Meet Bruce Schultz of Boardroom Salon for Men

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bruce Schultz.

For over a decade, Boardroom Salon for Men has set the standard for the men’s grooming industry through 27 locations strategically placed across Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Georgia.

Boardroom Salon for Men was created to provide a cool, comfortable, masculine place for men to get a great haircut, shave, or spa service – the ultimate relaxed grooming experience for men.

Boardroom combines the community and nostalgia of an old-time barbershop, outstanding client service and professionalism, and a 1920s country club environment to create a masculine environment where men can relax, unwind, and confidently enjoy the highest quality haircut, shave, or spa service in town. Like a sophisticated men’s club, the Boardroom sends you back to an earlier, elegant era with its dark wood paneling, plush leather chairs, pool table, chessboard, complimentary beverage, and great vibes.

Boardroom’s mission is to help men relax, look great and feel confident by combining exceptional hair, shave and spa services with outstanding client service. All services are delivered by a friendly, highly skilled team of professionals in a comfortable, masculine, relaxing environment. Boardroom’s team is committed to providing a great client service experience on every visit, and their goal is for you to make them your regular place for your haircuts and grooming services.

Bruce and Heather Schultz were looking for their next entrepreneurial opportunity when they read an article about men’s grooming in the December 2003 edition of American Way magazine while traveling to visit family for the holidays. Building on the men’s grooming theme, they foresaw significant demand for an upscale grooming experience.

In eight short months, the Schultz’ idea progressed through business plan, location selection, lease, and build-out. The first Boardroom opened in Southlake, Texas, in August 2004, with a mission to help men relax, look great and feel confident by delivering the ultimate relaxed grooming experience for men. In building Boardroom, the Schultz’ focused on delivering unique, meaningful and sustainable value to its clients and team members.

13 years later, Boardroom Salon for Men is the authority in men’s grooming and sets the standard for outstanding client service and overall salon experience with over 25 locations throughout Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Georgia.

In addition to offering all of their services a la carte, the Boardroom offers annual Memberships that allow their clients to enjoy unlimited haircuts and select other services for one year, at a discounted price. Offering their clients the opportunity to relax and enjoy the freedom of stopping in for a haircut frequently, as their travel schedule and lifestyle permit, without having to worry about paying for each service. Memberships are honored at all Boardroom salon locations.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
In eight short months, the Schultz’ idea progressed through business plan, location selection, lease, and build-out. The first Boardroom opened in Southlake, Texas, in August 2004, with a mission to help men relax, look great and feel confident by delivering the ultimate relaxed grooming experience for men.

The Schultz’ liquidated their savings and retirement funds and leveraged loans on credit cards to launch the first Boardroom location¬¬¬ – they were all in and quitting was not an option. While raising three wonderful children and volunteering, Heather ran the salon operations, while Bruce ran marketing, finance, helped with operations during nights and weekends, and continued to excel at a high demand corporate job.

The Schultz’ wanted to control their destiny, and tenaciously pursued the plan to build their own business from an idea, to a single salon, to the industry’s iconic brand. The initial plan was to open three salons, refine and document the business and client experience processes and grow through both corporate owned and franchise locations. As Boardroom expanded, the Schultz’ updated their growth strategy to focus on corporate owned versus franchised locations, as this model best aligned with their goals of a consistent client experience, greater career opportunities for team members, building an iconic brand and benefiting from the financial power of the business model.

A few months after opening the first salon, the team was in transition, and down to one stylist/team member. Always tenacious, the Schultz’ owned all roles in the company, except cutting hair, and focused on rebuilding the team with individuals who shared Boardroom’s vision and core values. Boardroom has since grown to 300+ team members and the preferred employer in the industry.

In building Boardroom, the Schultz’ focused on delivering unique, meaningful and sustainable value to its clients and team members. Believing strong teams create successful businesses and wanting to attract the best team members, Boardroom moved away from the commission only or booth rental business model, and created stable compensation plans and career growth by providing attractive base pay, commissions, bonuses, health insurance, paid time off, and the ability to advance into salon management and corporate roles.

