Salon Rising

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• 
  What the other side of a hard season actually looks like – with Sam and Jen 17.08.2026 44мин

  Some seasons you do not get through gracefully. You just get through them. And then one day it is over, and you are standing on the other side wondering why it feels so quiet.This one is just Sam and Jen. No guest, no plan, no idea where it was going to go. Sam opens up about the end of a chapter that ran almost three years and cost a quarter of a million dollars, and what it actually took to come out the other side of it still standing. Not the tell all version. The honest one, from a woman who is finally regulated enough to talk about it.It is also a conversation about what a business has to do for you when everything else is falling over. Sam is blunt about it. If she had not known how to work her numbers, she would not have lasted. Seventeen years in, booked out, still not sure about hiring again, and finally choosing stillness over the chase. Jen brings the other half of the picture, a first six months of the year that tipped everything upside down, a business that has been genuinely hard, and why the changes she has made were measured ones rather than panicked ones.What we coverWhy knowing your numbers is what actually carries you through a hard seasonThe real cost of a long legal chapter and how a salon absorbed itBuilding a team of people around you who tell you the truth, not what you want to hearSeventeen years in business and why staying still is a decision, not a lack of ambitionBeing booked out and still unsure whether to hire againThe Monday spent filling the book and what it does to your nervous systemProtecting your peace online, and knowing when it is safe to open back upMaking measured changes in a hard six months instead of erratic onesWhy no relationship, personal or professional, is a failureScars not wounds, and why the timing of your story mattersThere is hope on the other side. Sometimes it just arrives quieter than you expected.Do you need to be good with numbers to survive a hard season in business?You need to know your numbers well enough to see what your business can carry. Sam is clear that her financial literacy is the only reason her salon supported her family through three years of legal costs.Is it a bad sign if you do not want to grow your salon right now?No. Choosing to stay still, keep your book tight and protect your energy is a legitimate business decision, not a step backwards.How do you make big business decisions when everything feels uncertain?Make them slowly and on the information you actually have, not on fear. Measured changes you have sat with beat reactive ones every time.Mentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  Mini Moment #27 - Nervous system resets that actually work for salon owners – with Sharelle from Miss Lash 10.08.2026 12мин

  You can be off the floor, home, sitting still, and your body still behaves like something is about to go wrong. The phone buzzes and your heart goes before your brain does. That is not you being dramatic. That is a nervous system that has been running on alarm so long it has forgotten there is another setting.Sharelle from Miss Lash The Studio is back in the Inner Sanctum, and she, Sam and Jen have all been working on the same thing this year, from very different directions. This is a short, honest conversation about what actually brings you back down. Yin yoga for one, prayer for another, a Sunday morning at the markets before it gets busy. None of it is complicated. Most of it is free. All of it starts with deciding you are allowed to give something back to yourself after a day of giving it all away.There is a lot in here you could start this week, and none of it asks you to add another thing to a life that is already full.What we coverWhat a nervous system reset actually means when you are the one giving all dayYin yoga, prayer, movement, and finding the thing that regulates you rather than the thing that works for someone elseWhy a busy supermarket can tip you straight into overwhelm, and what Sharelle does insteadBuffer time between appointments and how a spare half hour changes the shape of a whole dayRushing woman syndrome and why cramming wellness in does not help your nervous systemYour phone as an invitation, not an obligationTurning off notifications and getting free of that little red numberFive tasks on the list instead of fifty, and why ticking things off actually worksThe 90 second rule, and why you never reply to a one star review while you are heightenedCalm is not a personality type. It is a handful of small decisions you keep making.FAQsWhat is a nervous system reset?It is anything that moves you out of fight or flight and back into rest and digest. For Sharelle that is yin yoga, for Samara it is prayer, and the point is finding the one that works for your body rather than copying someone else's.How do salon owners get out of fight or flight during the working day?Small resets built into the day work better than one big fix at the end of it. Buffer time between appointments, notifications switched off, and a shorter task list all lower the load before it builds.Why should you wait before replying to a bad review?A strong emotion runs its chemical course in about 90 seconds, so anything you send inside that window is written by the heightened version of you. Australian salon owners deal with reviews and client messages constantly, and waiting until you feel steady almost always gives you a better reply.Mentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  The hair catastrophe that launched a brand – with Simone from Apotecari 03.08.2026 1ч

