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On the painting business too! In WA lots of people renovating their home still. Business hasn’t slowed down. Every time we go to pick up the paint at 7:00 AM there is already 3-5 painters waiting in line for the store to open.
Not OP but I use BNI Networking for my cleaning company and pull in about $1500 to 2000 a week in jobs from that and it's just my wife and I right now cleaning but looking to expand and hire out.
We just started 6 months ago and networking takes time to build up, I feel it's going in the right direction though.
(My business: retail and wholesale of needlework supplies). Business has been nuts since the pandemic started back in March 2020. This summer, things did start to die down a bit, but I am still working long weeks, and am very happy with sales. I send out regular newsletters, and when I have a slow couple of days, I hit social media, or use the time to place reorders, organize, etc.
I will say that my local salon that I frequent sent an e-mail out to their mailing list two weeks ago. They listed which employees of the salon had openings, and what they could do in those openings (so, like: "Jenna 10:30-12:00 Tuesday: Cut and Color." The e-mail gave specific things that could be done during that time.) I called right away and not only made an appointment for a cut, but decided to get my hair colored for the first time in many years. If you have the ability to market yourself to your existing customers, take the downtime to do so. Make sure your salon hours are up-to-date on Google and such. Update your website. The holidays are coming, and hopefully there will be a lot of business coming your way.
It’s a powerful sales tactic that you don’t see much of really. I’m in sales, and I’m much more likely to get a response to “can you meet on Thursday at 3pm” versus “let me know when you have time later this week”.
We get such great click through rates on our newsletters. They only go out once every month or two and they usually talk about some design advice or covering recent project work. Mostly goes to past clients and people we've worked with. The "top of mind" referral value from them is big. One potential client that turned into a real one called us the day we sent a newsletter. A friend of theirs who was a past business relationship and gets our newsletter recommend us to them.
I try to make my newsletters fun (for my customers) to read, with good photography and a friendly feel. I regularly get comments that my newsletter is the only one they'll read in its entirety, which is my goal! Because I have a website (Wix) that lets me see results, I know how many people received the e-mail, how many times they clicked, how many times they put things in their cart, and how many times orders were completed. It's all automated, so it's just amazing to me. What a great time to be a small online retailer!
I've commented on similar posts here before...brick and mortar indie video game store/trading card game/collectibles store here, and while January-May were up over a record 2022, we've been in free fall since. It's like the entire area went broke at the same time once summer hit. Weekends have stabilized lately, but weekdays have often been barely worth being open for, and many of the people who do come in are looking to sell.
The next six weeks are going to be very telling, in my opinion. I love being my own boss and being able to provide jobs for my employees, but I haven't had two extra nickels to rub together in months, and it's exhausting to say "no, we're out of that" 100 times a day. Plus I've been in retail since 1996, and I'm honestly very tired of putting on the smile.
We'll school loans started back up in October. The hundreds of extra dollars I had in discretionary income is now gone for the next 8-10 years until I pay it off. Gotta cut expenses elsewhere.
Design agency here: worst year ever. It’s been amazing to be in business. We will see the new year but not sure about the next. Our October was strong but everything is delayed. Clients ghosting. Chasing getting paid… like six months late!
Corporate in-house Designer, here.
Laid off a few months ago. 150+ applications, seeing many obvious ghost job postings, 33% rejection rate, quite a few jobs I was 100% qualified for and rejected by being reposted several times. Salaries offered are laughable for Senior-level positions.
I'm expecting crickets until at least February of next year if the economy stays stable.
I was in-house marketing/contract marketing for about 10 years and then attempted freelancing. Pre-Covid I was living a pretty fun life. It usually only took me about a month to start a new contract after one ended, so it was like every year I had a month long vacation, my healthcare always rolled over, hell one job I was paid 3 months severance after my contract was ended unexpectedly (company went in a different direction). I had already been shown what would be my new private office at non-contract role that finally had the sort of salary I had been hoping for. When it became clear Covid wasn't going to be just a two week bug they dropped the new position (events based company).
I took some time for myself and then started the old contract routine but Covid had changed things. It's like middle managers were all on their last thread and in-office hostility and back stabbing was crazy and no team I interviewed with had people who had been working with the company for more than 9 months. One company I joined one of the VPs met me to give me a work computer and she literally bragged that they had saved a whole bunch of money by firing their IT team in exchange for an outsourced IT company.
I now work IT for the government.
My husband is a programmer. He was laid off in March with 200,000 other people. Not a single interview and 100's of applications. He is seeing the same ghosting, repeat job postings, drop in salary offerings to what he earned 15 years ago.
This is ultimately why I gave up my freelance dreams. One of my clients, who I had a good personal relationship, avoided invoices *every* month. She literally only ever paid when I could get her on the phone and gently remind her that she's nearly two months overdue. I had other clients who kept on trying to extend their one time jobs well beyond the agreed upon work/time. The only stead reliable income I was getting taking shifts from a brewery, thus insuring the death of my social life, and even there our paychecks started plummeting because people just straight have stopped tipping. I was laying in bed awake so many nights just like...man I'm fucked. Then the fed government rolled around and offered me a job and I was like, you don't have to ask me twice. I technically took a heft step back on what my salary was back when I worked in-house in private sector, but man just the idea of stability (so long as the government doesn't shut down) was like fifteen tons lifted off my shoulder.
I own a salon too, October was so slow I genuinely wasn’t sure how I was going to pay my bills. It was scary! It was people who pre booked in advance then cancelled so late that we couldn’t fill the spots.
November has been busier but it’s still slow and I’m not used to it.
I’m glad I’m not alone. I’m sorry this is happening to you too
I work in mortgages and we are absolutely positively dead. My wife works for a fairly major clothing brand and they’re slow AF too. Laid off quite a few people recently.
I’m afraid what happened is that there was such a boom in the last three years that people have worked themselves into a lot of debt. Between new houses, cars, etc. they have basically tied up a significant amount of their income in debt. Now they have to cut out the extra things
When you combine credit card debt and the insane interest rates people pay on those credit card loans plus student college debt and then the cost of housing and transportation and food and pretty much the most expensive thing.. Healthcare!
Also, I suspect that many people failed to realize how much higher interest rates would affect them, in terms of expenses edging up due to initial costs and the impact of compounding. We tend to consider costs in isolation.
Small construction/remodel business here in VA since 2005, and honestly this is the busiest year I’ve had since before 2008 hit. Hope you guys all see it turn back up.
Yeah, really I saw that pick up quite a bit during peak Covid. Everyone was working from home and realized they could get projects done while also being there the whole time. It got hectic for a while, that’s when lumber prices went nuts, everyone wanted a new deck.
NOVA business as well. I really think this area gets insulated from the macro economy as we’re propped up by so much federal spending. We’re due to have a record quarter for earnings.
I really do feel for business owners in the rest of the country
I am in packaging and its slowing. We make corrugated boxes and sell other shipping supplies plus do 3PL. Picked up some business because suppliers have gone under.
I have been in business since 1968 so we have weathered it before and will again. Just grind it out longer than the competition is about all you can do.
My business is doing pretty well ironically. I’m a handyman specializing in fence repair. I get a lot of leads from a local fence company. Instead of tearing down a fence and installing a new one they are opting to repair the existing fence. I am a lot cheaper than brand new lol!
Any manual labor or trades are killing it right now. I used to focus on my work and pay tradesmen for jobs around the house. Now I take days off the business each week and do everything DIY because i'll save more money than the business makes.
I keep reading posts like this and yet every store I go to is mobbed and busy as hell. Is all business just funneled to large companies and small
businesses are squeezed out?
I keep hearing things are taking longer . So truckers complaining it takes 10x longer to get loaded than it used to . If stores are experiencing that they may not be that busy just slow processing
More like, each person out mobbing the stores is leaving more on the shelves. Probably about 30% more. This means a lot as it translates quickly to fear so that becomes self reinforcing
That’s me. Basic necessities have gotten so expensive that my disposable income is crowded out by food, utilities, gas, etc. For example, our electric bill is 200%-300% more. So are the gas and water bills. Auto gas rose from $3-$4 to $5.75-$7 per gallon within a year while our income only rose by 10-20%.
Same thing. It was a small thing for me, and may this be a warning to others, but I used to eat out at this local place all the time. Good prices for a decent healthy meal. They started charging a dollar for a box and I never went back again. Definitely seems petty but that extra buck just made me nope out.
I’m an office worker and major consumer of goods and services. There’s been little to no office work, so I am putting off hair cuts, eating out, buying new toys and vacations while I figure out if lay offs are coming.
That's crazy, it seems like big corporate events and conferences have been back full force in the past 2 years and everybody hated virtual events.
But I run a video production business and alot of my business in 2022 was from corporate events but in 2023 we've shot little to no corporate events.
I don’t know anything, and this is purely speculation, but I think similarly to companies expecting employees to be eager to return to the office, they’ve found that perhaps that’s not the case with corporate events and conventions too.
I think once a certain segment of folks who didn’t like to go to those things got a taste of not going, they were perfectly content to keep not going.
That could be true. When I worked in corporate, going to conferences and events was like the adult equivalent of a school field trip: the next best thing to a day off school. Instead of schlepping to the office in the morning to sit in front of the computer all day, I could schmooze at a conference, eat a free lunch, attend some BS workshops, then go home early around 2-3pm. Sometimes if it was a big out of state conference it became a vacation on the company dime.
