate people and not just men but women as well you know perimenopause hair loss talking about the hair growth galvanizer and then the styling products that they're putting on the hair you know do they really know what's in them do they really know what they're doing to their hair and how you can really sort of nourish your hair and scalp to protect against future hair loss and things like that. Yeah. I think we're seeing so much on the people, some of the guests that I've interviewed or people I've talked to in the industry, what's coming up in beauty, what is the thing that's on the horizon that people are talking about more and more. And so much of the discussion is now around scalp health. It used to be, oh, my hair feels dry, my ends feel dry. Well, a lot of people now are realizing, oh, this whole thing right here, My scalp is supposed to be cleansed. I exfoliate my face. I do chemical peels. I do moisturizer. I'm going to do all these things. And then I'm like shampoo 32 seconds, do a hair mask on the end so my hair doesn't feel dry. I think a lot of people are getting more and more interested in scalp health, the foundation of hair and working with the hair follicle, the scalp, exfoliation and hydration. And so it sounds like what you offer and what you have in your brand is a really nice compliment to and kind of at the forefront of your beliefs is that right there to start with, no matter how long the hair is, no matter what type of haircut goes on top of it, it's about taking care of kind of skincare grade hair care. 100%. Any of our styling products that we have, I have one example. So we do what's called a texture clay. And it gives you a very contemporary finish. It's quite a matte finish. And I remember somebody coming up to me saying, oh, he said, you're a bit pricey. I was like, oh, pardon. And he said, oh, well, you know, I use this brand. This is the customer that comes in, by the way. And I was like, oh, right. That's great. He said, yeah, yeah. Best clay out there, mate. And I was like, oh, right. I said, oh, I said, what's in it? And he went, well, it's clay, isn't it? I said, said, Oh, I don't know. I said, if you've got it, let me have a look. So I had a look and I turned it over and I went, Oh, as suspected. He said, what do you mean? I said, there's no clay in there. They're just talking about the texture of it. They're not talking about clay. He said, well, there's got to be clay in there. And I said, there isn't. So when you turn it over and you look, our texture clay has two English China clays. It is the finest clay that you can get, which means it works through the hair beautifully. And then to stop it drying out, I put kahai nut oil, which is a really strong vitamin E that blends so it doesn't dry. And then that way you can style, it holds, no crispiness, no flakiness, and the moisture from the kahai nut oil moisturizes the scalp. So if you want healthy hair, and I'm sure we all know this, but if you want healthy hair, and I wished I still had mine. But if you want healthy hair, it's got to grow from somewhere. And where does it grow from? Your scalp. So what are you going to do with your scalp? You're not going to leave it out. You're going to say, yeah, you're right. So from the styling product, to the washing product, to the mask product, treat your scalp, treat your hair, like you would treating your face. And it's exactly the same. So as many skincare benefits as you can get into a product for the hair would only benefit you. Yeah, wonderful. I would like to know. Sorry, I mean, I can go on for ages, wouldn't I? Well, I'm excited. I love skincare. I actually, I was plagued with horrible skin as a youth. In my early teens or my preteens, I had really, really bad acne. And that was, you know, something that I didn't really want to experience. But because of that, I started thinking about skincare and a skincare regimen from a much younger age than most people, thanks to the curse of genetics, right? Then again, it had me wearing sunscreen and using professional grade skincare products by the time I was 13, which most people when they're 13 or 14, they're slathering baby oil, they've got like foil, they're trying to get their suntan on. And I'm like, wide brimmed hat, sunscreen. I was like a cute little 80 year old, you know, at the beach when I was younger. But that being said, I've long been fascinated with skincare and skincare ingredients, though I do not do makeup, as I was explaining earlier, and I'm not really great at that part. I do like to take good care of my skin. It was not something I ever even kind of considered to do the same for my scalp up until recently. So I think that with this renewed interest or this realization that you've got all of this skin and then all of this skin that's on your scalp that needs to be treated as the foundation for healthy hair, hydrated hair, and beautiful hair is something that I think people could really capitalize on when looking to expand offerings for their guest experience, looking to enhance what people are learning when they're there. And a lot of what you were talking about earlier as well, Victoria, was giving the guest something for free, not necessarily sending them home with a product, but sending them home with the education. If you're going to tap and roll, you're going to apply here, not here. Here's why you're going to avoid that spot. These are the things where they might have their own eye cream at home. They don't walk home with your product. But now they have something that enhances. Victoria really invested in me or my stylist or my barber really showed me something. It costs free 99 so that I can go home and have a better experience with whatever I am currently using. And maybe when I run out of that, I'm going to remember and say, hey, what was that thing you used on me for that eye revitalized treatment? I think that those kind of things are underestimated with client retention really elevating what a guest is experiencing. And that sounds like so much of what Damon Barber and your brand is about and what you provide to your client base. I've got to say, Victoria, you've got to talk about the hair growth galvanizer and that particular protocol, because this is a game changer, Heather. So the hair growth galvanizer we use, we use it in our follicle boost protocol. So as we were saying, we use it at the backwash. So when we've washed the client's hair, we use it as not just a growth galvanizer. We use it, as we were saying, about scalp health. But you can add it in just to talk to your client about protecting. So you were saying about protecting the follicles, protecting the hair against environmental aggressors, really helping to nourish and boost the hair. It can be used in the beard. You know, if you're maybe doing a consultation with a guy and they're talking about Apache beard growth, you might just be doing a beard trim, for example, if you've got more of like a male client base. And they might be saying, I can never grow a beard. You know, I can really struggle. You could talk about the hair growth galvanizer and how you can add that in. And then it's just lovely to use as a product, like you say, to take that product home. and you were going back to the point there that you made about those free services and that those free tips that you give to the client and just leaving them feeling really good about themselves and you know that your clients never forget how you make them feel they come out of the salon they look good they look amazing but they just feel really good as well and like you say it's about offering those free tips and techniques those free little extra services that make them look really good and feel really