Boardroom Salon for Men – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Boardroom also took a fresh approach when it came to delivering value to our clients, beginning with the belief “it’s our responsibility, as experts, to educate our clients on how to keep their great look and style during the two to three weeks between haircuts, in addition to having them look great and feel confident when they finish their Boardroom experience.” Further, Boardroom introduced Memberships, where a client may pay one price and enjoy unlimited haircuts for a full year or six months. Memberships allow clients to feel like owners, making their experience more relaxed, and creating Boardroom’s greatest advocates.

To further advance the industry, the Schultz’ are opening Brighton Barber Institute in June 2017, a “graduate type” school focused on helping cosmetologists obtain their barber license to enhance their career opportunities and earning potential.

The Schultz’ pioneered the upscale men’s grooming market, in a field in which they did not have prior experience, based on the belief that the underlying business fundamentals were strong and men were ready for a new experience. The Schultz’ created the upscale men’s grooming concept and built client loyalty by providing an experience, not a commodity, an experience men were missing in their lives before 2004.

Although Boardroom’s business category was non-existent in 2004, the space now has many new entrants, most of which are expanding through a franchise based model. As the ‘original’ entrant in the industry, Boardroom’s corporate based model, proven concept both financially and as voted by client satisfaction is now the pursued and preferred tenant in the top markets. Boardroom’s focus is to continue to give clients a reason to regularly select Boardroom as their place to get ready, be the preferred employer, and to expand by opening new locations in the best retail and lifestyle centers in their target markets. Boardroom distinguishes itself by building the best teams, creating a relaxing, masculine environment and providing a consistent client experience.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Boardroom delivers on its mission to help men relax, look great, and feel confident by achieving an average 2016 Net Promoter Score of 90%, and earns an average existing client retention rate of 80%, both substantially higher than the industry average.

Schultz worked to cultivate a teamwork centric, results-driven culture where team members are empowered to make decisions and take ownership of their careers. Boardroom attracts and retains the industry’s top talent, and provides a framework for them to clearly understand the company’s objectives and their personal ambitions, and provides them a plan to achieve their goals and grow.

Hiring, continuous development, and promoting from within has helped Boardroom employees rise to higher roles with more responsibilities. All three of Boardroom’s Area Managers started their career with the company as a stylist, then through teamwork, dedication and hard work, advanced through the ranks to Assistant Manager, Salon Manager and then to Area Manager. Boardroom’s approach in investing in employees has resulted in a lower turnover rate than the industry average.

The Boardroom team actively participates in its communities and contributed greater than $400,000 in complimentary services to local charities in 2016. Additionally, the Schultz’ are involved in Southlake’s Art in the Square event, which is the eleventh largest Art Festival in the US, and has raised over $2.5 million for local charities. Heather is the Co-Chair for Entertainment for the event, Bruce is on the Board and they both volunteer many hours behind the scenes to assist in making the event a success for their hometown and the charities.

The Schultz’ have built Boardroom into a strong, efficient business that is well positioned for future success. The Boardroom experience starts with the 300+ friendly, professional and empowered team members in the salons, ensuring every client has a great experience on every visit. The field team is well supported by a corporate team of experienced, dedicated, and results-driven professionals in operations, finance, marketing, and human resources.

Schultz plans to continue to work full time as Boardroom’s CEO, and with the strong Boardroom team, strategically grow the company into a national brand. Boardroom finished 2016 with 23 salons, will open 5 salons in 2017, including its first salon in Georgia. Then an additional 15 salons are targeted to open by the end of 2019.

Today, Boardroom is the authority in men’s grooming, and sets the standard for outstanding client service and overall salon experience. Boardroom’s business and demand are strong, and its sales and services have increased rapidly over the last five years.

Pricing:

• The Benchmark Haircut – Boardroom’s Signature Service – $60
• Traditional Hot Lather Shave – $55
• Annual Memberships with Unlimited Haircuts per year and discounts on other services and products – starting at $675

Contact Info:

• Website: boardroomsalon.com
• Email: info@boardroomsalon.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/boardroomsalons/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theboardroomsalon
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/BoardroomSalons
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/boardroom-salon-for-men-dallas-2?osq=Boardroom+Salon+for+Men

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