  Shiny scalps. Sparse hairlines. Clients who used to have a mane and now don't. You're having these conversations every week and you need better answers than the ones on the shelf.Simone from Apotecari has them. She's a naturopath, twenty years qualified, with a career spent formulating supplements for brands already sitting in your bathroom cabinet. She also had a hair catastrophe of her own, went looking for something that would fix it from the inside, and found nothing worth taking. So she built it.These are clients you already have. The one whose hairline is quietly moving back. The one on a weight loss injection who hasn't thought to mention it. The one who's oily by day two and blames your shampoo. Simone explains what's happening in each of them, and why the answer is almost never another bottle on the shelf.What we coverThe bond builder era and what a lot of stylists were really doing with itWhy hair is the first thing your body stops feeding when nutrients are shortPerimenopause hair loss and why nobody connected the dots for so longShiny scalps, receding hairlines and what is actually happening in the follicleOily scalps, dandruff and why washing more often changes nothingWhy your scalp ages seven times faster than the skin on your faceThe difference between hair shedding and hair loss, and why the word you use changes everythingWhy the hair industry is not great at doing its own researchWhat a proper ninety day product trial looks like, with data instead of feelingsShe hid her hair for six months. Then she went and fixed it for everybody else.Frequently asked questionsWhy does hair fall out during perimenopause?Hormonal change alters how follicles behave, which is why thinning often shows down the centre part and around the hairline. It rarely happens alone, and it sits alongside other perimenopause symptoms that are just as real and just as connected.Does washing your hair more often make it less oily?No. Washing removes the sebum already on the scalp but does nothing to the rate your body produces it. Balancing oil production happens internally and usually takes two to three months.How long should you take a hair supplement before judging it?Give it ninety days minimum, because that tracks with the hair growth cycle. Take before photos and test porosity and elasticity first, so you are working from data rather than a feeling.Mentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  Mini Moment #26 - Who is going to cut your hair when you are 70? 27.07.2026 8мин

  Ask a salon owner in Australia whether she is taking on an apprentice this year, and listen for the pause before she answers.It is not that she has gone cold on young people. Jen has been training apprentices since she was about 21 and still loves it. Sam has had apprentices who became some of the best people she has ever worked with. The pause is about everything sitting underneath that. A wage that climbs on a timeline while the skill is still building. Eighteen months of your time before any of it comes back. Support that used to exist for owners and quietly stopped. And a salon floor that, with a smaller team, no longer needs the person who once kept the whole thing moving.So the industry has ended up somewhere strange. Owners who genuinely want to train are turning young people away, week after week, because they cannot see the landscape they would be sending them into. Which leaves the question this episode opens on and never quite answers. If nobody is training them, who is cutting your hair in twenty years?What we coverWhy Australian salon owners are turning apprentices awayThe support that used to exist for training and does not anymoreWages rising while the skill set is still buildingWhat a Cert II at TAFE is delivering, and what it is notThe myth that owners are getting kickbacks that cover the costWhy apprentices worked in a big salon and stopped working in a small oneUni students do unpaid placement, hairdressers pay for theirsCommitting to three years when you cannot see your own next threeWhat happens to the young people knocking on the doorNeither of them has the answer. Both of them would really like one.FAQsWhy are salon owners not taking on apprentices anymore?The cost is front loaded and the return has moved. Wages rise on a set timeline while the skill set is still building, and the first 18 months are almost entirely the owner's time.Is there an apprentice shortage in the Australian hairdressing industry?Fewer salons are taking apprentices on, so fewer are coming through and fewer are staying. Owners are turning young people away because they cannot see the industry they would be sending them into.Do salon owners get paid to take on an apprentice?Not in any meaningful way in hairdressing. Incentives have grown in other trades, mostly construction, and those employers also pay a much higher apprentice wage.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  She had staff, now she's solo and it's the best thing ever – with Sharelle from Miss Lash 21.07.2026 56мин