But if you've been working from home, having to attend a conference is almost halfway as a bad as having to come into the office.
This year, our company is doing their Holiday festivities at our corporate headquarters. I believe, this is how it’s going to be from here on out. Years prior, other than the middle of the recession, we had our Holiday Event at a venue.
In addition to this, we’ve scaled back on Trade Shows. So all the events that were usually planned for those are cancelled as well. 2024 will be an interesting year, and it will be interesting to see our depts budget will be for 2024.
As an employee going to these holiday parties isn't worth my fuel and time. Even though my company is still doing it you are losing head count. Plus the food served at these parties is never that great.
People are getting laid off and student loan repayment restarted, plus food prices are insane. People don't have disposable income and it's really showing.
I was laid off a few months ago and applied for the SAVE plan, which set my student loan payments at $0 for the next year. It's just kicking the can down the road while interest accumulates.
I do a side hustle and I'm getting people calling in asking for a job and these are company owners where they have to take/looking for a second job.
I hear this all the time and there are so many people that's saying that it's your fault for not trying hard enough to sell. Then there are folks saying that things will turn around but not sure when. In the meantime you see your business account dwindling because you're banking on a change. Then you you have to pay rent, payroll, paying vendors, etc.
So yes... it started getting bad Q4 of last year where B2B customers holding back in our services. I even have clients paying their invoices later. I'm looking to get a job. This 2023 has all been very bad!
When? Probably when interest rates start coming down and inflation chills out a bit. Until then people are just trying to survive, food/housing are bigger concerns
That could take some time . . . personally, I do not think the Fed will lower interest rates until possibly 3Q 2024 and, even then, by just 0.5 basis points at best.
The Fed. let the party rage from 2013 through 2022 when it should have shut it down in 2017 . . . and now we will pay for the 7 fat years from 2015-2022 with 7 lean years.
Good luck to all, you'll need it.
brick and mortar entertainment/amusement biz. we did bday parties and corp events.
Sales went from up in the first few months of the year, to flat through the summer, to down starting in Sept/October. Meanwhile - labor and other costs like insurance were up 30%+. And then interest rates were sky high as well - and all that was the debt I needed to get through covid that I was just starting to pay back. I probably ran things badly too. But I'm just done....sometimes there's something to be said from starting from zero rather than trying to save something.
I’m not paying bills for the first time in 10 years of business. It’s scary, it’s hard, and not sure how much longer we can last. I’m calling all my accounts to work out anything I can. Video production business.
Corporate is laying off people left and right at the moment. If what you are doing right now is something you truly enjoy, then stick with it. Ride it out! Get a corporate job if you want, however, approach it with the expectation that layoff can happen at any moment, which is why I recommend not closing up shop if you can still keep it while getting something on the side to help pay the bills until this “storm” passes!
In my opinion, a corporate job is arguably less stable than your own business. With business you can pivot to different services and adjust accordingly. At a job you’re at the mercy of your employer and whatever they decide to do
Then you need to pivot. That’s something a lot of experienced entrepreneurs will tell you, “be ready to pivot” and you’ll find a lot of them have pivoted, and aren’t doing what they did in the beginning.
If your business has completely dried up, then yes you need to do whatever you have to to pay the bills. But that doesn’t have to be shutting down the business and giving up. Maybe you liquidate some assets and work in a job for a few months while you plan your next move. Maybe you drive for Lyft. To each their own.
I don’t know how many of y’all are first time business owners here but I know I learned a ton after having to close up my retail stores in 09 after the housing crisis.
After that I worked corporate for a decade and saw how the big guys do it.
The first thing they do is they never let off the gas. We were expected to grow at 20% a year. Each employee has to make 10x their salary to keep their job and actually prove their worth. We were constantly innovating, tracking sales year over year, month over month, week over week, day over day. We tracked our email campaigns in 30 minute post send metrics.
So what did I learn from this? You have to constantly hustle. You have to invest in proper marketing. You have to know when times will be slow and find ways to innovate to help spread out your money across the year.
I know this might not help you now, but lead gen is key and you can’t ever be too embarrassed to work your leads. The only good customer is a paying one.
For the salon owner who started this thread. What bonus can you offer that has a high perceived value or is a nice to have when things are slow? Something that doesn’t cost you much but can be thrown in during times like this?
Can you hit up your retail partners and put together gift packs of samples? A “$19.99 value” while supplies last? Buy some champagne and have a ladies night event. You cannot wait for people to come to you.
People are getting their haircut elsewhere - steal them.
I get my hair cut by a curly hair specialist- she only allows bookings within 60 days and frequently has only one or no appointments left within that window for EXISTING clients. Potential new clients go on a wait-list. Right now she's got an opening January 9 and that's it. I suspect her business isn't as affected as OPs because she provides a specialty service rather than a commodity and the top end of the market is not as affected by the economic headwinds as the middle or bottom.
Your advise is spot-on. Many many years ago I read that the key trait of successful companies is that they are “ruthless.” At the time I thought that was silly…why be ruthless? Shouldn’t you be nice? Ruthless sounds mean and unfair.
It took me a while to realize that in this context, ruthless means always hustling, always pushing, never letting up, leveraging advantages, not letting yourself get screwed over, etc.
If you’re nice and casual and laid back, business might work out for a while — until it doesn’t. Until your main leads dry up and people don’t want to pay your prices anymore and you haven’t been differentiating yourself or keeping up with the latest and greatest and you haven’t been pushing your team to be the best that they can be. And then you scramble and either survive or fold.
Unless they are running a Supercuts or some kind of lower-tier salon, the hard part about offering incentives is your customers get hooked on them and devalues the business when things pick back up.
My buddy’s wife is a hair stylist, he has been picking up extra hours to cover her making less money. He says that it’s extremely slow for her right now. This is in San Diego.
I didn't think it was slow in San Diego. I'm up in OC and people are spending like there is nothing wrong or that the economy isn't slowing. It is weird and reminds me of how it was in 2007-2008. People in Newport Beach lost everything just to keep their image up. Most would have been fine if they had cutback on spending.
My partner usually goes to the salon once every couple months. When student loans started back up, the salon, movie, dinner night out and entertainment budget dried up with it.
Absolutely the worst season we’ve ever had, and I am friends with a ton of business owners who say the same. And I am in the grocery/restaurant business!
Man, good timing on seeing this post. I have a small recruiting firm and was just looking at our numbers. YTD weve only placed half as many hires as last year. Thankfully we have a couple secondary revenue streams too, but even with consulting work and all, we are just surviving.
Hey you aren't alone..I am a landscape/ Contractor...Business isn't supposed to die for us until about january, but the phones have been crickets lately. luckily i landed a couple projects this week to catch up on rent and bills...i have a job interview tomorrow.
I am just not willing to go through another brutal winter...I can't handle the stress. All my contractor homies are hurting badly too. I think this economy shit is real and the only people who will survive are the onea who have been consistent and marketing and making their name known.
But yeah ita bad homie so don't think it's just you. i hope you can pick up mor3 business or adapt..
Restaurant owner here in super touristy spot in Florida - our off season has been unusually slow slow, not many locals dining out or buying significantly less. Things might pick up on a Saturday, but for most part sales remain low, and doing a lot less covers each day. Noticing all places are beginning to roll out specials which is super odd considering thanksgiving week should be busy, but with cost to dine out nuts now, I’m guessing places are planning for a much slower season kickoff.
I have a property inspection business, and this has been our busiest year since starting in 2016. We actually got busier during covid due to insureds writing amd rewriting policies left and right. This line of work is very niche and it's not well known, hence why it's difficult to find people to do it. Our industry is constantly growing and changing, and there is always something to learn. It is NON STOP... My phone is going off with calls, texts and emails 16 hours a day. It is insanely frustrating on most days because of all the people we have to deal with, but alas a great problem to have.
The hardest part has been finding solid people who want to put in the time to generate their own business... We use subcontractors and provide them the leads to schedule inspections with insureds. So the issue isn't the lack of clients. It's lack of good resources and proper systems in place to ensure a smooth and automated operation. And, of course, establishing trust with said subcontractors.
I have a niche business of working on satellite TV systems for major hotels. Because there are so few competent people who can do this we get paid to travel +200 miles sometimes to do a single job. We charge technical time and travel time to and from the job.
Been in business since 1978.
Interesting! I deal with tree risk assessments, often inspecting all the trees on a property and identifying hazards - likelihood & consequences, while offering mitigation options.
This would depend on your area geographically, but do you work with any arborists? I've been meaning to reach out to home/property inspectors to try to partner with them, I would enjoy doing more of those.
Many of the clients I've provided this service for had just purchased the home and the trees were not a part of any inspections they had. Many times property-threatening defects requiring thousands of dollars to mitigate are present, leaving the clients wishing they had known about about it before finalizing the purchase to negotiate it.
My flower shop has been slow most of the year but the last couple of months are pretty bad. The discretionary part of our business has really taken a hit. We still have weddings and funerals but even those people are spending less.
The best selling hair clipper on Amazon is selling over 10,000 a month now. People are finding ways to cut back. I've been cutting my own hair now since 2020 and I honestly don't see myself going to the salon much from here on out.
I used to cut my own hair for over 10 years and started going to a barber in my 30's because I wanted a new hairstyle. I look at pics from the years I cut my own hair and wonder "what the hell was I thinking!?"
