5 Ways to Increase Retail Sales in a Barbershop
All barbershops struggle to figure out the magic formula for increasing retail sales. I’ve owned barbershops for years and it took me a long time to get the hang of it, but now that I have, our shops sell a ton of grooming products using these exact processes.
1. Sell the right product
This is the first tip because it’s the most important. If you’re not selling products your customer likes, they won’t buy them.
A lot of barbershops have low retail sales because they carry generic grooming products full of harsh chemicals.
61% of men say they prefer natural grooming products so when you sell generic products, they simply won’t buy them.
At The Mailroom Barber Co, we make all-natural hair and beard products with barbershop customers in mind so our regulars have a healthy product they love to use. If you’d like to carry our products, click Apply Now.
You need to sell products that are on-trend as well. If you are selling hair gel, no one is buying it because we, thankfully, left that part of the 90s behind.
2. Sample The Product
How can customers want to buy a product they’ve never tried? Maybe they don’t even know you carry product
Keeping a jar of pomade at your station and styling your client’s hair at the end of the service is the main way to sell them on it. I like this method because it’s honest.
If they don’t like the product, they won’t buy it.
Use products with the client wherever you can in the service to showcase one of the items you sell. For example, tell them about the shampoo and conditioner you’re using at the bowl. Throw some beard oil in for them after you trim their beard.
Barbers have a unique opportunity to sample products with customers and most of the time they completely miss it.
3. Use problem / solution language
This is huge. I can’t stress enough how essential this is.
When you talk to your clients, explain the PROBLEM the product solves. Connect the product to a solution in your customer’s mind and when they feel their beard itch, the first thought in their mind will be that they need to restock on oil.
When you’re selling a Matte Clay Pomade, you could say “If you don’t like the way your hair flops in your face but you don’t want a shiny finish, you need to use Matte Clay Pomade. Other products can be greasy and heavy and weigh your hair down. Matte Clay will give you a dry finish and it’ll make your hair look great and stay in place.”
Problem: Floppy hair, shiny products
Solution: Matte Clay Pomade
Think about the problem the product will solve for your customer, tell them about it, then ring them up at the register for the product you just told them about.
4. Run featured product sales
This may seem like a no-brainer, but that’s because it works.
At our shops, we run a “featured product” every month that is 10% off. We use it with every customer and then let them know it’s on sale. This increases our sales like crazy and they usually end up picking up multiple products.
An important part of the featured product is that it changes every month. Most guys get one haircut a month so they will always find a new product on sale when they come to their next appointment.
5. Incentivize employees
People rarely do something unless it benefits them in some way. If you’re not giving your barbers a cut of retail sales how could you expect them to care about product sales?
If you have employees or booth renters, they are your retail sales force and they should be compensated for it.
Pay them a cut of the product sales and they will be encouraged to sell more because it benefits them directly.
You can also run sales contests within your staff where the winner at the end of the month gets a reward. Get creative with it - I’ve seen shops give out WWE belts, gift cards, and employee of the month signs that employees fight for.
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