Real Stylists And How They're Navigating The Holidays

Hello, my friend. Welcome back to the Modern Hairstylist Podcast. We did record and release a holidays dos and don'ts episode on the Modern Hairstylist Podcast, so if you wanna check that out, definitely tune into it. But what I wanted to also share with you guys was a cou- couple of different perspectives about the holidays, not just my own.

And so that's why this next round table conversation that we're gonna be having today is all about the holidays. So we have a couple amazing beauty professionals joining us for this episode today. We're gonna be leaving all of their Instagrams in the show notes, so make sure to go check them out and follow them. But we have Kristin Coade from Plymouth, Michigan.

We have Jess Ortiz from El Paso, Texas. We have May Liu from Maryland, and we have Brandy from Phoenix, Arizona. So without further ado, let's get into it. Let's go.

All right, guys. So my very first question for you is, did you decide to pick up any extra hours this holiday? And if you did, why did you decide to, and if you didn't, why did you not decide to? So I'm gonna pass it over to Brandy first.

So for me, it's not always, like, a consistent yes or no of whether I'm gonna add extra hours. It really depends on what I have going on personally, if I want to hit and try to push those end-of-year goals, and, um, demand. Uh, like this year, I added a few extra days, because I have, like, a few personal family things that I wanna, like, make time for, but only a few extra days. I didn't feel that urge to open up my schedule a lot.

Got you. So it sounds to me like it's pretty dynamic for you. Like, you're really just, like, looking at your numbers, looking at what you have coming up, and you'll make your decision based upon that. Yeah.

Correct. Sick. All right. Cool.

Anybody else? Go ahead, May. Oh. So I'm working on one of my days off, um, which is next Thursday, so I can take a new hair extension client, and I ha- I was picking between two clients, and I chose the one that I specialize in.

It was either a color transformation or the hair extension, so I picked the hair extension. But I'm only doing one day, and I'm not, I, I've never done, like, I've never worked on my day off on around the holidays. My first time. Um, so it's just one day.

Nice. And it's nice that you're, you know, if you are gonna be working on your day off, you had, like, you had the option between, like, something that would be even more worth it or not, and I think it was a great decision for you to, to choose a thing that's like, "Yeah, if I'm gonna be working on my time off, then it better be for something that might be a little bit more of a return on my investment of my time." So I respect that decision. Well, thank you.

That's encouraging. Hell yeah. How about you, Casey? So because of how the holidays fall this year, I am working the Monday before Christmas, and I work the Monday before Thanksgiving as well.

The only thing I really do differently is starting in September and October, I start to pre-book everybody through the end of the year to make sure that the loyal guests that I have are able to get in for the holiday season. Got you. Got you. So, like, you make sure that, like, if you are gonna be working extra hours, it's to make sure that first and foremost you can accommodate your existing returning clients.

Absolutely. Gotcha. Well, cool. All right.

Thank you for sharing. How about you, Jess? Usually, I do work extra hours during the holiday season. This year is a little different.

You know, uh, the whole government shutdown thing happened, and so I was affected. Since everybody had to cancel their appointments, they weren't getting paid. So, um, I did have to open up my Sundays, uh, to, uh, to allow extra people to, to get in. Gotcha.

And so was it a situation in which, like, you were a lot less busy, like, during that government shutdown, and so now that people are getting their paychecks again, now you're seeing, like, an even bigger flood of people coming in because of that and the holidays coming up? Yes. Absolutely. Uh, shit was scary for a while.

It really was. Yeah. I'm happy to hear that things are bouncing back, and sending you a lot of love for dealing with the overwhelm of all the craziness. My next question is, does this holiday season feel different for you?

Jess, I know that this one obviously feels different just because of that circumstance, right? Uh, but how about the rest of you guys? Some people on social media have said, like, that they feel like it's a different type of holiday season for them. Like, normally they're feeling, like, super slammed.

But I don't know. I feel like a lot of the time, this goes for not just a- the holiday season, but I'll see people, like, go on social media every time of the year, every year, no matter what's going on, and they'll say, "Does anybody else feel, like, uniquely slow right now?" And you'll see in the comments, it's always 50/50. It's like, "Nope, I'm more slammed than I've ever been before," and then the other 50% is like, "Yeah.

Like, this is so weird. Like, I don't know what's going on. I'm the slowest I've been in X amount of years." And this I see on...

every single time anybody posts this. And it just makes me feel like it's like, it just, I think it's a reminder to me that, like, we are so unique as business owners. We have all these different locations and considerations and nuances that affect our experiences, and of course there are universal things, such as a government shutdown, that, like, may affect a large majority, right? But at the end of the day, like, there's also so many other factors that will affect your performance.