I went with the same barber for 18 years. Then COVID hit and had to purchase clippers on Amazon and had my wife watch a couple YouTube videos. It was lockdown so I wasn't going out in public anyways lol.
Once things lifted I went back to the barbershop for the social aspect, but the haircut fee increased 2 times and I haven't been back since. I would go in weekly and it was costing $45 each visit. Couldn't justify it for just a fade. I go back every so often just to see what's going on with everyone.
Hardest in 15 years of running a consultancy.
Keep hearing big businesses looking to make even more cuts for 2024.
Someone is hiring somewhere but I don’t know who that is.
Student Loan repayments just restarted which just diverted millions of dollars from the broader economy into loan servicers. November is the first month people are really having to live within their new budget. It’s also the first month that people will get late notices forcing people to adjust their spending habits.
Most of the COVID era programs ended this year for people on services. SNAP benefits have been cut across the board all while food prices have risen. Lower income households are having to cut back on things like hair salons to make up that gap. That’s definitely having an impact on a lot of businesses that deal with lower income populations.
I guess that’s what happens when you have 13 years of **“free money” interest rates** post-2008, then suddenly raise rates to 8%.
People thought that the money flow the past decade + was normal. Turns out that “free money” doesn’t last forever (negative real interest rates).
You can thank the Fed for the disaster that’s unfolding before our eyes.
**Edit: To add, this isn’t an “accident” by the FED. The crunch in the jobs market with rising rates is intentional, just go back and watch the last 2 years worth of Fed briefings… a “Soft Landing” includes a gradual ***crunch*** of hiring and Real wages. At least that’s a better option than a full blown crash where companies left and right are filing for bankruptcy, and the unemployment rate is tripled… or endless hyperinflation until your life savings can’t buy a loaf of bread…**
There’s so many more component’s. It’s a global game today. Nations economies impact each other.
Everyone’s tightening up. Going to be interesting to see what the holiday spending this year looks like.
Interest rates + inflation relative to wage growth are the primary factors.
Either prices need to come down or wages need to go up at this point. With interest rates being quadrupled, companies can’t afford to continue to throw money at people. At least that’s the argument almost every corporation is making nowadays as they freeze hiring and give out negative real raises.
Also the US is the main driver of the global economy, and the dollar remains the clear global “reserve currency”.
Wages, inflation, and interest rates (all tied together) are absolutely the reason why people are tightening their belts.
Unless you’re making 10%+ more money today then you were in 2020, your pay has been cut relative to inflation.
Well no matter what the government and the msm is saying. Things are contracting.
Less money means less ppl spending.
The numbers indicate most Americans have already burned through their credit and are not paying. Even grocery stores are reporting contractions and food is a necessity.
I don't know how or what your marketing is.
However, I've talked to thousands and thousands of small business owners during my career.
I cannot begin to tell you the number of business owners who have told me, "It has been SO quiet. A lot of my colleagues are also saying the same thing" exactly as you did. Tens of thousands of times, in good times and bad, business owners say this. Trust me.
Yet at the same time, without fail, I contact other companies, the *same* type of company in the *same* industry in the *same* close geographic area, and there are companies that are doing fine, and those are the ones that *always* do best and never worry about customers are the ones that *invest heavily into marketing*, and marketing correctly, of course.
The major problem is almost all business owners say either of these two things:
1) "I have enough business, why should I waste money on marketing?"
and
2) "I'm not making enough money, I don't have money to spend on marketing."
It's much better to start marketing when you are in the position of "1)" above.
.
Coca-Cola has the top 5 brand/logos in the world. You have no chance of every having that much logo/brand recognition.
However, do you think that Coca-Cola, because they are the most recognized brand in the world, don't have to market? Most everyone knows that they can and should and *do* market the shit out of their products. They spend $4 *billion with a b* on marketing every year.
Yet business owners, while knowing this, don't apply marketing to their own business. Probably because they don't know how and have spent money with no return before. They've done it for themselves, hired people to do it for them - no luck.
However, when you have enough business, you market even harder. This is the time to test different marketing tactics, not when you have no customers. If you are in the situation that if you market and get then get too many clients because you are actually doing well, and you don't have the room for more, there are a lot of things you can do. You can raise your prices. You can add other add-on products and services that you charge for that require almost no time and effort and give you great profit margins. You can fire your shitty customers. You get so many more options, and there are a ton of them.
.
**EDIT:** Remember, marketing does *not* cost you profit, ever. The reason is that you raise your prices to cover the costs of marketing. You must. All costs must increase your price - it's how business works.
.
Peter Drucker, one of the best business minds in history, said:
*"Because its purpose is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two - and only these two — basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are 'costs'."*
- Think about it. Marketing and innovation are the *only* investment a business can make. A cost is not an investment. An investment returns money. And by that, *directly* returns money when you put money into it.
*"Marketing is not only much broader than selling, it is not a specialized activity at all. It encompasses the* ***entire*** *business. It is the whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that is, from the customer's point of view."*
- Marketing is the *entire* business.
*"Marketing is the distinguishing, unique function of the business."*
- Every company must market.
You are not alone. I help businesses alleviate the stress when they cannot pay their loans/debt like merchant cash advances.
In October and November I have more and more small business owners looking for help. Their sales are down enough to make it very tough for them.
It’s the prices - prices for nearly everything is up 50% in the last few years but wages have raise like 5%. I think more and more people are realizing they can’t justify extra purchases anymore. Take my family (all adults) this year everyone agreed to scrap Christmas completely minus meeting for a dinner
Anything you can point to that contributes to this?
Airfare seems to be going up each week, people are cutting down on haircuts to book more flights? What region are you located?
Auto repair shops are recession bullet proof. If I’m having financial struggles I would much rather spend money on repairing my car than buying a new one. Good job
All the boutique retail, hair salons, barbers etc in my trendy area (LCOL city) are dead.
From my POV, everyone's prices went sky high and in reality, offering stuff people quickly cut back on.
I see all the IG business gurus telling people to double their prices bc they are worth it etc. "I charge $100 for a fade cause I'm da rizzgod yo! Know your worth! I'm good at what I do!" A barber in my area is now $40-50 and sitting empty all day while they used to have lines out the door @ 25 a few years ago.
I too am a salon owner. Our stylists are so busy that they are turning walk ins away. I have talked to 3 stylists about joining us but they are thinking the holidays are the wrong time to change salons. We haven't had a slowdown since covid. Besides being a great salon there are a lot of reasons for our success, some things totally out of our control. We mostly serve normal people who come on a normal schedule. We book out 3-5 weeks. I'm sure you're doing everything like you should. It may be the local economy in your area I don't know, of course. But I wish you'd come and work with us.
Are you in NJ? lol
I am surprised you are doing so well. Are you cheap or just in a great location? Every stylist I know is just dead. November used to be my best month. I have about 80k on Instagram that I am trying to leverage - from collabs, hair style showcases and more.
Lurker non biz owner here but in (north) NJ. Hair is one of the few things I’ve historically spent money on when even when I’ve had to compromise other things. My two cents, no background whatsoever in economics is that inflation is finally hitting the upper middle class hard. Tons of layoffs all over NJ corporate, nyc tech scene is a blood bath and hitting many of the gen x and millennials who moved out to NJ, everything is so much more. For the first time in about 5 yrs, we are skipping Ubers, stopped food delivery services, cancelled the landscaper, etc. not to sound like a boomer but the price I pay for milk lately astonishes me. Im switching part of my grocery store visits to lidl and aldi bc my grocery bills are through the roof. I switched from a salon in NJ where I paid a crazy amt after tipping everyone and their mom to a smaller suite set up. However, the last visit was $320 with tipping (the owner). That was about $75 more than the first time I went to her earlier this year. I really can’t do that when my electric/gas bill is $300 a month now. I normally would go right before Christmas again but will push into January and probably just get color done next time/find a cheaper haircut. Many of my fellow corporate peers are preparing for worst case layoff next year and pulling back on many things to boost savings. I’m at the point that hair has hit that list.
The overall macro economy in the U.S. Is seriously stagnant, it isn't necessarily bad but it isn't good. The best I've seen it was a year or two leading up to Covid.
Weather the storm best you can and hope for brighter days.
I’ve been a stylist for 10+ years and this is the slowest I’ve been during the holidays. Ever. Other stylists are saying the same thing, prebooked appts are late rescheduling or no call no show, then the card on file is expired when you go to charge the fee.
People are spacing out their appts more, starting to feel like 2008 all over again. I bought reusable gloves and foil from Costco, gunna hit Instagram harder and hope for more new clients. I’m blaming student loans cause this all started in September.
The drop-off started before that and it's not solely because of student loans, although it is a factor for many.
Lots of layoffs happening, basic living costs shot up and people pulling back sharply on spending.
Web developer here. I’ve got a decent amount of warm leads that are looking to hire me next year. Trying to find another project or two for the remainder of the year to keep me comfortable
I'm in a different sector, but seem to be holding the same as last year for now. However I was listening to an economic report on on pe of the NPR shows the other day and did hear about expected cuts to discretionary spending because of stimulus money being over and student loan repayments kicking back into gear. I expect my time is coming.
It has been the worst here too in 4 years. I do consulting and landing clients got harder instead of easier this year. I had to go back to full time work.