  Sharelle is back in the Inner Sanctum for the third time, and she is almost unrecognisable. Last time she was here she had staff, an education arm, a big space on the Gold Coast Highway and a to do list that never ended. This time she walks in and Sam asks her who she is, and she cannot answer straight away.Because the woman who built that salon at 21 is gone. Sharelle says it plainly. That girl is dead. She wanted the team and the education and the big version of it all because she wanted to feel good about herself, and somewhere in there she stopped being able to sit still with her own clients. Now it is just her, she is on the floor full time, she is booked out months ahead without posting, and she says it is the best thing that has happened to her business.This one gets honest fast. Sharelle did not want to talk about her tax debt again, and then decided it would be worse not to, because there are women listening who are sitting in exactly the same spot and think they are the only one. So they talk about it properly. The payment plan, the cycle, the ego of pretending you are not on one, and what Sam actually does about it.What we coverGoing from a full team back to solo, and why it felt like relief rather than failureThe ego trap of headcount, and who you are really trying to look successful forWhy hiring to work less usually means working moreSam's numbers a year on from seven staff, and how little the revenue actually movedTax debt, payment plans and the one habit that gets you out of the cycleWhy your future tax matters more than the debt you already haveBeing present with clients again, and what changed for both of them on the floorStaying booked out without living on social mediaFlexibility over income, and what owning a business is actually forThe dream you built at 21 is allowed to die, and the woman who replaces her usually knows better.Should I hire staff for my salon?Only if you have checked why you want them, because most owners hire hoping to work less and end up working more. Sam's honest test is whether the decision is about the business or about how the number of staff makes you feel.What should I do if I owe tax debt in my salon business?Keep the payment plan as low as you can manage and pay it off slowly, but start putting your future tax aside from this week. Paying the old debt fast while ignoring the new bill is what keeps Australian salon owners stuck in the cycle for years.Can you actually make good money as a solo salon owner?Yes, and often more of it lands in your pocket. Sam compared her numbers with seven staff to her numbers with a team of two and a bit, and the difference across the year was about three thousand dollars, with retail up sharply.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  Mini Moment #25 - Finding an accountant who gets you, not just your numbers – with Paris from Group One Accounting 29.06.2026 11мин

  Most of us treat our accountant like a stranger who happens to know our numbers. Someone we email at tax time, brace ourselves for, and quietly hope is not judging us. But what if that relationship could feel like the complete opposite?In this Mini Moment, Sam sits down with her own accountant, Paris from Group One Accounting, to talk about what it actually looks like to work with someone who gets you. Not just someone who lodges your BAS on time, but someone you can be honest with, lean on, and yes, even cry to about tax.Because here is the part most salon owners never get told. Your accountant is not there to be your business strategist, and expecting that will only leave you let down. The real shift comes from knowing what the job actually is, asking for exactly what you need, and finding the person who fits the way you work.What we coverWhat an accountant is actually responsible for, and what they are notThe real difference between a bookkeeper and an accountantThe questions to ask before you take someone on, from communication style to fees and response timeWhy Sam pays her accountant a set amount each week, and how that protects her cashflowHow to find an accountant who feels personal, not just professionalWhy you should never feel judged by the person doing your booksThe right accountant does not just know your numbers. They make you feel safe in your own business.FAQsWhat is the difference between a bookkeeper and an accountant?A bookkeeper handles the day to day reconciling, data entry and the quarterly BAS that Australian businesses lodge for GST. An accountant usually comes in at the end of the financial year to tidy everything up and do the tax level work, though plenty of accountants can cover both.What should you ask before hiring an accountant?Ask how they communicate, how quickly they respond, and how they charge, including whether phone calls are billed. Being clear about what you need up front is what stops you feeling disappointed later.Should I do my own bookkeeping as a salon owner?For a lot of smaller salons, basic reconciling and paying wages is simpler than it looks, and learning it first keeps your head in your own business. You can always hand it over once you understand what is involved.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  The real PuraU story, from her own acne to a brand that actually works – with Founder, Acacia 22.06.2026 1ч 3мин

  Everyone's starting a side business right now. A product, a brand, a little something on the side that might just take off. Acacia actually did it. She and her partner built PuraU, a natural skincare and gut brand, out of her own years of struggling with acne. And in this episode she tells the real story, not the highlight reel.It started with her own skin. Years of the pill, antibiotics, Accutane, naturopaths she could barely afford, and nothing that lasted. So she set out to build the thing she wished she'd had. What she's honest about is everything that came after. They launched to crickets and didn't make a sale for two weeks. They cold called journalists themselves when the expensive PR agency did nothing. It took three years before the business turned a profit, and three years before they paid themselves a wage.If you've ever sat on an idea waiting until you had enough money, or felt behind watching everyone else online look like an overnight success, this one will land. Acacia is proof that the unglamorous version is the real one, and that the people who make it are simply the ones who stick it out.What we coverBuilding PuraU from Acacia's own years of acne and trying everythingLaunching the website and not making a single sale for two weeksCold calling journalists herself instead of paying a PR agencyWhy a great product means nothing if nobody can find itLearning Facebook ads herself to stop relying on one off PR spikesThe three years it took before breaking through, making a profit, or paying themselvesComparison, social media, and the false reality of replacing your income in four weeksKnowing your customer because you were your customerPushing into chemists and skin clinics, and the setbacks that nearly broke themShe built it from nothing, on persistence not luck, and she's only just getting started.You'll find the whole range at purau.com.au, plus there's a quick skin quiz to find your own starting point.FAQsHow long does it really take to build a successful business?For Acacia and PuraU it took three years before the business made a profit or paid them a wage. The overnight success stories you see online usually hide years of work that happened before the launch.Do you need money and business experience to start a brand?Acacia was a nurse with no business background and sold her car to help fund the brand. What carried them was resilience and a willingness to learn each part themselves rather than pay someone else to do it.What is PuraU?PuraU is an Australian made skincare and gut health brand, formulated with microbiologists to treat the root cause of acne rather than the surface. It was created by Acacia and her partner out of their own experience with skin and gut issues.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCMhttps://www.salonrising.com
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  Mini Moment #24: The AI Hacks for Busy Salon Owners – with Renee from Salon Society 15.06.2026 15мин

