Having a strong close-knit team helps make your salon an attractive place to work – and it creates a relaxing, inviting environment for your clients.
A strong team culture doesn’t just happen by accident...
It’s something you can deliberately build and encourage, even when you’re working with new and young members of staff, such as an apprentice hairdresser or apprentice barber.
In fact, building team culture is often easier when people are coming in fresh to the industry. They won’t be bringing all the baggage of previous experiences and ideas of “how things should be done”.
You get the chance to set the tone for their experience.
If you’re hiring an apprentice this summer or this year, then this post is for you. We go in in-depth on how to go about building a strong culture when working with a new apprentice hairdresser or barber:
Read along.
Taking on an apprentice inevitably means spending plenty of time training them in everything they need to know to excel at your salon. From the obvious things like cutting and styling hair, you’ll probably also need to help them get used to workplace norms.
This means having an induction or onboarding process that helps them know what to expect during their time working with you.
For instance, you might give them your salon staff handbook, go through things like the hours they’re expected to work, how the schedule of shifts works, what to do if they need to call out sick, and even how you expect them to dress for work. You should also explain what they’ll be learning during their apprenticeship. You might even want to create a week-by-week plan for them.
As part of the induction process, it’s a good idea to find out your apprentice’s particular strengths and weaknesses – and potentially tweak your training plan to allow for these.
For instance, they might have a lot of knowledge about color and styles, but they may not feel confident talking to clients. Helping them build their confidence with customer service could be really valuable to them, and helps strengthen your team as a whole.
Tip: Get your other employees involved in the induction and onboarding process. Ask them (particularly newer staff members or those who did an apprenticeship with you) what they wish they’d known when they were new. Using their input in the onboarding process not only helps your apprentice hairdresser get up to speed faster, but it also helps your existing staff to feel truly heard as a team.
With different staff members working different shifts, in a busy salon, it might be tricky to introduce your apprentice hairdresser or apprentice barber to everyone at once.
However, do make sure you introduce them to everyone who’s there on their first day and make a point of encouraging other staff members to say hello as they meet your apprentice.
If you’re taking on several apprentices at once, then give them a chance to get to know one another.
You might meet with them simultaneously and encourage them to share a bit about themselves and what they’re hoping to learn during their apprenticeship.
Tip: Don’t forget to introduce clients, too. Make sure they know your apprentice’s name and what your apprentice will be helping with during their appointment.
Equally, make sure your apprentice knows the client’s name and how to address them – e.g. the name for the appointment might be “Susan Jones” but the client might prefer “Mrs. Jones” or “Sue.”
While your hairdresser apprentice will likely be working with close supervision, you should still make sure they have all the tools they need for the job. Once they’re able to cut hair, this could mean telling them where to find all the necessary basics, like scissors, shampoo, towels, combs, brushes, and so on.
You may also need to spend a little bit of time showing your apprentice how to tidy things away and put them back properly. This doesn’t come naturally to all apprentices, so make sure they know your expectations about keeping the salon tidy and clean.
Established members of staff won’t be happy if they find that their favorite scissors have gone missing – so make sure your apprentices also know not to move other people’s tools and styling products without permission.
Make sure you give your hairdresser apprentice access to any software they’ll need, too. For instance, if they’ll be manning the reception desk, they will need a login for your booking system so they can check, update, cancel, and book appointments as requested.
Tip: Don’t assume that your apprentice is already familiar with particular tools or products. Make sure you check with them whether they’d like some extra training on a particular tool or on how to best use a product.
If your apprentice has a question or a problem, you want to help them quickly – for their sake and yours. For instance, you definitely don’t want to lose repeat business from a long-standing client because your apprentice has cut their hair wrong (or even simply annoyed them by being super-chatty when everyone else at the salon knows that client doesn’t like to talk).
Choose an experienced, friendly team member to be a “buddy” for your apprentice. Let them know that this is someone who they can go to with questions or issues, whether those are about how to do the job itself or about things like sick leave and pay.
If you manage a large salon or multiple salons, it may be easiest to “co-employ” your apprentice and other employees.
It means outsourcing HR to a PEO (professional employer organization) to co-employ your temps. This means that the PEO will handle payroll, benefits, HR issues, and so on.
Tip: Don’t let team problems fester: experienced staff members should know what to do if there’s a problem, too. Salons can become a bit of a hotbed of drama and it’s easy for stressed, busy employees to fall out over minor issues. Make sure you’re proactive about managing staff conflict. Don’t allow yelling, swearing, or disrespect. Of course, you should set a great example and treat everyone with respect and kindness too.
Your apprentice might not be staying for more than a few months – but you still want them to have a great experience and a strong relationship with other members of your team.
As well as the basics covered above, like introducing team members and making sure your apprentice knows who to go to with problems, you could also look at ways to include team-building events.
For instance, you might have a team lunch during your apprentice’s first week, if you can squeeze that into your busy salon schedule. Alternatively, you could invite your apprentice to join the team for a coffee after work.
You can also make sure that your permanent staff members know to come to you (or another designated member of staff) if they’re having any difficulties with your apprentice.
Tip: You can’t force staff members to be friends with everyone. Try to watch out for cliques developing, though: if three staff members get together every weekend and spend lots of time chatting in the salon, others may feel left out. Do what you can within the salon to give everyone a chance to get to know one another and get on well.
Your apprentice hairdresser or apprentice barber might be hoping for a permanent role at your salon once they’ve completed their apprenticeship. Be honest and realistic about this. Is it something you typically offer to good apprentices? Or do you not have the capacity to take on further permanent members of staff?
Similarly, you should be honest about the progress your apprentice is making.
Of course, it’s important to be encouraging and positive – but you won’t be doing them any favors if you pretend that they’re doing an amazing job when actually there are some fundamentals they still haven’t got the hang of.
Be kind but honest, and let them know exactly what they need to do to improve further.
By being honest and transparent yourself, you lead by example and encourage transparency within your team – both from your apprentices and from your permanent members of staff.
Tip: Remember, your apprentice may not have any prior experience of paid work. They may not understand the importance of things like arriving on time or being well-groomed for work. If you need to correct basic behaviors, be kind and clear.
Let your apprentice know what’s expected and, if at all possible, explain why it’s important so that your request doesn’t seem arbitrary. (E.g. “I know we don’t book any appointments before 9 am, but it’s still important that you’re here no later than 8.30. We need that time to meet as a team and get organized, and the day goes much more smoothly when we’re all here on time.”)
Even if your apprentice won’t be staying for long, it’s still important to make them part of the strong team culture that you’re building. This makes your salon a more positive place to work, plus it helps all team members to see that their progress is important to you.
When you’re busy running a salon, you might find it hard to step back for a moment and look at your team culture. However, a great team will make all the difference to your business, bringing in happy repeat customers, keeping everything running smoothly, and keeping turnover low. Your investment in your team and their happiness will pay off in so many ways.
Make sure you (and your staff) see your apprentice as an important part of your team. If you are looking to take on permanent or seasonal members of staff, then a happy apprentice who’s enjoyed their time with you will be a huge asset … but even if your apprentice only stays for a few months, making them feel included will still help boost your team as a whole.
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