For salon pros who also teach or travel, a Salons by JC Suite is the best-of-all-word’s home base. Tim “Bo” Mack discovered this when he proudly won a place on the Pravana education team and was promptly handed a non-compete (with a 150-mile radius!) by his employer. Tim, who loved his job but knew what was best for him refused to sign and looked elsewhere. On his way to an interview, he saw a sign for Salons by JC in Corpus Christi, TX, and the rest is happy history.
“Salons by JC lets me set myself apart with a great space, a concierge service and a place clients love that isn’t just a chair in a corner of another salon,” says Tim. “It allows me to give my clients 100% of my attention, and I have the freedom over my schedule to travel and educate for Pravana.”
A positive-minded team player, Tim did not have a client list, which most salons frown on, but he did have a Facebook page. When his sister put a copy of his business card for his new So Addictive Hair Studio on it, within an hour, he had 176 interactions asking where he’d gone. By the third day of settling into his new suite, he had his first 10 a.m. appointment. His always-upbeat and professional attitude (it’s his suite that stylists-taking-tours stop in to ask no-holds barred questions) and high level of skills (gained over 17 years) had cinched total client loyalty.
Defining his style as “tailored to the individual,” Tim sees clients who range from teens to seniors. On days he books out, he travels mostly thorough Texas, helping other colorists with their most pressing questions, which are currently how to cover gray and how to keep reds from fading. When the Salons by JC concierge stops in with stylists taking a tour—and then steps away to encourage honesty and transparency—Tim says they immediately ask “the real deal” and he’s happy to share.
“I tell them I have 100% control over everything and that everyone here respects one another; there’s no client stealing,” says Tim. “In fact, we even refer one another and have Pot Luck dinners and outside mixers, which makes it as social as a regular salon without the drama.”
With an incredibly wide range of clients, it’s difficult for Tim to pinpoint what any one group wants most now, but some of his most in-demand services include color melts and balayage, rooted looks that let clients extend visits and tape-in hair extensions that add length and volume. His many referrals more than make up for extended visits; he says he learned long ago that giving clients what they want builds business most.
“I had one client in her ‘70s who was preparing for cancer treatment and decided that before she lost her hair, she wanted to try out a shaved side with details and a cool color,” he says. “She’d never gotten to do it before.”
While a private suite may have played a part in making “Miss Juanita” at ease enough to give a wild style a spin at 70, Tim says it’s definitely the best place for energy, creativity and truly meeting client’s individual needs. “If you get up every day and are not happy going to work, you’re in the wrong place,” he says. “My suite is my happy place, and I love going to work every day.” For his latest looks and upbeat ideas, follow Tim “Bo” on Instagram @timboplease