  You already know AI can tidy up a caption. Most salon owners stop right there. Renee from Salon Society and Jen do not.In this Mini Moment the two of them fall down a happy little rabbit hole on all the other ways AI quietly takes the load off a busy owner. Not the marketing stuff. The day to day stuff that clogs up your head and steals your day off.Renee, who is in salon in Perth every week, shares the exact thing she did after a five hour client meeting. One voice note, dropped into Claude with a bit of context, came back as a full action list of who does what. If you want to go deeper on this kind of thing, Renee teaches the whole system in her online course, How to Market Your Beauty Business Online.Jen then talks through how she runs her admin days now, from sorting her inbox to building apprentice training plans, so the mental load stops living rent free in her head. This one is for anyone who has ever sat staring at a to do list with no idea where to start. Especially the neurodivergent owners, who Jen speaks to straight here. AI does not replace you. It just clears the path so you can actually get going.What we coverWhy AI is for so much more than checking your captionsTurning a long staff meeting into a clear action list in a minuteThe voice note habit that writes your client content for youGiving AI proper context so it sounds like you, not genericUsing AI to sort and triage your inbox on admin daysBuilding apprentice training plans that are easy to actually followAI as a way past analysis paralysis and the never ending listWhy it buys back time without ever doing the work for youDip your toe in. The water is warm, and your next day off will thank you.FAQsHow can salon owners use AI for more than writing captions? AI can turn a long staff meeting into a clear action list, sort your inbox, and build training plans for your apprentices. The trick is giving it context about your salon so the output sounds like you, not generic.How do you use a voice note to create salon content with AI? Record a quick voice note about a client's consultation on your phone, then drop the transcription into a tool like Claude or ChatGPT. Ask it to write the caption as a story about that client, and you get content in your own voice in seconds.Does using AI mean it replaces the salon owner? No. AI does not do the work or send your emails for you. It speeds up the planning and thinking you already do, so you take actionMentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCMhttps://www.salonrising.com
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  The Client Landscape Has Changed And No One Is Talking About It – With Rach From Halo Hair and Beauty 08.06.2026 48мин

  You know the feeling. You post the last minute cancellation, the one that used to fill within the hour, and now it just sits there. The Monday DMs that used to be mental are quiet. The new client requests that used to roll in are a trickle. You are not imagining it, and you are not doing anything wrong.In this episode, Sam and Jen are joined by one of Sam's dearest friends and the final piece of her rat pack, Rach from Halo Hair and Beauty in Tweed. Fourteen years a salon owner, six years an educator, and refreshingly honest about what has actually shifted in this industry. Rach and the girls get into the thing most owners are quietly worried about and almost no one is saying out loud. The clients are not coming the way they used to, building a new column is harder than it has been in years, and the old playbook of post on Monday and fill by Friday does not work anymore.This is a real conversation about the new landscape of the Australian salon industry. Why younger clients are skipping colour altogether. Why the hate around pricing online misses what a haircut actually costs to deliver. Why a smaller team has quietly become the smarter, calmer, more profitable choice. And the slow shift that comes with time in the chair, when you stop chasing the bigger salon and start enjoying the one you already built.What we coverWhy building a new client column is so much harder than ten years agoThe new client landscape and why last minute spots no longer fill the way they didYounger clients going natural and skipping colour, and what that does to the booksThe online hate around salon pricing and the real cost behind a haircutWhy a smaller team often means better culture, less tax and more profitKnowing your numbers and team targets so you are not paying people to do nothingWhy going back to basics is the skill apprentices are missingChoosing to enjoy the salon you have built instead of always chasing moreSome weeks the most powerful thing you can do is jump in, do what you need, and jump back out.FAQsWhy is it harder to build a new client column now than it used to be? Demand has shifted, so the steady stream of new clients many salons relied on has slowed right down. More people are going natural or stretching out appointments, which means fewer new bookings and a slower build for newer team members.Is a smaller salon team better than a bigger one? For many owners, yes. A smaller team can mean stronger culture, less time spent managing people, and a lower wage, tax and superannuation load, which often leaves the business more profitable and far less stressful to run.Why do salon prices feel so high right now? A haircut or colour covers far more than the time in the chair. Rent, stock, insurance, superannuation and tax all come out of that price, and rising client expectations mean each service takes more time and skill than it used to.Mentioned in this episode:💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com
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  Mini Moment #23: The One Client Trick That Sorts Your Whole Brand – with Tegan from Moosh 01.06.2026 9мин