But I do wanna verify or not verify with you guys, I guess, today, like, does this holiday season feel a little bit slower, like a lot of the stylists in our industry are saying it does nowadays? I'll start with you, Brandy.I think for me, I'm definitely noticing, like, a decrease in urgency to get in before the holidays. I'm still steady, but I'm not slammed with people like, "Hey, can you squeeze me in?"

is kind of what I'm noticing this year specifically. Cool. How about you, Casey? Yeah, I think that, like, you know, five years ago, everybody was like, "I have to get in before Thanksgiving, and I have to get in before Christmas."

And I feel like the last couple of years, it's kind of been like a one-or-the-other type of situation. And honestly, since doing your boundaries class, like, what, five years ago, it just, December's December. Cool. Thank you for sharing.

How about you, May? Um, this year is really busy for me. I did your, it was a little off subject, but I did the survey, and I implemented the bot that you created and used the SEO keywords from that. And then now I'm getting all the clients that I love, my hair extension clients from that survey bot thing that I put into my SEO on my website.

That was a month ago, and now I'm getting a lot of new hair extension clients. And so it's been, like, the most busiest in a few years. And I'm, I'm so busy that I have new people for January, too. Ah.

So I'm really happy about it. That's badass, May. Congratulations. I'm happy, but I'm also overwhelmed.

That's fair. It's like, everybody ... You don't realize how it could, like, cause a whole new set of problems, right? Of, like, being overwhelmed and, "Where am I gonna fit these people?

And now I have to communicate with all these people," right? No. It's a good problem to have, though. So, congratulations.

But I think it's neat how, like, I only used what you recommended, and now it's just the same type of people I like. Like, it's just really neat to me how, like, they are all searching the same, similar words. Oh, yeah. Uh, or maybe it's their pain points.

Uh, so I think that's really neat. Very cool. I love that. Thank you for sharing.

Good job. Uh, Jess, I feel like you shared with me in another space that you were kind of, uh, experiencing something similar. Not only are you having your existing people who are, like, bouncing back maybe from the shutdown, but you also are getting a ton of new client requests too, right? Yes, absolutely.

I also ... Well, I changed my business name, and so, when that came, I had to update everything, you know, my SEO, my socials, everything. I also went really hard on marketing. And so perhaps the change in the SEO and maybe, maybe even marketing efforts, um, have paid off, but I, I ha- I have been busy, yes.

Thank you for sharing that. And I think it goes to, like ... I don't know. I think it proves the sentiment of, like, no matter whether it's, like, a busy time of year or not, like, when you, whatever you put into it is what you're gonna get out of it, right?

Like, as far as your career goes, your marketing goes, like, if you put work in, you're going to naturally get more demand on your time, no matter what. And I think that just adding on the inflated demand of the holidays m- compounds that and makes it even bigger. But that doesn't mean that we, like, wait for the holidays to do the work for us, or vice versa, that we don't do anything during the holidays to set us up for, like, January and the slower months, right? I think, like, right now, like, the work that we do really sets us up for the most success later on, you know?

Um, and all year round, so. Okay, cool. Thank you guys for sharing that. And then my question ne- my next question is, do you guys do anything special for client appreciation?

Do you show your clients that you appreciate them? Do you write handwritten thank you cards? Do you guys give free stuff away? Uh, what do you guys do, if anything, to show your clients that you appreciate them?

So this year, I decided to do, like, the scratch-off cards. And so when my client comes in, the first thing I say ... Well, after greeting them, I'll say, "Hey, I have a Christmas gift for you." And then I'll kind of present the cards to them, and I, I kind of came up with, like, a little kitschy phrase, and I'm just like, "Well, you know, choose a card, and whatever's on the card is what you get."

And then, you know, it's just so cute seeing their eyes light up, and they're like, "Hell yeah." Then they grab a card and scratch it off. That is so cute. I'm obsessed with that.

What others come up ... What other some other things that you put on the, as the options for the scratch-offs? Um, so I kept it pretty simple. Nothing that's gonna, you know, really cost me much money.

Um, I, I did invest in, like, the one-minute treatment from Amika, uh, the Brazilian Blowout Split Mender. Um, I mean, both of those I can get a lot of uses out of. Um, and it, it, it ... Like I said, it didn't cost a lot of money.