great. Starting with a guest experience and education mindset, where we're not really talking about then take this home with you. It's here's how to really care for and tend to that or here's how to extend this style. You can teach people how to extend a style like a long haired guest, sleep with a braid in or a soft bun or a dry shampoo. It's not necessarily take home this product. Here's why it's here's ways to care for your hair, a silk pillowcase or something that might just be a little some something that they don't get from you but it's information that you're delivering it establishes a stylist or a barber as an expert and not only that that extra maybe two to three minutes of conversation will also go a really long way in nurturing not just to recapture a first-time guest but to retain a long-time established guest to not take them for granted that you're still looking at and investing in how can i help you that you're reaching middle age, you've got perimenopausal hair, or stress hair, or what's going on to be able to nurture the client lifecycle by that education. I think that's so helpful. Now, I want to know without giving away too many secrets, is there anything on the horizon for Damon Barber in 2026 that you're excited to share or something that's launching? Oh, do we have a picture? Do we have... Was that little sneak peek that was like a boop boop? Oh, we're going to see This is like liquid gold in a bottle. This will be one of the first hydrating up to 72 hours wash off product that the guest can take to the shower after the gym whilst on holiday. It protects the scalp, the skin up to 72 hours, locking in hydration. It mimics the skin's hydrophilic layer and it promotes radiant looking skin. So that's a little thing that's coming. And there's one more in here. And this is a styling product. And this one is about hair youth. Okay. All I can say. I mean, but wait, there's more. When do we get, when you talked about this liquid gold oil that you just showed me, I travel for work way too much. I love it, but I'm on a plane nearly constantly. So I leave my dehydrator oven blow dryer of Arizona climate to get on a plane, which is very arid. The air in there is dry. I mean, I think I need to travel with a bamboo sheet mask every time. I think I need the 72 hour oil. What is this? Is this the sheet mask? The Hydro Surge? Yes. I think that I need one of these in my travel bag. So every time I'm on the plane, I can be the person that's like a mummy and just put that on my face because traveling can take its toll on your skin and pretty much everything. So I like to get into a routine and I'm already making a wishlist for my stocking stuffer. How soon can you ship it? I want to be on I want to be on the trial group for this magic gold oil. Oh my goodness. So, it is so beautiful. It looks so delicious. It is absolutely. Anyway, but yeah, so very ASMR with that mesmerizing, you know, looks the lava lamp as you're showing us anybody who's watching this is so beautiful. Because it's got to feel beautiful. It's got to when you use it, you've got to go. It's the sensations and then it's what it's going to look like. like when it's finished doing it. But anyway, the sheet mask, Heather, if you're traveling, Victoria. Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Locks moisture in, really boosts the moisture. Oh, it's just beautiful. It calms the skin. It's really soothing and it's biodegradable. So you're looking after the environment. There's no plastics in there. It's lovely. And it just fits in your handbag, fits in your bag. So lovely. And I was just going to add in for next year, we have some, you'll see it across our socials so we'll be sharing it across our socials. We've got some key players in our flagship locations around the world so we're really excited about that and we're going to be doing lots of education seminars across the world next year as well so some of those events will be ticketed events so we're going to be working with lots of salon, barbers, spa groups and just really spreading. Can we mention one of the spa groups Heather? Can we mention them? Of course, mention whatever you want. Yes, thank you for asking. Please, by all means, tell us. So we're going to be working with the Penzone Group. And we're going to be... Yes, and we're going to be having, we're very lucky, we've been awarded an ambassador from the Penzone Group, who will be working as a Damon Barber ambassador. And we will also be doing two live events with the Penzone group next year, where you'll be able to come along not just if you're from Penzones, but from other salon locations. And you can come along and you can have a masterclass with Damon Barber. When is this going to be? And I had the privilege of attending a class at the Penzones facility, which is incredible. Tell us when that one will be. Okay, so there's two schedules. The one at the start of the year, that one is like a brand bash and there are other brands there. And then the one at the end of the year, which will be in September, date to be confirmed in September, which will be the Damon Barber Masterclass held at Base One. Okay, excellent. If you don't know about Base One, look it up. It's actually such an incredible facility. So that's really fun. Thank you both so much for such a fun conversation for bringing your beautiful energy and your passion. It is such a pleasure. I'm so grateful that our friend Tim connected us that I was able to learn from you, experience more about your brand, and also hopefully for the listeners to get their ideas jogged about how they can speak to ingredients, scalp health, and also enhancing the guest experience through a little skincare or elevated touch. I love that. Tell us where listeners can find more of you, connect with you or learn more about your brand, please. So we've got a website and it's www.damonbarber.com. We're also across socials with Instagram, which is at Damon Barber. But also, any of your listeners and Heather, first of all, we're super grateful to get on a show like yours. This is blown our mind. Everybody in the office has been so excited. So when I come up, I'll be good. Oh my god, We've done it. You've done it. You've done a beautiful job. And we are at the end of a WhatsApp and email. If anyone has any questions, it's really simple. It's Victoria at Damon Barber. That's D-A-I-M-O-N and then the word barber or louis at damonbarber.com. We are more than happy to answer any questions. It doesn't even have to be about our products. It can just be about the protocols and how you influence them. Thank you so much. I can tell that the two of you have this passion to share and elevate the industry and what you're doing. And I really think the key to client retention and nurturing a relationship with a guest really can be found in the foundation of how you care for them and how you want to offer this enhancement to them. So I'm really, really excited and grateful for this discussion. Thank you both. And hopefully, when I'm out there in I'll find a way to cross paths with the two of you. Oh, no. That has to happen. It has to happen. I'll be there. Listen, I mean, it's how far is it? That's a little baby flight. I'll be in Ireland. Ireland presenting for the Forest Salon Summit. I don't think there's anything stopping me from popping over and saying hello to the two of you. So thank you again for your time. You will be our guest. We'd be very excited. Thank you. I want you to shave my face and give me a facial and do a quick barbering. You can have a couple of hours with Victoria. I'll grow out my beard, okay? You guys are amazing. You don't need one. Thank you so much. Appreciate you both. Thank you. Thank you, Heather. Bye.