  Most salon owners think branding is the colours, the logo and the name above the door. Tegan from Moosh used to think that too. Then she realised her brand had quietly gone missing, not because she got the visuals wrong, but because she had stopped knowing who she was actually talking to.In this Mini Moment, Tegan joins Jen to pull branding apart in plain language. The thing that brought hers back was almost too simple. She stopped posting to everyone and started posting to one favourite client, a real person, as if she was talking only to her. From there the feeling, the team and the whole vibe of Moosh fell back into place.This is an honest, practical chat about why your brand is a feeling more than a colour, why your team is part of it whether you planned that or not, and why two salons right here in Australia can share the exact same palette and still feel like nothing alike.What we coverWhy your brand is a feeling, not just your colours and logoThe one client trick that makes your posts actually landHow a busy salon quietly loses its brand without noticingWorking out who you really want sitting in your chairWhy your team and their personalities are part of your brandPosting to attract the right client instead of everyoneThe difference between the look of a salon and the feeling of itYour colours were never the brand. The feeling people walk into always was.What makes up a salon brand? A salon brand is the feeling people get from you, not just your colours, logo or name. It comes from who you serve, how your team shows up and how clients feel in your space.How do I find my salon brand? Start by picturing one favourite client and speak only to her, the way Tegan from Moosh did. Once you know who you are talking to, your colours, tone and team culture fall into place around her.Why does my salon brand feel off? Most brands feel off when the salon gets busy and the owner loses sight of who they are speaking to. The fix is rarely new colours, it is getting clear on your person again.Mentioned in this episode:💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCMhttps://www.salonrising.com💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  The One Thing Salon Owners Must Do in 2026 to Get Found by AI – with Renee from Salon Society 25.05.2026 56мин

  You have done everything right. The website is beautiful, the work is gorgeous, the reels go up. So why does it feel like you are shouting into a void while new faces still trickle in from who knows where? This episode answers the who knows where, and the answer has changed.Jen sits down with Renee from Salon Society, for a conversation that started over dinner and turned into a deep dive neither of them wanted to end. Renee has seen this industry from every side. A mature age apprentice who became a Kevin Murphy educator. Then a sales rep who built a territory on relationships. Then a social media agency owner running it all between nap times. And now someone who lives inside the world of AI marketing for salons. She is not teaching theory. She is in salon every week watching real new clients walk in and asking every single one of them how they found the place.What she is finding will change how you think about marketing in 2026. One woman booked a curly hair appointment after typing "best curly hairdresser south Perth" into ChatGPT. Renee shares the real numbers, the multi step path a client takes before they book, and the holes in the bucket that quietly cost you the clients you already worked hard to attract. There is also a tender thread running underneath all of it, about success, motherhood, and the day her son threw her phone across the room and she realised she had built the business but forgotten to pivot it.If this conversation lights something up in you, Renee teaches the full system behind it, building a digital presence that brings in bookings without posting more or chasing trends, in her own online course.What we coverHow clients are now using AI tools like ChatGPT to find a salon, and what that means for youThe one thing to become obsessed with in 2026, knowing exactly where your new clients come fromWhy a referred client can find you and still not book, and how to plug the holes in your bucketOptimising your socials, website and Google Business Profile so AI can actually find youWhy your captions matter again, and the problem and solution story every caption should tellBuilding an evergreen content strategy so you can stop chasing trends and get off the hamster wheelUsing AI to amplify your brand voice instead of replacing itRenee's own pivots, from the salon floor to education to agency to AI, and knowing when each season is overWhat success actually felt like, and the honest cost of chasing moreThis is the episode that makes the AI shift feel less like a threat and more like the most useful thing to happen to salon marketing in years.FAQsHow do salon clients find a business using AI like ChatGPT? Clients type a plain question into an AI tool, such as the best hairdresser for a service in their suburb, and the AI answers by pulling from your socials, website, Google reviews and listed services. The more consistent and specific your content is across those places, the more likely AI is to recommend you.What is the one thing salon owners should focus on in 2026? Become obsessed with knowing where your new clients actually come from by asking every new client how they found you and whether that is when they booked. Once you know what is working, you can make more of that content instead of chasing new clients online for hours.Do captions still matter for salon social media? Yes, more than ever. AI reads the words in your captions and on screen text to understand what your content is about, so a caption that names the service, the client's problem and the solution is what helps you get found and booked.Mentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  Mini Moment #22: You Are Not the Only One Asking That Question – with Sherri from Timely 18.05.2026 8мин