Um, so I have that. Um, I might have, like, a few special cards, like $5 off or 10% off, but m- majority of it is the treatments. And then hopefully, if they like the treatments, they'll come back in the future and get 'em again. Very cool.

Yeah, and you know, what I would also maybe just like recommend as an idea, like, if there is a take-home version of the add-on, right? Of, like, one of those treatments, then, like, being like, "Hey, like, you're getting this free today. If you really like it, you could keep up with this at home, li- with this, you know, take-home version." So it does set you up for even more profit too, which I like.

Very cool, Jess. Thank you for sharing. How about you, Brandy? Do you show the people appreciation in one way or another?

I do. I try to offer, like, seasonal add-ons. I like to decorate the salon. I'm super crafty and a, a little bit extra, so I like to go all out with all the things.

Um, I send holiday cards, usually for everyone I have an address on file for. I've done the little scratch cards. I've made, like, little custom mugs with, like, a cute little saying on them. Really just, it depends on how much time I give myself to plan these things and how much energy I have to put into these, like, kinds of projects.

I try not to overdo it for the holidays. But if I can and it's not gonna, like, stress me out, then I will do something extra.So, yeah. So I think that you bring up a really good point that it's like, the earlier you plan for the holi- anything extra or the holidays, the better, right?

Um, I know that I've been sharing it on the podcast recently, and I think maybe all of you guys are gonna be a part of it, um, that are on this call right now. But we have a- our next, like, in-person Modern Stylist Movement event is, like, all about planning our year and staying on track for the year. And we're gonna start, like actually this upcoming- this next week after recording this, we're gonna start by, like, planning out our year ahead. And something- and I'm gonna be sharing with you guys, like my- walking you guys through my strategy for how I planned out my previous year.

And what helped me so much in my previous year was figuring out the month that I was gonna start on the project that was gonna launch, like, X amount of months later. And, like, making sure that I was starting well ahead, and it wasn't this, like, last minute thing where I was like, "Oh, shit, like, that's gonna happen next month. I need to remember to get my shit together with it." And this year I was just so much more well-prepared.

But the holidays were behind the chair. It's such a perfect example of, like, we gotta start, like, much earlier, 'cause it's- can be a big project, especially if you wanna go extra like Brandy does. One question for you, Brandy. You said that you would send a thank you card to everybody with an address on file.

How do you do that scalably? I- I don't do it scalably . I- Okay. I print these out by hand, and I do it, again, I plan ahead and I write out a few at a time.

I mean, I- I have all the form- all their addresses on, like, a spreadsheet, and then I run them to print- computer to, like, print out all of the envelopes. But I am manually writing these all out- Okay. myself. Even that tip is really helpful, right?

So, like- Mm-hmm. you take all of your clients' addresses in on a digital intake form, so then therefore you can, like, upload that to some sort of website that prints out everything that you need it to. Mm-hmm. And then you just have to write out each individual card, right?

Mm-hmm, yeah. Sick. Cool. Thanks for sharing, Brandy.

How about you, Kristin Code? So in years past, I would buy, um, little sample sizes from SalonCentric. So, like, if I had a guy, I'd, like, get him a little American Crew Puck or something, or, you know, Redken Heat Protector, something. And it- the incentive was to get them to buy product in the future.

And I feel like just the vibes have shifted over the last several years. And so this year and last year I have been making simmer pots and infusing them with Reiki energy so that they can use them to cleanse and reset their home for the new year. Very cool. And how on brand, too.

And let me ask you this. So- so just for everybody- everybody who, uh, is listening to this who does not know Kristin. So Kristin, in the past, like, year or so has really been transitioning a more classic behind the chair business to really incorporate Reiki, and- and healing, and energy, and all the woo-woo stuff that I have no idea about, but she's very good at. And she's been, she's been incorporating it into her hair business, and it's actually been going very well for you, Kristin.

And how cool is it that you're, like, taking, like, this current brand that you have and, like, the passion that you're doing and that you're integrating it into, like, all facets of the business, even that? And what I would assume is, is that maybe this is gonna be going to some of your clients who may not necessarily be diving into that part of your business yet, but, like, that may be even encouraging them, too. Am I, am I right with kind of that guess that I have? Absolutely, yeah.

'Cause I- last year, I, I was getting a lot of new clients around the holidays, and they all received 'em. I don't, I don't choose who's gonna get one and who's not. Um, and when I look back through my form submissions, they were not opting in for the Reiki add-on prior to receiving it. But once experiencing it through a very simple, no pressure type of way, it's opened their minds and they're like, "Huh, there's something there."