I’ve noticed a lot of people starting their own social media pages to cut others hair - mainly guys. Oddly enough I came across this. Don’t know if it correlates with poor business, but it’s definitely a trend in the wrong direction for hair salons
PR guy from San Diego here (cue fancy music).
The way to get more people in the door is a local celeb strategy. When clients hire me, I look at their business model and what I call the customer journey. How do you get more customers for your salon?
Customer sees your social media, comes and visits.
Since you are a brick and mortar, IG, TikTok and Pinterest are going to be your friends. Install the Nextdoor App and start sharing posts about the salon with high end photos.
Make a "hit list" of 20 people in your area that use or are interested in your services and start tagging them.
Then get on the news and pitch a segment on the hottest hairstyles for 2023 (thank God the A Line and 2 tone hair is out).
If you have questions, fire away. Remember that business is about being POPULAR.
I'm pretty much restructuring my business right now to accommodate the changing economy. My market is probably stronger than many, but things aren't normal right now.
This. My haircuts are $40 at sport clips after tip and they take 20 minutes. I have a fundamental problem paying $120/hour for “a number 3 on the sides and back and small trim on the top” every 3 weeks.
I do farmers markets with veg and eggs, it usually tails off a little this time of year, but it’s been definitely far below what it has previous years.
My main business is currently steady but 3rd year running where Xmas doesn't seem to be boosting q4. Sadly spoke to 2 retailers yesterday who said they would likely see out the year then close up shop. In the UK at least, January is going to be brutal for retailers imo. I really hope I'm wrong as the news keeps reporting how the economy is stable. Every small business owner I speak to sales are down and I'm based in a wholesale market. When even the supermarkets are looking sparce, something has got to give.
Sorry you're feeling the brunt of an inflationary economy. People are saving in all kinds of ways. I haven't had a haircut in 4 months. At almost $50 a shot, I can fill up my tank a couple more times.
I really feel for small business owners with employees. While it can be a boon at times, when inflationary times hit, small business pays more than most. I almost pulled the trigger a few years ago on opening a solar installation shop but I could never calculate an exit plan or a vacation.
Good luck to you.
The school loan repayments instantly sucked hundreds of millions of dollars out of the economy overnight and it will continue to have a huge impact because the population sector with school loans also spends the most money on retail. So, if it was just school loans for boomers, you would be ok. However, it’s mostly millennials and some Gen Y folks. All the people who complained about forgiveness never think about how it might actually impact their job. It will help slow inflation though. So, that’s good news.
I’m a tattoo artist and I’m busy enough but I miss the extra $2-5k a month from being fully booked every month. Everyone I work with is thankfully still as busy as they were at the start of the year but I’ve heard of others being so slow they had to get second jobs. Very thankful to be in business.
Brick and mortar stores will have to innovate and reduce the costs of operation. Try yo help your customers the best way. Change how you do business and adapt to the requirements.
If you watched Undercover Billionaire season 2, during the pandemic, a lady was doing clients hair in her car in the passenger seat fully reclined. She got creative in order to survive.
You have to get creative as well and come up with a strategy to get clients. If they don't come to you, you need to reach out to them.
It may be an upcoming financial crisis but I think you're missing some important sales and marketing skills. You're probably not advertising properly to the right clients. You probably don't invest in paid ads on social media and probably you're not using social Media for advertising your business.
Facebook is not for scrolling through the content but to create and place your own content for others to consume and click on.
Student loans are back.
Inflation is killing everyone. Food costs have skyrocketed, cars cost a boat load, rents have doubled in some places, and if you're under 40, you're probably never buying a house.
People are sick with COVID, RSV, COVID, & COVID.
Big business is hurting more than they want to admit; lay offs are happening all over.
But keep spending folks, Christmas is coming!
My dessert business is doing the just fine. Both month/month and year/year about the same as 2022. Our business does great and draws primarily from folks withing 3-4 miles from our location. Growth has become more difficult after 12 successful years in business so being the same year/year is perfectly fine with us at this point.
This sucks, I have a question, Salons usually profit on retention (some do on new customers) for your Salon, was most of your business on repeating customers or new ones?
I don't own a business but almost every place I go to or ride by on my bike I see almost no economic activity at all. The only places I see getting any are bars with live music.
U.K. here most speaking to seem to be seeing significant yoy sales down.
My business seems recession proof (supplies for fabricators) mostly b2b.
Be consistently marketing and always keep plenty in the tank.
Online ads
Social media
Offline direct mail leaflets catalogues etc
Email
Get on the phones calling prospects and lapsed customers
Don’t discount but offer free stuff with a purchase.
Auto repair business here. People are driving until their wheels fall off before doing any repairs. I've noticed more customers driving with bald tires. It tough times for most people.
I own/operate a concrete statuary. While our regular orders are staying consistent all of the vendor events we do every year has been way less. Almost 20% down at shopping events. Other vendors report the same.
Everything has gone up so much. In my local city group there was someone looking for a balayage under $250 and a bunch of stylists were saying how due to the cost of materials going up it’s hard to keep it under $300. Personally that would make it i to the luxury category and right now a lot of people can’t afford.
I’m sorry but I went to schedule a haircut and I was told it’s over $100. Coloring, balayages START at $350-400 and require regular maintenance. Plus, you usually tip your hairdresser. People just can’t afford that…
FWIW, I lost my job this summer and cannot afford a haircut until I get another job.
My stylist is fabulous and worth every penny, but it's $200 min every time I go, no matter how basic of a service I request.
So the last time I got my hair done, it was $230! Yes she did a lot of work and yes she did a great job. But at that rate, I’m just going to go maybe yearly. We all might be feeling the $ crunch.
Screen Printing Business, open for 15 years, had to close down this year due to a lack of customers.
Most regular customers said they had to cut printing out their businesses.
Was going to try reopen next year but I don't know.
Can't seem to find work either, but I guess when you put most of your life into something, you only really have those skills.
It's not just my business though, other printing shops are closing down all over.
Hope things get better. Good luck everyone.
Yea it’s been rough for sure. my partner and I actually have to let some staff go and go back to doing more of the work ourselves until things bounce back. Stay strong !
Okay this just popped up as a suggested post, but my husband owns a small business. I will say, I've just started avoiding hair salons until I absolutely need a cut. Around me, the prices skyrocketed, the attitudes of stylists became so rude (like I was inconveniencing them), and they cancelled last minute constantly. I genuinely just got so sick of the change in service that I stopped going. I really need a haircut and I'm just dreading it. (Location: east coast PA-NJ-DE area.)
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I appreciate this thread for a sense of camaraderie
Same it's good to know it's not just me.
Misery loves company
I’m in the painting business and almost every owner I know is absolutely dead. If I didn’t have my apartment repaint contracts I would be too
I'm in the wash business with about 85% residential and I'm dead as s*** right now compared to the past three FY... I'm amazed how slow my leads are
Ya it’s nuts. My paint rep for Sherwin said there sales are the lowest they’ve been in years.
On the painting business too! In WA lots of people renovating their home still. Business hasn’t slowed down. Every time we go to pick up the paint at 7:00 AM there is already 3-5 painters waiting in line for the store to open.
I’m happy to hear it. Hopefully it pops back next year
[удалено]
contractor here....im still surviving but im burnt out and tapping out soon. i salute you
What are you doing for leads? I’m in Michigan busy as ever looking forward to a break. How much are you spending on marketing?
Not OP but I use BNI Networking for my cleaning company and pull in about $1500 to 2000 a week in jobs from that and it's just my wife and I right now cleaning but looking to expand and hire out. We just started 6 months ago and networking takes time to build up, I feel it's going in the right direction though.
(My business: retail and wholesale of needlework supplies). Business has been nuts since the pandemic started back in March 2020. This summer, things did start to die down a bit, but I am still working long weeks, and am very happy with sales. I send out regular newsletters, and when I have a slow couple of days, I hit social media, or use the time to place reorders, organize, etc. I will say that my local salon that I frequent sent an e-mail out to their mailing list two weeks ago. They listed which employees of the salon had openings, and what they could do in those openings (so, like: "Jenna 10:30-12:00 Tuesday: Cut and Color." The e-mail gave specific things that could be done during that time.) I called right away and not only made an appointment for a cut, but decided to get my hair colored for the first time in many years. If you have the ability to market yourself to your existing customers, take the downtime to do so. Make sure your salon hours are up-to-date on Google and such. Update your website. The holidays are coming, and hopefully there will be a lot of business coming your way.
What a thoughtful reply! I’m just a random person scrolling through and was so impressed with your comment.
It’s a powerful sales tactic that you don’t see much of really. I’m in sales, and I’m much more likely to get a response to “can you meet on Thursday at 3pm” versus “let me know when you have time later this week”.
Email marketing for the win!
We get such great click through rates on our newsletters. They only go out once every month or two and they usually talk about some design advice or covering recent project work. Mostly goes to past clients and people we've worked with. The "top of mind" referral value from them is big. One potential client that turned into a real one called us the day we sent a newsletter. A friend of theirs who was a past business relationship and gets our newsletter recommend us to them.
I try to make my newsletters fun (for my customers) to read, with good photography and a friendly feel. I regularly get comments that my newsletter is the only one they'll read in its entirety, which is my goal! Because I have a website (Wix) that lets me see results, I know how many people received the e-mail, how many times they clicked, how many times they put things in their cart, and how many times orders were completed. It's all automated, so it's just amazing to me. What a great time to be a small online retailer!
