Maintain brand values as your business expands

John Carne Hairdressing celebrated 2010, its 30th year in business, with the opening of a new salon in Knightsbridge - its first central London venture. 

The Knightsbridge salon joins his current branches in Wimbledon Village and Guildford in Surrey. Maintaining the brand's integrity was a priority for John as he made the move into Knightsbridge - one of London's most prestigious locations. He offers the following advice for retaining strong brand values.

The essence of a strong brand is staying true to your values; this is especially important when you are expanding. Once you have a clear identity, it will help you to understand who your clients are, what they need and what they expect.

Building a profile around the values of your ideal client will help you to choose a location for your salon, making sure that it's in the correct place to reach them. It will also help you in terms of marketing and PR, and what media are most likely to be on their radar.

Ensure continuity throughout your chain or franchises - this is the only way to maintain quality and the integrity of your brand. As you grow, it's essential that you keep up a consistent brand message and identity. This should apply to everything from training to branding. Our training manual covers every element of our business, from customer service to hairdressing. 

Make sure that you employ staff who can deliver your brand. Employees are your ambassadors, so they should complement the type of client you are trying to attract. 

Daily staff meetings should cover good and bad service, and you should always talk to team members individually on a weekly basis. 

Your employees are the embodiment of your brand; your brand is in their hands, so give them all the help and guidance you can.

Deal with any complaint straight away - bad word of mouth spreads faster than the good and can do an enormous amount of damage to the whole brand. 

Make sure you take clients' details - data is king. Keep in touch with your clients as it will strengthen your relationship with them. But make sure that you are always adding to the service when you contact them.

Finally, if you have a re-fit taking place, don't miss the opportunity to build excitement around the opening by using the window to send out a strong message about yourself - it's your first contact with your new clients, so make it count.