How can beauty and wellness businesses excel in 2023 and beyond? We invited industry experts David Crisalli and Sarah Simonelli to discuss the latest data defining salon and spa success.

David Crisalli is the former CEO of Massage Envy, the largest massage franchise in the U.S. with 1,200 locations and more than $ 1billion of annual revenue. Sarah Simonelli is the Director of Customer Success at Zenoti and leads our team supporting salons and spas across North America. Prior to Zenoti, Sarah was the Director of Operations for 14-location luxury group Tricoci Salon & Spa.

David and Sarah discussed recent industry data comparing average businesses to the highest performer – the top 10 percent – on metrics including per-location revenue, staff utilization, and retail sales. They offered valuable insights into how businesses can achieve those top results.  

The full webinar, Achieving greatness in 2023: Data insights and strategies to fuel business growth, is available to watch on demand now.  

Keep reading for three key learnings from the webinar.  

“I think as entrepreneurs, we're all interested in building something special. But we also want it to last. At the core of that, is profitability.”

– David Crisalli, former CEO, Massage Envy

1. Tracking performance data is essential for business health

David begins the webinar by emphasizing that you can’t achieve greatness if you don’t measure it. He attributes Massage Envy’s success to an early focus on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): “We had a KPI culture – or metric-intelligent culture – from the inception, because you can’t change what you’re not aware of.”

Industry data: Monthly overall revenue per location

While professional instinct can offer some indication of business health, measuring incremental change is necessary to see consistent improvement. Businesses that regularly track business data know what they’re achieving in business-critical areas such as financial performance, guest satisfaction, and provider engagement. Performance data uncovers business strengths to build on for greater success and highlights crucial opportunities for improvement.  

Accurate business data is also necessary to set and track goals. Without it, you don’t know if you’re moving at your desired pace, and can’t tell if your goals are within arm’s length or much farther away.

Finally, using data to note and celebrate milestones with your team keeps them engaged in the business’ success.

2. Focus on revenue and guest retention metrics

Today’s beauty and wellness business software should feature comprehensive business metrics. While having access to granular data is great when you need it, not every piece of data will always be relevant to your goals.  

Dave Crisalli comments, “The trick is to really focus on the needle-moving metrics.” Depending on your goals, these could include revenue per location and provider, guest spend and retention, and additional revenue streams such as gift cards, retail sales, or memberships. Crisalli also suggests considering the LTV – lifetime value – of each guest. He warns against mistaking attendance for retention; instead, aim to convert each guest into someone who loves your brand and remains invested with four to six visits per year.  

Industry data: Staff utilization

Utilization is another key revenue metric – and high performers achieve twice the success of average businesses. Sarah says, “My biggest point to emphasize about utilization: keep an eye on the hours you have available for guests to come in and schedule. When you're looking at 88 percent utilization after the day has concluded, that's great. If you're looking at that two weeks out, you're turning away business.”

3. Share individual provider data to build an excellent team

“Your providers need to know what they're striving toward, right?” Sarah asked the audience. “Not just from paycheck to paycheck, but also growth year-over-year. Do they have insights into how their daily and weekly activities increase their own revenue?”

Industry data: Monthly revenue per provider

Giving providers insights into their own metrics – and how they compare to their peers – can serve as a great motivator for success. Not only does it offer providers complete visibility into their career, it inspires them to take control of it.

Providers should clearly understand how their performance impacts their own earnings, as well as that of the wider business. With the tools available today, you can make provider report cards a thing of the past – instead, give providers an up-to-date view of their performance via their smartphones.

Useful metrics to share with providers include individual monthly revenue, provider-led retail sales, and their guest ratings. Tracking and reviewing provider metrics also gives managers an opportunity to discuss the tools available to improve individual performance. As an example, utilizing guest-focused business software empowers providers to personalize retail recommendations based on service history, or offer quick rebooking, right at the chair or service room.

“As a business owner, your goal is to retain your team, just as much as it is to retain your guests. Set your service providers up for success, and know how to guide and cultivate their career in the best way.”

– Sarah Simonelli, Dir. Customer Success, Zenoti

Don’t miss the full learning session. It’s packed with even more beauty and wellness data, plus in-depth advice from our industry experts.

Watch the webinar on demand.