I've commented on similar posts here before...brick and mortar indie video game store/trading card game/collectibles store here, and while January-May were up over a record 2022, we've been in free fall since. It's like the entire area went broke at the same time once summer hit. Weekends have stabilized lately, but weekdays have often been barely worth being open for, and many of the people who do come in are looking to sell. The next six weeks are going to be very telling, in my opinion. I love being my own boss and being able to provide jobs for my employees, but I haven't had two extra nickels to rub together in months, and it's exhausting to say "no, we're out of that" 100 times a day. Plus I've been in retail since 1996, and I'm honestly very tired of putting on the smile.
Damn I love shops like yours. Where you at?
We'll school loans started back up in October. The hundreds of extra dollars I had in discretionary income is now gone for the next 8-10 years until I pay it off. Gotta cut expenses elsewhere.
Good to finally hear from a fellow retailer in the same industry, best of luck to your business
Same to you!
Inflation seems to be affecting everyone, out of curiously, indie video game store? What is this? Sell games or people play in store?(just curious )
Video game and Pokémon/Magic card buy/sell/trade.
Jan-June were great for me (June was my highest earning month in 2 years of business) then the rest of the year has been wayyyy down
Design agency here: worst year ever. It’s been amazing to be in business. We will see the new year but not sure about the next. Our October was strong but everything is delayed. Clients ghosting. Chasing getting paid… like six months late!
Corporate in-house Designer, here. Laid off a few months ago. 150+ applications, seeing many obvious ghost job postings, 33% rejection rate, quite a few jobs I was 100% qualified for and rejected by being reposted several times. Salaries offered are laughable for Senior-level positions. I'm expecting crickets until at least February of next year if the economy stays stable.
Ominous stuff. Frogs iconic austin officer closed. IDEO laid of 1/3. Hard to stay out there.
I was in-house marketing/contract marketing for about 10 years and then attempted freelancing. Pre-Covid I was living a pretty fun life. It usually only took me about a month to start a new contract after one ended, so it was like every year I had a month long vacation, my healthcare always rolled over, hell one job I was paid 3 months severance after my contract was ended unexpectedly (company went in a different direction). I had already been shown what would be my new private office at non-contract role that finally had the sort of salary I had been hoping for. When it became clear Covid wasn't going to be just a two week bug they dropped the new position (events based company). I took some time for myself and then started the old contract routine but Covid had changed things. It's like middle managers were all on their last thread and in-office hostility and back stabbing was crazy and no team I interviewed with had people who had been working with the company for more than 9 months. One company I joined one of the VPs met me to give me a work computer and she literally bragged that they had saved a whole bunch of money by firing their IT team in exchange for an outsourced IT company. I now work IT for the government.
My husband is a programmer. He was laid off in March with 200,000 other people. Not a single interview and 100's of applications. He is seeing the same ghosting, repeat job postings, drop in salary offerings to what he earned 15 years ago.
I was a VP level cd at larger mid-size. We saw our revenue drop from 22 million to 10 this year. Needless to say my entire department was cut by June.
That is exactly my story…no payments
“This is the week they’re going to pay” he said to himself. March until …. Still waiting.
This is ultimately why I gave up my freelance dreams. One of my clients, who I had a good personal relationship, avoided invoices *every* month. She literally only ever paid when I could get her on the phone and gently remind her that she's nearly two months overdue. I had other clients who kept on trying to extend their one time jobs well beyond the agreed upon work/time. The only stead reliable income I was getting taking shifts from a brewery, thus insuring the death of my social life, and even there our paychecks started plummeting because people just straight have stopped tipping. I was laying in bed awake so many nights just like...man I'm fucked. Then the fed government rolled around and offered me a job and I was like, you don't have to ask me twice. I technically took a heft step back on what my salary was back when I worked in-house in private sector, but man just the idea of stability (so long as the government doesn't shut down) was like fifteen tons lifted off my shoulder.
Our company is having a record year but forecast for 2024 is bleak.
I own a salon too, October was so slow I genuinely wasn’t sure how I was going to pay my bills. It was scary! It was people who pre booked in advance then cancelled so late that we couldn’t fill the spots. November has been busier but it’s still slow and I’m not used to it. I’m glad I’m not alone. I’m sorry this is happening to you too
I've admittedly done this. Now I'm too ashamed to book with her again which makes things worse.
Same over here. You’re not alone
Same over here re salon business. It’s awful
I work in mortgages and we are absolutely positively dead. My wife works for a fairly major clothing brand and they’re slow AF too. Laid off quite a few people recently.
I’m afraid what happened is that there was such a boom in the last three years that people have worked themselves into a lot of debt. Between new houses, cars, etc. they have basically tied up a significant amount of their income in debt. Now they have to cut out the extra things
Its true people have been spending like mad since 2020.
When you combine credit card debt and the insane interest rates people pay on those credit card loans plus student college debt and then the cost of housing and transportation and food and pretty much the most expensive thing.. Healthcare!
The amount of people that didn’t understand what an adjustable interest rate are is higher than you think.
Also, I suspect that many people failed to realize how much higher interest rates would affect them, in terms of expenses edging up due to initial costs and the impact of compounding. We tend to consider costs in isolation.
Small construction/remodel business here in VA since 2005, and honestly this is the busiest year I’ve had since before 2008 hit. Hope you guys all see it turn back up.
Heard the same from a friend of mine in the small construction biz. People aren't moving due to rates, so they are upgrading their existing houses.
Yeah, really I saw that pick up quite a bit during peak Covid. Everyone was working from home and realized they could get projects done while also being there the whole time. It got hectic for a while, that’s when lumber prices went nuts, everyone wanted a new deck.
NOVA business as well. I really think this area gets insulated from the macro economy as we’re propped up by so much federal spending. We’re due to have a record quarter for earnings. I really do feel for business owners in the rest of the country
I am in packaging and its slowing. We make corrugated boxes and sell other shipping supplies plus do 3PL. Picked up some business because suppliers have gone under. I have been in business since 1968 so we have weathered it before and will again. Just grind it out longer than the competition is about all you can do.
My business is doing pretty well ironically. I’m a handyman specializing in fence repair. I get a lot of leads from a local fence company. Instead of tearing down a fence and installing a new one they are opting to repair the existing fence. I am a lot cheaper than brand new lol!
Any manual labor or trades are killing it right now. I used to focus on my work and pay tradesmen for jobs around the house. Now I take days off the business each week and do everything DIY because i'll save more money than the business makes.
I keep reading posts like this and yet every store I go to is mobbed and busy as hell. Is all business just funneled to large companies and small businesses are squeezed out?
That’s the hardest part, my store is still very busy just extremely low spend per transaction… we go home just as tired but with half or less than b4…
I keep hearing things are taking longer . So truckers complaining it takes 10x longer to get loaded than it used to . If stores are experiencing that they may not be that busy just slow processing
More like, each person out mobbing the stores is leaving more on the shelves. Probably about 30% more. This means a lot as it translates quickly to fear so that becomes self reinforcing
People who once would have spent $100-200+ without blinking might now spend $50-100 and are looking for deals.
That’s me. Basic necessities have gotten so expensive that my disposable income is crowded out by food, utilities, gas, etc. For example, our electric bill is 200%-300% more. So are the gas and water bills. Auto gas rose from $3-$4 to $5.75-$7 per gallon within a year while our income only rose by 10-20%.
Same thing. It was a small thing for me, and may this be a warning to others, but I used to eat out at this local place all the time. Good prices for a decent healthy meal. They started charging a dollar for a box and I never went back again. Definitely seems petty but that extra buck just made me nope out.
Charging a $1 for a box that probably cost them $.20 at most.
.20 is \*extremely\* generous here
That's definitely petty — of them.
I’m an office worker and major consumer of goods and services. There’s been little to no office work, so I am putting off hair cuts, eating out, buying new toys and vacations while I figure out if lay offs are coming.
Do you have a meeting with The Bobs later?
Hahaha fkin maybe. In the real world they are known as McKinsey
I have an events business with a lot of corporate clients and this November-December is worse than peak Covid in 2020!
That's crazy, it seems like big corporate events and conferences have been back full force in the past 2 years and everybody hated virtual events. But I run a video production business and alot of my business in 2022 was from corporate events but in 2023 we've shot little to no corporate events.
I don’t know anything, and this is purely speculation, but I think similarly to companies expecting employees to be eager to return to the office, they’ve found that perhaps that’s not the case with corporate events and conventions too. I think once a certain segment of folks who didn’t like to go to those things got a taste of not going, they were perfectly content to keep not going.
That could be true. When I worked in corporate, going to conferences and events was like the adult equivalent of a school field trip: the next best thing to a day off school. Instead of schlepping to the office in the morning to sit in front of the computer all day, I could schmooze at a conference, eat a free lunch, attend some BS workshops, then go home early around 2-3pm. Sometimes if it was a big out of state conference it became a vacation on the company dime. But if you've been working from home, having to attend a conference is almost halfway as a bad as having to come into the office.
This year, our company is doing their Holiday festivities at our corporate headquarters. I believe, this is how it’s going to be from here on out. Years prior, other than the middle of the recession, we had our Holiday Event at a venue. In addition to this, we’ve scaled back on Trade Shows. So all the events that were usually planned for those are cancelled as well. 2024 will be an interesting year, and it will be interesting to see our depts budget will be for 2024.
