The dynamic between franchisees and their concierges is the heartbeat of each and every community inside Salons by JC. At Salons by JC Burlington/Lexington and Salons by JC Stoneham — located in the Boston area — owner Lauren Cantner and her concierges, Alisha and Christine, all work together in harmony to provide a solid foundation for their salon suite owners to thrive upon.

Salons by JC Stoneham

Levels of Business and Friendship

Lauren and her two concierges work together every day to ensure that all needs of their salon suite owners are met at all times. Whether the trio is organizing events, talking strategy, or finding ways to improve their salon suite owners’ lives, Lauren and her gals are big practitioners of open communication.

“We work together in our professions, but we are also personal friends,” Lauren says. “I feel very lucky to share the same moral and ethical standards, and vision, as my concierges. They are just great people. It’s fantastic!”

Lauren Cantner – Owner

Both concierges, Alisha and Christine, communicate with each other about current situations at their locations. This allows the concierges to learn from one another, provide feedback, share successes and brainstorm new ideas for their locations. Lauren says that getting to watch Alisha and Christine take the reins and build off each other is one of the best parts of working with this team.

“They literally treat like it is their own business,” Lauren shares. “For example, one of my concierges just went to a salon suite owners’ wedding this past weekend. She is that close with her suite owners that she is actually personal friends with them. I think both Alisha and Christine’s level of care and commitment is just above and beyond.”

Making Magic

The core team of Lauren, Alisha, and Christine all play their part in making sure everything in their power is done to keep their locations running smoothly. This dynamic includes team meetings outside of work hours to discuss location happenings to keep each other in the loop.

According to Lauren, part of the success of her core team comes as a product of diversity.

“Alisha and Christine are very different in personality, but their opposite personalities actually complement the greater unit,” Lauren says.

Alisha, concierge at Salons by JC Stoneham, takes pride in her ability to decipher what is important while letting little things roll off her back. She is great at diffusing situations and keeping everyone at her location happy and motivated. According to Alisha, the most valuable part of working with her team is having each other to lean on.

Christine, concierge at Salons by JC Burlington, is described by Alisha and Lauren as extremely organized, clean, neat. Christine has the personal touch, gets involved, and is always prepared.

“Lauren, Christine and I work very, very well together,” says Alisha. “We kind of divide and conquer. I love seeing and making it possible for beauty professionals to be able to come in and launch their own business without any unnecessary headache or overhead.”

Concierges- Christine and Alisha

Empowerment

A big piece of the picture is empowerment. As the location owner, it is Lauren’s goal to make sure everyone inside Salons by JC feels this empowerment. This message is one that she trains her concierges to spread within their own communities.

“Empowerment is key,” says Lauren. “When you first bring on a concierge, you are going to be training them and handling things for a little while. Once you develop that trust and empower them to make the choices, it goes a long way because they feel a sense of ownership. We work with concierges that understand this and these ladies are well equipped to handle anything that comes their way”

Salons by JC Lexington

In this empowerment philosophy, Lauren feels confident in letting her girls take the lead and be the everyday decision makers at their respective locations. For Lauren, not only is it about being confident that her concierges can take on any task, but also letting them know they are a key role in making the shared vision of independence for all beauty professionals, a reality.

“I couldn’t do this without them,” Lauren shares. “I do everything I can to make  Alisha and Christine feel appreciated and show how grateful I am of their hard work and trust.”

Trust and Honor

With the right personalities in place at each location, being able to trust and build off of one another make everyone’s jobs a little easier.

“If one person is sick, then the other concierge will drive to the other location just to check in,” Lauren shares. “I am implementing for the concierges to switch once a month. Not only does it help them get to know the other location and its unique community, but it also helps when it comes to accountability. Everyone will be properly equipped to step in when needed, and I know these girls are more than willing to be that help in their community.”  Lauren hopes this will help each concierge gain new perspectives and hopefully get to learn from each other. Though their personalities may seem different, their core vision is the same.  Salons by JC Burlington and Lexington are shaping up to lead their vision into new and exciting endeavors.

About Salons by JC: In 1997, Jack Griffey and Cecil Miller began their journey to transform the beauty industry one salon suite at a time. Like most young entrepreneurs, they started out with a big idea but had to learn how to start and run a business from scratch. After much perseverance and hard work, one year later, they opened Salons by JC in Dallas, TX in 1998, welcoming beauty and wellness specialists who were ready to break free from the traditional salon model. The company has since moved its headquarters from Dallas to San Antonio, where it continues to grow through franchising. Today, Salons by JC has over 87 locations in 24 states and Canada.  For more information, visit salonsbyjc.com or salonsbyjc.com/franchise

Blog written by:

Sammis & Ochoa