Small Business JANUARY 2016

• FRANCHISE FIND

STYLING SUCCESS Big bucks in blowouts I

New franchised blow dry

bar earns $5 6k a month!

Anew concept in hair care has made its way to the U.S., growing what has become a $40 billion a year

global hair salon industry. Meet Cherry Blow Dry Bar, an expanding franchise that provides blowouts, hair extensions and makeup services for a perfectly finished look. A beautiful concept!

Under new ownership of franchise veterans Steve Vicario and Fred Vicario, the popular Australian export is being reinvented to meet Americans' growing demand for quality hair care while also providing a business opportunity to entre­preneurs interested in the booming indus­try. Opportunity is knocking.

Offering blowouts for hair of any length for $35, hair extensions starting at $395 and a membership program starting at $59 for two blowouts with a membership for unlimited blowouts available, Cherry Blow Dry Bar is making a new name for itself in an industry that has taken off since 2010. Aimed at creat­ing chic styles in an elegant yet classic blow­out-bar setting, it's targeted to any woman looking for beautiful hair, no longer needing to be justified by a special occasion.

"Cherry Blow Dry Bar is taking what used to be considered a luxury and turning it into an affordable way to maintain one's hair style, far more frequently than would be possible at pricier salons;' said Cherry Blow Dry Bar President Fred Vicario, who, along with brother Steve, was inspired to take over a franchise concept they deter­mined ripe for growth. "Our focus is going to be on creating the perfect membership model for the industry."

"The way the blow dry industry is today, most businesses can't keep up with the demand," said Fred Vicario. "Cherry Blow Dry Bar meets that demand, but what makes our concept unique is that it does so by providing blowouts, which most women expect to be sold for a pre­mium. Ours are at a price that that's far more reasonable than most competitors, a cost that allows women to have their hair done often. Many of our clients come two to three times a week."

Steve, left, and Fred Vicario are brothers who have capitalized on the hair extension and blow dry phenomenon. Their business is booming and they are taking it to the next level by offering Cherry Blow Dry Bar fran­chises. You can open your own and profit.

Each possessing years of franchising experience, brothers Fred Vicario and Steve Vicario saw a lot of promise in Cherry Blow Dry Bar. Formerly an execu­tive at Maaco for 20 years, Fred Vicario grew that franchise from 300 units to 550 units during his tenure. He was also a Goddard School franchisee for 15 years, and, along with Steve, a regional developer for Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa that they grew by more than 30 locations. The Vicario brothers knew a good business opportunity when they saw it.

"We saw a similar blowout concept in California and were intrigued by the potential," said Steve Vicario. "We came upon Cherry Blow Dry Bar and liked what we saw. We became regional devel­opers in 2014, initially signed up to cover Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. But after negotiations with the previous

CHERRY BLOW DRY BAR

AT·A·GLANCE Founded in Sydney, Australia in 2008 as

Blow Dry Bar, the blow dry salon concept came to the United States as Cherry Blow Dry Bar in 2013. Making a name in what is a $40 billion per year global. hair salon industry, Cherry Blow Dry Bar is aggressively expanding, aiming to add 200 franchisees by 2020. Cherry Blow Dry Bar has locations in California, Florida, New Jersey, Tennessee and Virginia. Cherry Blow Dry Bar headquar­ters is at 1415 Marlton Pike East, Suite 100, Cherry Hill, NJ 08034.

For more infor on owning a Cherry Blow Dry Bar franchise, visit cherryblowdrybar.com.

owner it became clear that under our leadership, we could truly grow the brand not only regionally, but beyond."

Recognizing areas in the system that could be improved, the brothers took over the franchise and began to lever­age their business acumen and contacts immediately. They hit a grand slam.

"Our successful ex;perience with Hand & Stone gave us the confidence that we knew what needed to be done to turn this system around," said Steve Vicario. "We hired our Director of Education and Operations, MariLynne Cosmillo, to pro­vide a level of training to help franchisees succeed out of the gate. MariLynne has been in the hair care and blowout indus­try for over 10 years and quickly focused on the key issues we needed to solve."

With eight locations currently in operation throughout California, Florida, New Jersey, Tennessee and Virginia, the new owners of Cherry Blow Dry Bar see big growth for the franchise. Within the next five years they aim to add an additional 200 franchised locations to the mix. Given their background, Steve Vicario believes that goal is readily attainable. They are well on their way.

"Steve and I already had our own ven­tures before coming to Cherry Blow Dry Bar, so we wouldn't have come aboard had we not seen something special in it," said Steve Vicario. "Cherry has the right con­cept and has a core set of principles we really believed in. With the changes we've made, the quality styling we provide and the additional services we hope to soon offer, Cherry has a bright future ahead."

Cherry says by the end of one year in business they had sales of $56,580 a month just in membership revenues. •