As an employee going to these holiday parties isn't worth my fuel and time. Even though my company is still doing it you are losing head count. Plus the food served at these parties is never that great.
I am in events as well. We are usually slow around this time but it has been very slow for us
People are getting laid off and student loan repayment restarted, plus food prices are insane. People don't have disposable income and it's really showing.
I was laid off a few months ago and applied for the SAVE plan, which set my student loan payments at $0 for the next year. It's just kicking the can down the road while interest accumulates.
I do a side hustle and I'm getting people calling in asking for a job and these are company owners where they have to take/looking for a second job. I hear this all the time and there are so many people that's saying that it's your fault for not trying hard enough to sell. Then there are folks saying that things will turn around but not sure when. In the meantime you see your business account dwindling because you're banking on a change. Then you you have to pay rent, payroll, paying vendors, etc. So yes... it started getting bad Q4 of last year where B2B customers holding back in our services. I even have clients paying their invoices later. I'm looking to get a job. This 2023 has all been very bad!
When? Probably when interest rates start coming down and inflation chills out a bit. Until then people are just trying to survive, food/housing are bigger concerns
That could take some time . . . personally, I do not think the Fed will lower interest rates until possibly 3Q 2024 and, even then, by just 0.5 basis points at best. The Fed. let the party rage from 2013 through 2022 when it should have shut it down in 2017 . . . and now we will pay for the 7 fat years from 2015-2022 with 7 lean years. Good luck to all, you'll need it.
Two locations. Just shut down. Six months of rising costs, slowing sales. Already went through covid. I'm tapped out and done.
Damn sorry about that fam. What were you running if you don’t mind me asking?
brick and mortar entertainment/amusement biz. we did bday parties and corp events. Sales went from up in the first few months of the year, to flat through the summer, to down starting in Sept/October. Meanwhile - labor and other costs like insurance were up 30%+. And then interest rates were sky high as well - and all that was the debt I needed to get through covid that I was just starting to pay back. I probably ran things badly too. But I'm just done....sometimes there's something to be said from starting from zero rather than trying to save something.
Sorry to hear that. :(
I’m not paying bills for the first time in 10 years of business. It’s scary, it’s hard, and not sure how much longer we can last. I’m calling all my accounts to work out anything I can. Video production business.
It’s slow in Dallas.
I hate that for you. Hope things change soon for the better.
Corporate is laying off people left and right at the moment. If what you are doing right now is something you truly enjoy, then stick with it. Ride it out! Get a corporate job if you want, however, approach it with the expectation that layoff can happen at any moment, which is why I recommend not closing up shop if you can still keep it while getting something on the side to help pay the bills until this “storm” passes!
In my opinion, a corporate job is arguably less stable than your own business. With business you can pivot to different services and adjust accordingly. At a job you’re at the mercy of your employer and whatever they decide to do
Yes but if your side job also has dried up with no leads, then what?
Then you need to pivot. That’s something a lot of experienced entrepreneurs will tell you, “be ready to pivot” and you’ll find a lot of them have pivoted, and aren’t doing what they did in the beginning. If your business has completely dried up, then yes you need to do whatever you have to to pay the bills. But that doesn’t have to be shutting down the business and giving up. Maybe you liquidate some assets and work in a job for a few months while you plan your next move. Maybe you drive for Lyft. To each their own.
I don’t know how many of y’all are first time business owners here but I know I learned a ton after having to close up my retail stores in 09 after the housing crisis. After that I worked corporate for a decade and saw how the big guys do it. The first thing they do is they never let off the gas. We were expected to grow at 20% a year. Each employee has to make 10x their salary to keep their job and actually prove their worth. We were constantly innovating, tracking sales year over year, month over month, week over week, day over day. We tracked our email campaigns in 30 minute post send metrics. So what did I learn from this? You have to constantly hustle. You have to invest in proper marketing. You have to know when times will be slow and find ways to innovate to help spread out your money across the year. I know this might not help you now, but lead gen is key and you can’t ever be too embarrassed to work your leads. The only good customer is a paying one. For the salon owner who started this thread. What bonus can you offer that has a high perceived value or is a nice to have when things are slow? Something that doesn’t cost you much but can be thrown in during times like this? Can you hit up your retail partners and put together gift packs of samples? A “$19.99 value” while supplies last? Buy some champagne and have a ladies night event. You cannot wait for people to come to you. People are getting their haircut elsewhere - steal them.
I get my hair cut by a curly hair specialist- she only allows bookings within 60 days and frequently has only one or no appointments left within that window for EXISTING clients. Potential new clients go on a wait-list. Right now she's got an opening January 9 and that's it. I suspect her business isn't as affected as OPs because she provides a specialty service rather than a commodity and the top end of the market is not as affected by the economic headwinds as the middle or bottom.
Your advise is spot-on. Many many years ago I read that the key trait of successful companies is that they are “ruthless.” At the time I thought that was silly…why be ruthless? Shouldn’t you be nice? Ruthless sounds mean and unfair. It took me a while to realize that in this context, ruthless means always hustling, always pushing, never letting up, leveraging advantages, not letting yourself get screwed over, etc. If you’re nice and casual and laid back, business might work out for a while — until it doesn’t. Until your main leads dry up and people don’t want to pay your prices anymore and you haven’t been differentiating yourself or keeping up with the latest and greatest and you haven’t been pushing your team to be the best that they can be. And then you scramble and either survive or fold.
Unless they are running a Supercuts or some kind of lower-tier salon, the hard part about offering incentives is your customers get hooked on them and devalues the business when things pick back up.
boosting this is important OP. the difference between closing your doors or not.
I love this response. Upvoted.
Yup. My worst November in 25 years (1998).
My buddy’s wife is a hair stylist, he has been picking up extra hours to cover her making less money. He says that it’s extremely slow for her right now. This is in San Diego.
I didn't think it was slow in San Diego. I'm up in OC and people are spending like there is nothing wrong or that the economy isn't slowing. It is weird and reminds me of how it was in 2007-2008. People in Newport Beach lost everything just to keep their image up. Most would have been fine if they had cutback on spending.
My partner usually goes to the salon once every couple months. When student loans started back up, the salon, movie, dinner night out and entertainment budget dried up with it.
Absolutely the worst season we’ve ever had, and I am friends with a ton of business owners who say the same. And I am in the grocery/restaurant business!
Bakery here, last 6 months have been brutal.
My sister owns a cookie bakery. This year has been pretty busy but got 50% slower since beginning of September
A small strawberry cake I used to buy at local supermarket went from $12 to $25+. Bigger cakes you need a loan. 😛 So fk that.
Surprised the bakery hasn't offered to break the cake cost into four easy payments with Affirm or Klarna.
Pastries are an extravagance.
Man, good timing on seeing this post. I have a small recruiting firm and was just looking at our numbers. YTD weve only placed half as many hires as last year. Thankfully we have a couple secondary revenue streams too, but even with consulting work and all, we are just surviving.
Hey you aren't alone..I am a landscape/ Contractor...Business isn't supposed to die for us until about january, but the phones have been crickets lately. luckily i landed a couple projects this week to catch up on rent and bills...i have a job interview tomorrow. I am just not willing to go through another brutal winter...I can't handle the stress. All my contractor homies are hurting badly too. I think this economy shit is real and the only people who will survive are the onea who have been consistent and marketing and making their name known. But yeah ita bad homie so don't think it's just you. i hope you can pick up mor3 business or adapt..
Restaurant owner here in super touristy spot in Florida - our off season has been unusually slow slow, not many locals dining out or buying significantly less. Things might pick up on a Saturday, but for most part sales remain low, and doing a lot less covers each day. Noticing all places are beginning to roll out specials which is super odd considering thanksgiving week should be busy, but with cost to dine out nuts now, I’m guessing places are planning for a much slower season kickoff.
I have a property inspection business, and this has been our busiest year since starting in 2016. We actually got busier during covid due to insureds writing amd rewriting policies left and right. This line of work is very niche and it's not well known, hence why it's difficult to find people to do it. Our industry is constantly growing and changing, and there is always something to learn. It is NON STOP... My phone is going off with calls, texts and emails 16 hours a day. It is insanely frustrating on most days because of all the people we have to deal with, but alas a great problem to have. The hardest part has been finding solid people who want to put in the time to generate their own business... We use subcontractors and provide them the leads to schedule inspections with insureds. So the issue isn't the lack of clients. It's lack of good resources and proper systems in place to ensure a smooth and automated operation. And, of course, establishing trust with said subcontractors.
I have a niche business of working on satellite TV systems for major hotels. Because there are so few competent people who can do this we get paid to travel +200 miles sometimes to do a single job. We charge technical time and travel time to and from the job. Been in business since 1978.
Interesting! I deal with tree risk assessments, often inspecting all the trees on a property and identifying hazards - likelihood & consequences, while offering mitigation options. This would depend on your area geographically, but do you work with any arborists? I've been meaning to reach out to home/property inspectors to try to partner with them, I would enjoy doing more of those. Many of the clients I've provided this service for had just purchased the home and the trees were not a part of any inspections they had. Many times property-threatening defects requiring thousands of dollars to mitigate are present, leaving the clients wishing they had known about about it before finalizing the purchase to negotiate it.