What if the key to higher retention, stronger loyalty, and increased revenue wasn’t a bigger service menu—but small, intentional moments of luxury?

In this episode of Brazen & Bold, Heather Torriente sits down with Louis Hayes-Davies and Victoria Harrington of Daimon Barber to explore how guest experience, education, and skincare-grade haircare can completely transform the way salons and barbershops connect with clients.

From scalp health and eye revitalization rituals to why education beats hard selling every time, this conversation dives into:

•⁠  ⁠How tiny 2–3 minute enhancements can drive real revenue
•⁠  ⁠Why skincare principles belong in hair and scalp care
•⁠  ⁠How to increase perceived value without overwhelming your team
•⁠  ⁠The role of trust, education, and human connection in a fast, AI-driven world

If you’re a salon owner, stylist, barber, or educator looking to elevate your guest experience without adding stress, this episode will shift how you think about service forever.

Daimon Barber:
https://www.daimonbarber.com/

Follow Louis:
📸 Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/louishayesdavies/

✉️ Email — louis@daimonbarber.com

Follow Victoria:
🔗 LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-harrington-121412367/

✉️ Email — victoria@daimonbarber.com

Branding and consistency are everything.
Let Spark do the work for you—from setup to weekly execution.
👉 Talk to Spark » Spark Pro Global – sparkprosalon.com

Spark Links:
📸 Instagram: @sparkproglobal — https://www.instagram.com/sparkproglobal

🔗 LinkedIn: Spark Pro Global — https://www.linkedin.com/company/spark-pro-global

Heather’s Instagram:
📸 @heather.tantrumsalon — https://www.instagram.com/heather.tantrumsalon