Mm, super interesting. This is a different podcast episode, but, like, that's just so fascinating that you have that information, because now you understand, like, what you have to do in order to get, like, this person from this place psychologically to that place psychologically, to get them interested in this service that may not be, you know, the traditional, like, lowest hanging fruit. Like, somebody knows that they need hair color, right? So they're gonna get hair color.

But even the same sentiment goes for extensions, right? I mean, like, some people may just not be ready for extensions, but maybe they just need a taste of, like, I don't know, some clip-ins that they wear for a week, right? So how can you offer that, so that way they're like, "Oh, well I want this all the time," or, "I don't have to f- I don't feel like clipping it in and out every morning." You know?

Like, it's a great piece of information. Sorry if I'm going off-topic, but it's very fascinating. Very cool, Casey. Thank you for sharing.

May, are you doing anything for, uh, showing the clients appreciation? Around the holidays, I don't always have a lot of, like, a whole bunch of people, 'cause the hours to do extensions can be a little longer. So I usually get a, like, a steady amount of clients. And this year, I went- I got my clients all gifts, like hair extension stuff for their hair.

But then I listened to your podcast and I was a little influenced by it, and I thought, "Oh, wow, went above and beyond." Um, I didn't want my clients to feel weird either, so I looked at my book and I- I- I did select the top five. But I don't think I wanna do gifts moving forward, like next year, 'cause I- I do feel like it's extra things that I have to plan. I wanna share that I do like a tradition I created for my studio.

It was last year, started when I did a photo shoot, and I had to do it right before Thanksgiving. It was a Christmas photo shoot, and just because the photographer was available. And then I had my Christmas stuff up so early, and all my clients who came in loved it. And so this year, I did it again.

I, I put it up, put my trees. I has three- two little ones and one pencil one, and I put it up and I did it, like, a couple weeks before Thanksgiving. And it all got them in this, like, holiday mood, and it even got them to book early. Well, I encouraged that, but that helped, 'cause they were like, "Oh, yeah.

That's right." So I-I think they just, it, they even tell me they love, like, the Christmas tree vibe and how warm it feels, so th- I think that's something I'm gonna do every year. It's just, like, the energy in the studio and I think it brings up, like, maybe comfort for them. Um, so that's what I'm really doing this year.

Yeah, that's beautiful. I don't know if that's, like, really, like, that's what most people do anyways, but... No, I, I would argue that it's not, or that people don't put as much thought behind it. But, you know, there are plenty of studies that show, like, that, like, from a psychological perspective, that if somebody is walking into a business that has more of a holiday décor, that they are going to be more likely to shop as a favorable consumer.

Which, in other words, like, they're going to spend more, they're gonna wanna do, like, more things that benefit the business. And also it just does help them, you know, feel safe and cozy within that space if they have a positive association with the holidays. I think particularly for us as independent stylists, which I think all of us here in this room are independent stylists in a suite or a salon of some sort by ourselves, I think it also just shows our clients that we give a shit. And I think that a lot of independent stylists don't give a shit as much as we do.

And I think that there's a lot of other things th- where we can go above and beyond where us in this room, we do, that can just show that client that in those simple ways, such as decorating the salon, right? Um, so I think that that absolutely goes a long way, and it makes sense why it's worked so well for you, May. Yeah. And I would encourage everybody else to do it too.

Yeah, even tr- uh, even if it's daylight, I turn on the Christmas lights- Yeah, absolutely. on the trees. And I even, I have a plant studio, so I put lights on the plants too. I mean, it doesn't look cheesy, but it's like light, white lights on the tree, on the plants.

That is so cute. I'm- They love it, like... I'm obsessed with that. Very cool.

Yeah. And even having the holiday branding photo shoot, like, ugh, that's so coo- Did you do it again this year, or are you reusing pictures from, from the last time you did it? I just reuse it. Uh, because- That's great, I mean, 'cause you can only, usua- you only have to do that once.

Like, why not- Yeah. just, like, reuse those photos every year for, like- Yeah. Uh-huh. Yeah.

five to 10 years, you know? Yeah. Very cool. Very cool.

Thank you for sharing, May. Thank you. How about y- Jess, you, you had your hand up? Yeah, I just wanted to piggyback off of that.

I will say that I am not playing Christmas music in my suite, and- Right. I cannot tell you how many people come in and they're like, "Oh, thank God." Yes. Okay, holiday music.