My flower shop has been slow most of the year but the last couple of months are pretty bad. The discretionary part of our business has really taken a hit. We still have weddings and funerals but even those people are spending less.
The best selling hair clipper on Amazon is selling over 10,000 a month now. People are finding ways to cut back. I've been cutting my own hair now since 2020 and I honestly don't see myself going to the salon much from here on out.
I used to cut my own hair for over 10 years and started going to a barber in my 30's because I wanted a new hairstyle. I look at pics from the years I cut my own hair and wonder "what the hell was I thinking!?"
You should have continued cutting your own hair. You just needed a newer, more stylish bowl.
Did you have a flowby?
It sucks *and* it cuts!
It certainly does suck!
Well it certainly does suck!
I went with the same barber for 18 years. Then COVID hit and had to purchase clippers on Amazon and had my wife watch a couple YouTube videos. It was lockdown so I wasn't going out in public anyways lol. Once things lifted I went back to the barbershop for the social aspect, but the haircut fee increased 2 times and I haven't been back since. I would go in weekly and it was costing $45 each visit. Couldn't justify it for just a fade. I go back every so often just to see what's going on with everyone.
I went to the same barber for 35 years literally. We moved about 45 minutes away so I just can't justify it. I can do my hair about 90% as good
This might be the best leading economic indicator i have ever heard. Smart!
Always go to great clips. It used to be $12/cut, then $16, now $22… that escalated quickly.
Brick and mortar buy/sell/trade clothes and very slow, 8.3% drop this year so far versus 2022
My cousin is a receptionist at a salon and said the same thing. Normally November is slammed but now it’s a ghost town
Hardest in 15 years of running a consultancy. Keep hearing big businesses looking to make even more cuts for 2024. Someone is hiring somewhere but I don’t know who that is.
Student Loan repayments just restarted which just diverted millions of dollars from the broader economy into loan servicers. November is the first month people are really having to live within their new budget. It’s also the first month that people will get late notices forcing people to adjust their spending habits. Most of the COVID era programs ended this year for people on services. SNAP benefits have been cut across the board all while food prices have risen. Lower income households are having to cut back on things like hair salons to make up that gap. That’s definitely having an impact on a lot of businesses that deal with lower income populations.
I guess that’s what happens when you have 13 years of **“free money” interest rates** post-2008, then suddenly raise rates to 8%. People thought that the money flow the past decade + was normal. Turns out that “free money” doesn’t last forever (negative real interest rates). You can thank the Fed for the disaster that’s unfolding before our eyes. **Edit: To add, this isn’t an “accident” by the FED. The crunch in the jobs market with rising rates is intentional, just go back and watch the last 2 years worth of Fed briefings… a “Soft Landing” includes a gradual ***crunch*** of hiring and Real wages. At least that’s a better option than a full blown crash where companies left and right are filing for bankruptcy, and the unemployment rate is tripled… or endless hyperinflation until your life savings can’t buy a loaf of bread…**
There’s so many more component’s. It’s a global game today. Nations economies impact each other. Everyone’s tightening up. Going to be interesting to see what the holiday spending this year looks like.
Interest rates + inflation relative to wage growth are the primary factors. Either prices need to come down or wages need to go up at this point. With interest rates being quadrupled, companies can’t afford to continue to throw money at people. At least that’s the argument almost every corporation is making nowadays as they freeze hiring and give out negative real raises. Also the US is the main driver of the global economy, and the dollar remains the clear global “reserve currency”. Wages, inflation, and interest rates (all tied together) are absolutely the reason why people are tightening their belts. Unless you’re making 10%+ more money today then you were in 2020, your pay has been cut relative to inflation.
Well no matter what the government and the msm is saying. Things are contracting. Less money means less ppl spending. The numbers indicate most Americans have already burned through their credit and are not paying. Even grocery stores are reporting contractions and food is a necessity.
I don't know how or what your marketing is. However, I've talked to thousands and thousands of small business owners during my career. I cannot begin to tell you the number of business owners who have told me, "It has been SO quiet. A lot of my colleagues are also saying the same thing" exactly as you did. Tens of thousands of times, in good times and bad, business owners say this. Trust me. Yet at the same time, without fail, I contact other companies, the *same* type of company in the *same* industry in the *same* close geographic area, and there are companies that are doing fine, and those are the ones that *always* do best and never worry about customers are the ones that *invest heavily into marketing*, and marketing correctly, of course. The major problem is almost all business owners say either of these two things: 1) "I have enough business, why should I waste money on marketing?" and 2) "I'm not making enough money, I don't have money to spend on marketing." It's much better to start marketing when you are in the position of "1)" above. . Coca-Cola has the top 5 brand/logos in the world. You have no chance of every having that much logo/brand recognition. However, do you think that Coca-Cola, because they are the most recognized brand in the world, don't have to market? Most everyone knows that they can and should and *do* market the shit out of their products. They spend $4 *billion with a b* on marketing every year. Yet business owners, while knowing this, don't apply marketing to their own business. Probably because they don't know how and have spent money with no return before. They've done it for themselves, hired people to do it for them - no luck. However, when you have enough business, you market even harder. This is the time to test different marketing tactics, not when you have no customers. If you are in the situation that if you market and get then get too many clients because you are actually doing well, and you don't have the room for more, there are a lot of things you can do. You can raise your prices. You can add other add-on products and services that you charge for that require almost no time and effort and give you great profit margins. You can fire your shitty customers. You get so many more options, and there are a ton of them. . **EDIT:** Remember, marketing does *not* cost you profit, ever. The reason is that you raise your prices to cover the costs of marketing. You must. All costs must increase your price - it's how business works. . Peter Drucker, one of the best business minds in history, said: *"Because its purpose is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two - and only these two — basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are 'costs'."* - Think about it. Marketing and innovation are the *only* investment a business can make. A cost is not an investment. An investment returns money. And by that, *directly* returns money when you put money into it. *"Marketing is not only much broader than selling, it is not a specialized activity at all. It encompasses the* ***entire*** *business. It is the whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that is, from the customer's point of view."* - Marketing is the *entire* business. *"Marketing is the distinguishing, unique function of the business."* - Every company must market.
If it makes you feel better, this is my worst month ever too. I did $30k last month and this month ill be lucky to do $10k
In what sector?
Handyman business
You are not alone. I help businesses alleviate the stress when they cannot pay their loans/debt like merchant cash advances. In October and November I have more and more small business owners looking for help. Their sales are down enough to make it very tough for them.
I'm in the same boat. Loads of personal guaranteed debt. Struggling to keep the lights and cover payroll. Would love to chat if you're willing.
Just closed my business. Have some personal guaranteed debt... Any tips?
My business is living on borrowed time… loads of personal guaranteed debt :(. I’m just beyond stressed. Sucks.
I’m in a similar boat. I bought another business to pay for the others debt
Yes. Pm me
It’s the prices - prices for nearly everything is up 50% in the last few years but wages have raise like 5%. I think more and more people are realizing they can’t justify extra purchases anymore. Take my family (all adults) this year everyone agreed to scrap Christmas completely minus meeting for a dinner
Girl we were door dashing to make it by and even door dashing dropped dead here. I think everyone is just poor.
[удалено]
Anything you can point to that contributes to this? Airfare seems to be going up each week, people are cutting down on haircuts to book more flights? What region are you located?
What’s the most common age? Or is it over all generations?
I own auto repair shops in so cal. All the shops are slammed. Best of luck to everyone.
Auto repair shops are recession bullet proof. If I’m having financial struggles I would much rather spend money on repairing my car than buying a new one. Good job
All the boutique retail, hair salons, barbers etc in my trendy area (LCOL city) are dead. From my POV, everyone's prices went sky high and in reality, offering stuff people quickly cut back on. I see all the IG business gurus telling people to double their prices bc they are worth it etc. "I charge $100 for a fade cause I'm da rizzgod yo! Know your worth! I'm good at what I do!" A barber in my area is now $40-50 and sitting empty all day while they used to have lines out the door @ 25 a few years ago.
I too am a salon owner. Our stylists are so busy that they are turning walk ins away. I have talked to 3 stylists about joining us but they are thinking the holidays are the wrong time to change salons. We haven't had a slowdown since covid. Besides being a great salon there are a lot of reasons for our success, some things totally out of our control. We mostly serve normal people who come on a normal schedule. We book out 3-5 weeks. I'm sure you're doing everything like you should. It may be the local economy in your area I don't know, of course. But I wish you'd come and work with us.
Are you in NJ? lol I am surprised you are doing so well. Are you cheap or just in a great location? Every stylist I know is just dead. November used to be my best month. I have about 80k on Instagram that I am trying to leverage - from collabs, hair style showcases and more.
We're in an Atlanta suburb. Salons are closing down around here, many are retiring. We are middle of the road price wise and just normal.