  The bravest thing you can do as a business owner is admit you do not have all the answers. In this Mini Moment, Jen sits down with Sherri from Timely to talk about why asking for help might just be the most underrated business move you make this year.Timely Answers is the new drop in session format that has been quietly booking out. A community of other business owners, and an open invitation to ask the questions you have been carrying around alone. Because the moment you hear someone else ask the thing you were too nervous to ask, everything shifts.The conversation then opens out into something equally valuable. How small sensory shifts in your service, a hand massage, a foot rub, a scalp moment, the smell of your salon, can move you from another appointment to a memorable experience your client will talk about. And how the energy you bring to your business is the energy your clients walk out with.What we coverThe new Timely Answers drop in sessions and how they workWhy community removes the loneliness of running a salonThe power of realising someone else is asking the same questionHow to think outside the square with higher ticket offeringsWhy regulated business owners create regulated clientsBringing the passion back into your businessWhen you stop trying to do it all alone, everything gets lighter.Mentioned in this episode:💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com
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  Service or Sacrifice. Which One Are You In – with Sam and Jen 11.05.2026 39мин

  There is one question that quietly underpins every leadership decision a salon owner makes. Are you in service or are you in sacrifice?In this honest, reflective conversation, Sam and Jen sit down to unpack the difference, why it matters, and how the answer changes everything from your team energy to your retail numbers to the way you feel walking into your own business.This is not a leadership masterclass. It is a real conversation between two friends who are deep in the work themselves, examining the labels we attach to leadership, culture and ourselves. The word boss carries an ego. The word culture has become a buzzword. And the version of leadership most of us were taught, the one that sits at the top shouting orders down, is actually the opposite of what builds a business that lasts.Sam shares what she has learned from 14 staff down to three, why finance is the most important pillar of any small business, and why the targets document she has used for years has never felt more valuable.Jen reflects on capacity, glass balls and plastic balls, and the moment she pulled out of an event that would have broken her. Together they explore what it actually looks like to lead from below rather than above.What we coverThe difference between service and sacrifice, and how to tell which one you are inWhy resentment is the signal you have stepped into sacrificeReverse engineering your leadership from the version you actually wantWhy the word boss does not sit right anymoreFinance as the foundation everything else flows fromWhy your team needs financial literacy, not just targetsCapacity, boundaries and protecting your glass ballsStripping the ego out of the decisions you make about your businessWhy your first priority is your team and theirs is your clientsThe labels we attach to ourselves, our businesses and the people in themWhen you lead from service, your business stops feeling heavy. It starts feeling like home.Mentioned in this episode:💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com
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  Mini Moment #21: 14 New Clients a Week and How She Got Them – with Tegan from Moosh 04.05.2026 11мин

  In this Mini Moment, Tegan from Moosh joins Jen to talk about something most salon owners are quietly stressing about...marketing. Specifically, what to actually spend money on, when to bring someone in to help, and what kind of return you can realistically expect.After years of consistent regulars, Tegan is in a rebuild season and marketing to brand new clients is now non-negotiable. She shares exactly what she has been doing, why she finally outsourced her paid ads, and how that decision is now bringing in 14 new clients a week.This is an honest, practical conversation about the chicken and egg of marketing spend, why you cannot build a business on Instagram posts alone, and why finding people who actually understand your brand is the difference between marketing that lands and marketing that makes you cringe.What we coverWhy community Facebook pages are not the answerThe real cost of trying to run paid ads yourselfHow to know when it is time to outsource your marketingWhat a proper marketing agency actually does for a salonWhy understanding your brand has to come before outsourcingThe chicken and egg of marketing investment when cash is tightOne client a week from your team can fund the whole marketing budgetWhy patience is part of the marketing strategyMentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  The Salon I Always Wanted Was Smaller Than I Thought – with Tegan from Moosh 28.04.2026 1ч 4мин

