18th February 2025
I sometimes have to pinch myself when I have one of those fleeting moments of realisation, I have written and published 3 books. Don’t Sell – The Trilogy started out as a thought for a training session some 7 years ago…. back then it was called ‘Being Amazonian’. My fascination with all things related to online shopping and the impact it had on hairdressing salons led me to develop a session that was designed to help hairdressers combat and compete with Amazon and all the other web shops that were taking business from hairdressers and barbers.
After delivering ‘Being Amazonian’ at a Goldwell Hub Conference in 2017 I was approached by one of the guest who suggested I should write a book about it …. so I did!
Don’t Sell: Being Amazonian, hairdressers and retailing in the modern world was published 5 years ago and has sold consistently since then. The original text was long enough to compete with Tolstoy’s War And Peace which is 1440 pages long and a mammoth read that is incredible….. but there was no way any hairdresser or barber was ever going to plough through something so text heavy. After much editing and proofreading, Don’t Sell became a graphic strong, image driven book that proved to be very successful, so successful it has had a second print run.
Don’t Sell 2: Being Amazonian, hairdressers and retail, the new norm was written during lockdowns. I wrote my masterpiece (🤣) about life in a state of LOCKDOWN, not even thinking about the fact that once [lockdown] ended a new norm would occur. DOH!! Lots of the text for book 2 had to be scrapped, but the research on generations became a major focus, as did the changes to the world of hairdressing that those isolated days brought to salon life, changes that continue to have an impact today. Don’t Sell 2 was published 3 years ago and still sells regularly.
Don’t Sell 3: Being Amazonian, taking control of Salon Professional Haircare was a must write. The changes in some product companies approach to their ‘professional’ haircare spurred and stirred me into action. I have always championed salon retail as a major part of the service offered and both previous books were put together to help hairdressers and barbers grow their retailing business without resorting to a hard sell. Book 3 looks at how salons can take back the professional aspect of retail whilst acknowledging the changes that have occurred. We can no longer deny the power of online shops, we can however fight back against this. We can no longer deny that some manufacturers have decided that mass market is their preferred domain, however we can also fight back against this, and hopefully that’s what Book 3 explains. Don’t Sell Vol 3 has been available for just under 4 weeks and so far, sales have been good.
The trilogy ends here, I hope that the books I have put together, with the help of Cool Blue brand Communications (their help, their design skills and their complete grasp of what the messages in each book were has been absolutely vital in bring the vision to life) …I really hope that they help hairdressers and barbers continue to have success with their retail and services.
#ProForPro #SalonProfessional #DontSell #DoTell
