Liana Spackman-Wiltshire is the Managing Director of Cutting Crew Queens Park– a boutique salon located in Northwest London. When faced with the challenges of adhering to her manufacturers’ skin testing guidelines, she began researching a smarter way to operate. Thankfully, she discovered Colourstart.
The implementation has been textbook stuff, so we had a catch up to discover how they’ve managed to integrate Colourstart so seamlessly.
“We specialise in colour and decided to expand our colour portfolio. This was around the time when manufacturers updated their testing policies, and we knew that their requirement was unrealistic, and I wasn’t happy taking any risks.
Liana Spackman-Wiltshire, Managing Director, Cutting Crew, Queens Park
I am the kind of person who needs everything documented. We know first-hand what an allergic reaction is like, because one of our team is allergic to PPD, so we understand how horrific it can be.
My research began by talking to our insurance company. We had always been told we weren’t insured unless we follow manufacturers guidelines, so I went to our insurance company and asked them to underwrite our policy to include Colourstart. I know that Colourstart comes with its own insurance, but I wanted an extra level of security. They agreed and here we are.
Communicating with the team… I explained to the stylists that once we took the plunge, we can use any colour and our clients will be protected. The team were 100% onboard from the start, and this is vital. They all received training and applied Colourstart on themselves, so they all knew exactly how it works.
Communicating with clients… I put together some material firstly explaining why we are using Colourstart. Secondly, sharing information about Colourstart and emphasising the fact that it is a medical grade product. Thirdly, we compiled a Q&A document with the most frequently asked questions. In all our communication with clients we emphasised that we would never choose money over safety, and the decision to use Colourstart is about safety. We had very little resistance.
Getting clients on board… As clients were coming in to get their hair coloured we began to introduce them to Colourstart. Understandably some of them were unsure, so we had print outs for people who wanted to know more. We ran an introductory offer and over the course of a few months, we got the vast majority (95%) of clients moved over.
Enjoying the benefits….Introducing Colourstart has been very positive and is now the norm. We did lose a couple of clients along the way, but we’re not going to bend the rules unless there is a valid reason why they can’t have Colourstart. We are committed and the key is that you have to commit to it and go the hard route to benefit long term.
Truthfully, I don’t know how we would manage without Colourstart. It would be impossible to run our salon professionally and safely without Colourstart and this has given us the reassurance that we needed.