  Sometimes the dream you were chasing is not the dream you needed. In this episode, Sam and Jen are joined by one of Sam's dearest friends and biggest cheerleaders, Tegan from Moosh. After 10 years in business, a team that grew to 11 and has since come back to two, Tegan opens up about what it has actually taken to come back to herself, her vision and the kind of salon she always wanted to build.This is a conversation about the slow, quiet realisations that only come from time in the chair. The grief of losing long term staff. The bittersweet beauty of regular clients moving on. The financial honesty most owners avoid. And the moment you walk into your salon, hear how peaceful it is, and realise this calm was the goal all along.Tegan is open, warm and full of the kind of gusto that makes everyone around her feel like they can do anything. But this episode shows another side of her too. The leader stepping into herself for the first time. The mother holding boundaries. The owner choosing service over sacrifice. And the woman who genuinely loves what she does and is finally ready to enjoy it.What we cover10 years of Moosh, from 40 square metres to a commercial purchaseGoing from 11 staff down to two and what that has taught herThe grief of losing long term team members and regular clientsWhy your business cannot be built on sacrificeComing back to your vision and rebuilding from thereKnowing your numbers as the antidote to fearHiring for personality over skillThe trap of panic hiring and why it never worksLeading through different seasons of life and teamWhy being a hairdresser does not have to be the thing you outgrowShe's back. And the salon she always wanted was here all along.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  Mini Moment #20: Your Salon Software Is Not Working as Hard as You Are – with Sherri from Timely 20.04.2026 17мин

  Most salon owners set up their booking software once and never go back. The descriptions are outdated, the services do not reflect the brand anymore, and there is revenue sitting quietly in the background that nobody is capturing. Sound familiar?In this Mini Moment, Jen sits down with Sherri from Timely to talk about why an annual audit of your salon software is one of the most underrated things you can do for your business. And why the new Timely add-ons feature might just be the thing that changes how you think about upselling forever.Because here is the thing. The best add-on conversation is the one you never have to have out loud. When your software is set up properly, it does the prompting for you. Your clients get the nudge at the right moment, they feel in control of their choices, and you get the revenue without the awkward middle bit.What we coverWhy auditing your salon software once a year is non negotiableHow misaligned service descriptions can disconnect your brand experienceThe new Timely add-ons feature and how it works for your businessLetting technology do the upselling so you do not have toWhy giving clients ownership of their booking increases add-on uptakeHow solo operators can use software to reduce overwhelmAI, social media and the future of working smarter not harderWhy having fun on Instagram is actually a strategyYour software should be working while you are behind the chair. This episode will show you how to make that happen.Mentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  Permission to Be Exactly Where You Are – with Sam and Jen 13.04.2026 47мин

  Sometimes the most important conversations are the ones that happen between two friends who are deep in it themselves. In this episode, Sam and Jen pull back the curtain on where they are each at right now. In their businesses, in their teams and in their lives and give each other, and you, permission to just be in the season you are in.Sam is back on the floor full time and genuinely loving it. Jen is in the hustle, building her team and finding her rhythm. Neither of them is where they thought they would be. And both of them are okay with that. This episode is a honest, grounded and at times deeply personal conversation about what it actually looks like to run a small salon business in real time, without the highlight reel.From wage ratios and retail to radical honesty and gratitude, this one covers a lot of ground. But the thread running through all of it is the same. The season you are in right now is not a detour. It is the journey.What we coverWhere Sam and Jen are each at in their businesses right nowSam's return to the floor and what that season has taught herJen's hustle of building and filling her team's columnsWage ratios, what they should look like and how to check yoursRetail as a tool for genuinely helping clients, not selling to themTraining young team members consistently and why bite size beats once a weekThe difference between being in your business and running it from aboveThe time is going to pass anyway. You may as well be in it.Timestamps00:00 Episode Summary02:29 Hospital Detour and Boundaries04:50 Easter Break Reset Rituals06:59 Back on the Salon Floor09:00 Booked Out and Waitlist Systems10:34 Jen’s Hustle to Fill Columns12:24 Training Young Staff Fast14:43 Offers Referrals and Memberships16:37 Choosing Your Season in Business18:27 38 Hours on Floor Plus Admin19:42 Capacity and Wage Ratio Basics22:23 Salon Cost Benchmarks23:38 Tracking Wages Weekly24:39 Team Targets and Performance25:47 Retail Without the Ick28:05 Owner Lessons and Expectations32:09 Work for Yourself Myth35:25 Quarter Two Focus36:55 Gratitude and Seasons46:04 Closing ThoughtsMentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM
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  Mini Moment #19: The Client Retention Conversation You Need to Hear – with Sara Briscoe 06.04.2026 7мин