Great topic, actually. So how do you guys handle the holiday music then? So Jess is like, "Nope, no holiday music," and people are enjoying that. What about you, Brandy?

I worked retail growing up, so there's no holiday music in the salon for me. All right. K- uh, Kristen? I have on my Jotform the option for Christmas music.

It is a playlist that I made that's, like, three hours long, no repeat songs, No "Elephant," whatever that one is. Like, none of the cringey ones that make me wanna, like, pull my hair out. So it's, like, stuff I can tolerate. And sometimes if I'm in the mood and they put, like, no preference, I'll put it on.

But, like, no, I'm good. Gotcha. All right, cool. How about you, May?

Oh, Christmas music? No, I don't put that on. But, um, I do have a Mariah Carey playlist for Christmas 'cause I like her- Cool. and I can tolerate that one.

And I think one client already picked that and I was like, "Oh, I could jam to this." Cool. All right. Okay, so just so everybody knows what Kristen was referring to when she said, "On my Jotform," uh, some of us in this room, we have something called an experience customization form.

So we allow our clients to choose what music they a- they're listening to before they walk into the space. And, you know, the great thing about that is, is, like, you guys are still in control, right, as stylists. Like, although you're giving them this opportunity to personalize things, it's within your boundaries and your parameters, right? So e- like, let's say the Mariah Carey Christmas album is, like, the only one that you can tolerate, right?

Then that's the only option that you give them, which I think is really cool. Or it's still your space, you know? Like, if you don't wanna do any holiday music at all, then no fucking holiday music. It is what it is, right?

So I love that. Very, very cool. Okay, so my next question, how do you guys handle, 'cause I think that this really prevalently, at least for me, prevalently comes up during the holidays, is do your friends and family ask you to do their hair for free at the Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas Eve dinner gathering, if you guys have that, right? Do you guys have to...

My go- I guess my first question is, do you have to deal with friends and family asking you for free services? My second one is, how do you deal with it? Kristen? Okay, so this might be why I don't have holidays with family anymore.

Mm-hmm. Um, no, yeah, like, I feel like early on in my career, I was definitely looked at as like I owe them something, and it was just ick. And so I, we keep our holidays small, and my mom will get free hair till the day she dies because she paid for my education and she's the best woman in the world. But other than that, like, outside of my house, absolutely not.

Yeah, period. I think when you say, you know, "This is the reason why I'm not together" "with my family for the holidays," I do think that, you know, I mean, even the possibility of having to confront this issue, like, is really hard, and, like, it may make these others who feel entitled to your labor, right, just because they're your family or your friend, may make them view you, like, in a different light, or, like, cause, like, deeper drama and issues, you know? Which I would be curious, like, and this will go to anybody out there, have you ever had to, like, confront somebody and be like, "Hey," like, "I'm sorry, but I'm not gonna do this for you anymore"? And if it went well, or if it didn't go well, like, you can share.

But I wanna know, like, if you have any advice for people out there who may want to have that type of conversation. And anybody can go. I'll, I'll go. I think...

I never really made it, like, a confrontational thing. It was just, like, bringing to their attention that, like, I went to school, I was trained to do something, and I'm now using my time in which I'm getting paid by a different employer, and i- before I was self-employed, and...It, I don't think that it necessarily went awful. It was just, like, they kept trying to find other ways to make it happen, like, "Oh, you can come over on the weekend."

Or, "What days do you not work?" And I think just, like, my face kind of says a lot without saying stuff. And so I think that kind of just, like, ended it right there, but, uh, I mean, people listening, hey, like, don't ask your hairstylist friends and family to just do your hair for free. It's not cool.

You wouldn't ask a plumber to come over and fix your pipes. Right. Period. Okay.

All right. Does anybody else have anything to share on this topic? Go ahead, Brandy. I haven't had to deal with family expecting, like, discounted or free services for a very long time.

And what was, made it easy for me to set that boundary was that my mom would never let me give her free services. And so it's like, if my mom, like, my mom won't even take this for free, then I'm not, then I should value my time and effort enough to be like, "No, you need to pay also." So, that was an early, or a boundary I was able to set early on with my family. And so now they no longer ask me, and if they do ask me, it's like, "Make an appointment."

And I do have a few cousins who support me and pay full price and don't expect any discounts. Gotcha. Cool. Thanks for sharing.

Anybody else here? Go ahead, May. I didn't really think about that because it's been so long. Mm-hmm.

Um, but now when I think about it, I mean, the easy way that I think I handled it maybe wasn't the best, but- ... I gave, I gave my siblings my booking link. Period. 'Cause I have a big family, so I was like, "Here's my booking link."

And they were like, "What? I have to book beforehand?" I'm like, "Yes, you do, and you have to put your credit card down." Period.

Period. And that popped it. I'm obsessed with that. Sometimes it's that easy, right?

I'm gonna be like, "Yo, can you bring me, can you, can you bring your shears to holiday dinner?" "Well, can't do that, but you can book an appointment with me. Here's the link." Period.

Do you guys mind me sharing my own experience with this, actually? So I had, so I have two cousins. They're younger than me. They're two girl cousins, and I love them very much.

And I remember my, my uncle Ronnie, he's just a very, like, brash, like, direct dude. So, I remember, like, once, uh, and this was, like, peak, like, super overworked, super booked and busy, like, just like, you know, no boundaries in my salon suite, just, like, ridiculous, and I said no to doing my little cousin's hair for free, and I remember going to Christmas dinner and my uncle Ronnie, like, confronted me about it, and he was like, "Dude, what the hell?" Like, "You're family," yada, yada. And so from the consultant side of things, like, where I'm normally giving other people advice for, for this, is what I normally say is, is, like, if you wanna approach it from, like, the empathetic side, if this is the type of dynamic you have with this person, then this is how you should go about it.

Like, you should say, like, "Hey, so if I'm being honest, this is kind of hard for me. As much as I love doing your hair and I love making sure that you're taken care of, I'm trying to be better about my boundaries with overworking myself this season. So I'd really appreciate if you'd be able to come in with me during my normal working hours and be treated as a normal service. That way, I can take good care of you and stay within my journey of trying to be better with boundaries."

And so you come at it from a place of, like, "I'm asking you to support me. Like, as somebody who loves me, please support me by going about it this way." You know? Now, in this situation with my uncle Ronnie, that would be, he'd be like, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Right? So he, actually, luckily, he owns a, like, cellphone store, like, or some shit like that. I don't, I don't know how to describe it. He owns a cellphone store, and he, like, sells, like, serv- cell service and cellphones and all that shit.

So I was like, "Well, Ronnie, do you wanna give me a free cellphone?" Or something like that. And then he was like, "Oh." Yea- he literally was like, "Oh, damn.

You're right." And then that was that, you know? So sometimes, and i- it's gonna depend on who you're talking to, right? I think either of those ways, and even w- the way that May said it, you know, or how Kristen, you know, handled it, it's like, sometimes it's just like no means no, and it is what it is, and I think there's many ways of going about it, and I think it depends on how you are and how you wanna go about it and who you're talking to.

So thank you guys for sharing that perspective. I appreciate it. My last question for you guys is, are you running any promotions this holiday as far as, like, "You get X amount off for this," or, "These products are on sale"? Do you guys sell, like, um, holiday retail kits?

Do you know how, like, the brands will, like, make those kits that you can buy from them, right? I wanted to ask y'all that. Brandy? No, I don't sell those retail kits.

I have, like ... I kind of hate them, and I'm tired of them reselling them as the same package in a different box every year. I could go off on a whole rant about it, but I won't. Uh, so no, not those.

I do offer some specials, and it kind of just depends on what's on sale at the beauty supply, and I try to be strategic about what I'm doing and get ... So when I do decide to offer, um, specials in the salon, I try to make sure that I'm getting deals on those products or treatments that I am offering for the holiday season so that my margin either stays the same or better, but I'm able to offer my clients a deal for the season. Cool. I appreciate that.

I think that there's ways that you can take advantage of all of this stuff, like, without sacrificing more than you wanna sacrifice, and that includes time and profit. So, I appreciate all of your guys' perspectives today, and I appreciate you, my friend, for listening and tuning into the Modern Hairstyles podcast. As you may know, this is one of our new segments of the podcast called Community Roundtables, and these amazing, brilliant brains have volunteered their time to share their perspectives and experiences with you today. So make sure to go ahead and follow them on the Instagram, give them a shout-out through the DMs, and say thank you, and also shoot me a DM and tell me if you enjoyed today's episode.

Happy holidays to each and every one of you, and on the count of five, you guys are all gonna unmute, and you all are gonna simultaneously say, "Peace out, Girl Scout. Bye-bye." All right? Ready.

One, two, three, four, five. Go. Peace out, Girl Scout. Peace out, Girl Scout.

Bye, y'all.

End of transcript. © 2025 Hunter Donia LLC.