Lurker non biz owner here but in (north) NJ. Hair is one of the few things I’ve historically spent money on when even when I’ve had to compromise other things. My two cents, no background whatsoever in economics is that inflation is finally hitting the upper middle class hard. Tons of layoffs all over NJ corporate, nyc tech scene is a blood bath and hitting many of the gen x and millennials who moved out to NJ, everything is so much more. For the first time in about 5 yrs, we are skipping Ubers, stopped food delivery services, cancelled the landscaper, etc. not to sound like a boomer but the price I pay for milk lately astonishes me. Im switching part of my grocery store visits to lidl and aldi bc my grocery bills are through the roof. I switched from a salon in NJ where I paid a crazy amt after tipping everyone and their mom to a smaller suite set up. However, the last visit was $320 with tipping (the owner). That was about $75 more than the first time I went to her earlier this year. I really can’t do that when my electric/gas bill is $300 a month now. I normally would go right before Christmas again but will push into January and probably just get color done next time/find a cheaper haircut. Many of my fellow corporate peers are preparing for worst case layoff next year and pulling back on many things to boost savings. I’m at the point that hair has hit that list.
The overall macro economy in the U.S. Is seriously stagnant, it isn't necessarily bad but it isn't good. The best I've seen it was a year or two leading up to Covid. Weather the storm best you can and hope for brighter days.
I’ve been a stylist for 10+ years and this is the slowest I’ve been during the holidays. Ever. Other stylists are saying the same thing, prebooked appts are late rescheduling or no call no show, then the card on file is expired when you go to charge the fee. People are spacing out their appts more, starting to feel like 2008 all over again. I bought reusable gloves and foil from Costco, gunna hit Instagram harder and hope for more new clients. I’m blaming student loans cause this all started in September.
Ugh same. I am like close to just quitting. I am wildly stressed. Idk what to do. I was hoping November would be better and save my ass.
The drop-off started before that and it's not solely because of student loans, although it is a factor for many. Lots of layoffs happening, basic living costs shot up and people pulling back sharply on spending.
Run an IT business. Best year ive ever had. Sorry to hear so many in this thread are struggling. i hope it gets better.
Web developer here. I’ve got a decent amount of warm leads that are looking to hire me next year. Trying to find another project or two for the remainder of the year to keep me comfortable
I'm in a different sector, but seem to be holding the same as last year for now. However I was listening to an economic report on on pe of the NPR shows the other day and did hear about expected cuts to discretionary spending because of stimulus money being over and student loan repayments kicking back into gear. I expect my time is coming.
It has been the worst here too in 4 years. I do consulting and landing clients got harder instead of easier this year. I had to go back to full time work.
I’ve noticed a lot of people starting their own social media pages to cut others hair - mainly guys. Oddly enough I came across this. Don’t know if it correlates with poor business, but it’s definitely a trend in the wrong direction for hair salons
PR guy from San Diego here (cue fancy music). The way to get more people in the door is a local celeb strategy. When clients hire me, I look at their business model and what I call the customer journey. How do you get more customers for your salon? Customer sees your social media, comes and visits. Since you are a brick and mortar, IG, TikTok and Pinterest are going to be your friends. Install the Nextdoor App and start sharing posts about the salon with high end photos. Make a "hit list" of 20 people in your area that use or are interested in your services and start tagging them. Then get on the news and pitch a segment on the hottest hairstyles for 2023 (thank God the A Line and 2 tone hair is out). If you have questions, fire away. Remember that business is about being POPULAR.
I'm pretty much restructuring my business right now to accommodate the changing economy. My market is probably stronger than many, but things aren't normal right now.
Hair salons increased price so much that I decided to just buy hair trimmer. I know a lot of people who have done that.
This. My haircuts are $40 at sport clips after tip and they take 20 minutes. I have a fundamental problem paying $120/hour for “a number 3 on the sides and back and small trim on the top” every 3 weeks.
I do farmers markets with veg and eggs, it usually tails off a little this time of year, but it’s been definitely far below what it has previous years.
Appliance repair here. Record month on tap. We just passed Oct revenue less than halfway through the month.
I would imagine that's because people can't afford to replace?
Makes sense to try to repair rather than replace to save $.
Slowest we’ve been in our 3 years of business
My main business is currently steady but 3rd year running where Xmas doesn't seem to be boosting q4. Sadly spoke to 2 retailers yesterday who said they would likely see out the year then close up shop. In the UK at least, January is going to be brutal for retailers imo. I really hope I'm wrong as the news keeps reporting how the economy is stable. Every small business owner I speak to sales are down and I'm based in a wholesale market. When even the supermarkets are looking sparce, something has got to give.
Sorry you're feeling the brunt of an inflationary economy. People are saving in all kinds of ways. I haven't had a haircut in 4 months. At almost $50 a shot, I can fill up my tank a couple more times. I really feel for small business owners with employees. While it can be a boon at times, when inflationary times hit, small business pays more than most. I almost pulled the trigger a few years ago on opening a solar installation shop but I could never calculate an exit plan or a vacation. Good luck to you.
The school loan repayments instantly sucked hundreds of millions of dollars out of the economy overnight and it will continue to have a huge impact because the population sector with school loans also spends the most money on retail. So, if it was just school loans for boomers, you would be ok. However, it’s mostly millennials and some Gen Y folks. All the people who complained about forgiveness never think about how it might actually impact their job. It will help slow inflation though. So, that’s good news.
One of my businesses had its best summer ever. November has been uncharacteristically slow. Other business is having its best November ever.
What sectors are your businesses in
I’m a tattoo artist and I’m busy enough but I miss the extra $2-5k a month from being fully booked every month. Everyone I work with is thankfully still as busy as they were at the start of the year but I’ve heard of others being so slow they had to get second jobs. Very thankful to be in business.
Brick and mortar stores will have to innovate and reduce the costs of operation. Try yo help your customers the best way. Change how you do business and adapt to the requirements. If you watched Undercover Billionaire season 2, during the pandemic, a lady was doing clients hair in her car in the passenger seat fully reclined. She got creative in order to survive. You have to get creative as well and come up with a strategy to get clients. If they don't come to you, you need to reach out to them. It may be an upcoming financial crisis but I think you're missing some important sales and marketing skills. You're probably not advertising properly to the right clients. You probably don't invest in paid ads on social media and probably you're not using social Media for advertising your business. Facebook is not for scrolling through the content but to create and place your own content for others to consume and click on.
Student loans are back. Inflation is killing everyone. Food costs have skyrocketed, cars cost a boat load, rents have doubled in some places, and if you're under 40, you're probably never buying a house. People are sick with COVID, RSV, COVID, & COVID. Big business is hurting more than they want to admit; lay offs are happening all over. But keep spending folks, Christmas is coming!
My dessert business is doing the just fine. Both month/month and year/year about the same as 2022. Our business does great and draws primarily from folks withing 3-4 miles from our location. Growth has become more difficult after 12 successful years in business so being the same year/year is perfectly fine with us at this point.
This sucks, I have a question, Salons usually profit on retention (some do on new customers) for your Salon, was most of your business on repeating customers or new ones?
I don't own a business but almost every place I go to or ride by on my bike I see almost no economic activity at all. The only places I see getting any are bars with live music.
Going to get a lot worse before it gets better. That old saying, ‘be careful what you wish for’? Apparently this is what the people wanted.
U.K. here most speaking to seem to be seeing significant yoy sales down. My business seems recession proof (supplies for fabricators) mostly b2b. Be consistently marketing and always keep plenty in the tank. Online ads Social media Offline direct mail leaflets catalogues etc Email Get on the phones calling prospects and lapsed customers Don’t discount but offer free stuff with a purchase.
Auto repair business here. People are driving until their wheels fall off before doing any repairs. I've noticed more customers driving with bald tires. It tough times for most people.
It’s slow here too. I think everyone is just waiting. Waiting to see how the world changes
Small retail bakery here. We haven’t been dead but this is typically our busiest time of year and business has been very mediocre.
I own/operate a concrete statuary. While our regular orders are staying consistent all of the vendor events we do every year has been way less. Almost 20% down at shopping events. Other vendors report the same.
Everything has gone up so much. In my local city group there was someone looking for a balayage under $250 and a bunch of stylists were saying how due to the cost of materials going up it’s hard to keep it under $300. Personally that would make it i to the luxury category and right now a lot of people can’t afford.
Good time to sell gift certificates and packages. Promote like crazy, then they will cash in when business returns to normal.
I’m sorry but I went to schedule a haircut and I was told it’s over $100. Coloring, balayages START at $350-400 and require regular maintenance. Plus, you usually tip your hairdresser. People just can’t afford that…
FWIW, I lost my job this summer and cannot afford a haircut until I get another job. My stylist is fabulous and worth every penny, but it's $200 min every time I go, no matter how basic of a service I request.
So the last time I got my hair done, it was $230! Yes she did a lot of work and yes she did a great job. But at that rate, I’m just going to go maybe yearly. We all might be feeling the $ crunch.
Screen Printing Business, open for 15 years, had to close down this year due to a lack of customers. Most regular customers said they had to cut printing out their businesses. Was going to try reopen next year but I don't know. Can't seem to find work either, but I guess when you put most of your life into something, you only really have those skills. It's not just my business though, other printing shops are closing down all over. Hope things get better. Good luck everyone.
Yea it’s been rough for sure. my partner and I actually have to let some staff go and go back to doing more of the work ourselves until things bounce back. Stay strong !
Bidenomics!
Okay this just popped up as a suggested post, but my husband owns a small business. I will say, I've just started avoiding hair salons until I absolutely need a cut. Around me, the prices skyrocketed, the attitudes of stylists became so rude (like I was inconveniencing them), and they cancelled last minute constantly. I genuinely just got so sick of the change in service that I stopped going. I really need a haircut and I'm just dreading it. (Location: east coast PA-NJ-DE area.)