  Retention. It is one of those words that gets thrown around a lot in this industry, usually tied to numbers, rebooking rates and revenue. But Sara Briscoe from Roca Verde has a different way of looking at it, and once you hear it this way, you will not be able to unhear it.Because retention is not just good for your bottom line. It is good for your nervous system. A column full of familiar faces means less anxiety, less tap dancing to impress someone new, and more of the kind of days that remind you why you love this job. That is what is in it for your team. And that is exactly the conversation most salon owners are not having.In this Mini Moment, Sara breaks down the why behind retention, the how behind building it, and why teaching your team to care about it starts with making it personal.What we coverWhy retention is an emotional conversation as much as a financial oneThe real cost of a column full of new clients on your adrenals and your confidenceHow to teach your team the why so they actually careThe power of a consistent consultation and giving clients a hair journeySocial media as a retention tool, not just a marketing oneWhy a calm familiar column is one of the greatest gifts you can give your teamWhen you and your team understand what retention actually does for you and them, everything shifts.Mentioned in this episode:💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCMhttps://www.salonrising.com💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  The Answer Was Always Connection – with Brooke from Paper Rokk 30.03.2026 1ч 10мин

  Some episodes stop you in your tracks. This is one of them.Sam & Jen are joined by one of Sam's closest friends and hair besties, Brooke Wolf from Paper Rokk. For a conversation that is as honest, warm and real as it gets.Brooke has built her salon business over 12 years through some of life's most defining moments. Loss, burnout, single motherhood, a new build and now navigating the early days of a significant personal change. And through all of it, one thing has kept showing up as the answer.Connection.This episode explores what connection actually looks like in business and in life. The connection you have with your team, your clients, your closest friends and yourself. It is a conversation about showing up for people in ways that matter, about the salons that save us when everything else feels uncertain, and about what happens when you finally let yourself lean into the people around you instead of pushing through alone.Brooke's story is one of resilience, self awareness and grace. And her reminder that we are in the business of connection, even when we forget it, is something every salon owner needs to hear.What we coverBrooke's journey from heartbreak to building Paper Rokk over 12 yearsOpening a salon after loss and figuring it out as you goRunning two salons, burning out and knowing when to let one goNavigating separation as a business owner and a motherWhy grief doesn't stop, it just moves with youThe difference between sending a text and actually showing upHow your salon can save you in the seasons you least expectWhat connection really means for your team, your clients and yourselfWhy saying yes more often can change everythingThe glass balls and the plastic balls, what you let fall and what you don'tThe answer was always connection. It just takes the hard seasons to remind us.Timestamps:00:00 Episode Summary02:33 Meet Brooke Wolf03:27 Friendship And Support Crew06:27 Starting A Salon After Loss09:27 Second Salon And Burnout12:15 Closing Palm Beach Lessons13:43 New Space Pregnancy Chaos15:07 Group Chat Lifeline19:20 Separation And New Chapter25:43 Grief While Leading28:49 Finding Joy In Small Moments32:37 Saying Yes Again34:31 Glow Up And Bucket List35:44 Better Apart Realizations36:45 Trauma And Overworking39:13 New Hobbies And Joy42:57 Friendship Web Story46:13 Connection Over Everything51:02 Salon As Safe Haven56:21 Business Lessons And Team59:03 Show Up For People01:05:30 Grace In Breakups01:08:30 Co Parenting And Closure01:10:02 Final Connection ReminderMentioned in this episode:https://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timely
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  Mini Moment #18: Stop Overlooking the Community You Already Have – with Sherri from Timely 23.03.2026 21мин

  Most salon owners are sitting on a network they have barely touched. The clients in their chairs, the brands they love, the people they already know and trust. In this Mini Moment, Jen sits down with Sherri from Timely to talk about one of the most underutilised assets in your business, the community you have already built around you.It is a conversation that started with a question Timely kept hearing from salons: costs are rising, times are tough, how do we actually help? The answer became Timely Perks, a growing initiative built to ease the real financial pressure of running a salon by connecting owners with brand partnerships, exclusive offers and education, all in one place. But the conversation quickly opens out into something bigger than a product feature. It becomes a genuine exploration of what it means to build with your community rather than just within it.From leveraging the clients already in your chairs to rethinking what collaboration can look like across brands, artists and industries, this one will shift the way you see the network you already have.What we coverWhat Timely Perks is and why it was createdHow to support clients through tough financial times without discountingTreating your clients as partners, not just appointmentsLeveraging your existing client network in ways you probably haven't tried yetThe power of collaboration across brands, artists and industriesWhy community over competition is more than a hashtagOne simple thing you can do today to start building those connectionsYour next great business partnership might already be sitting in your chair.Mentioned in this episode:💛 A Limited Time Offer From Our Amazing Sponsor, Timely 💛➡ Timely is the easy to use booking and payments system that puts salon owners in control of the whole client experience from the first booking to final payment.➡ Salon Rising listeners get a 14 day free trial plus 50% off their first 3 months.➡ And when you activate with Payments, you'll also get a free Touchscreen terminal, worth $349 + GST.Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to get started. Once you're set up, your Timely contact will take care of the rest. 👇Timelyhttps://www.salonrising.com💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM ImportsWe’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇MCM