Sam Samad, Franchisee of Starks Barber Company, Discusses Franchisee Experience
How long have you been a franchisee with Starks, and where are your locations?
I’ve been a Stark’s customer for about six years and a Stark’s franchise owner for about two and a half years. Me and my two brothers own two locations, both in the city of Toronto. They’re the only two in the city of Toronto and pretty close to the core. We’ve had one location for two and a half years, and the other location for one and a half years. I was in tech before Starks and still am.
How did you make the jump from the tech industry to the beauty industry?
I don’t think about it as being in the beauty industry. I think about it as the customer service industry, we just happen to provide beauty services. I know nothing about the beauty industry, I don’t know how to cut hair. If I come in, and there’s a customer that’s upset, I can’t jump into the chair and fix that. What I can do is hear the customer out, understand what went wrong. Make that customer’s day. So we’re in the customer service industry. And as the business owner, what I do is look at data. I collect that data and try to understand it, and then I try to empower the team at the store to understand how we’re differentiated and what our core competency is. Our core competency is not exceptional haircuts. Anyone can take a barber and provide exceptional haircuts. Our core competency is commitment to operational excellence and a great customer experience. You don’t need a background in the beauty industry to provide an excellent customer experience.
What makes a good franchise owner for Starks Barber Franchise?
There’s a good balance of a few things. One, you need to be outgoing, interpersonal, or have been in the customer service industry, whatever that may be. You can’t be afraid to talk to a customer that’s upset, and turn that around into a better opportunity for the customer. A Starks franchise owner also needs an entrepreneurial mindset, meaning being able to take risks, look at resources, and think about how to get more yield out of them. That’s what an entrepreneur does. You have to take risks, and you have to be calm, and have a long-term mindset versus just a short-term mindset. I also think it’s important for franchise owners to think about the community they’re in and be able to shake hands and build partnerships, and recognize that community piece, and how it plays a role.
What is some advice you would give to a potential franchisee?
The exciting thing about Starks is, it’s a pretty simple business in a lot of aspects, and then it’s a complex business in some aspects. It’s a pretty simple business model: we give haircuts, you pay employees by the hour, you order supplies, and you pay rent, so pretty simple. The complex part is, you have to be able to hire the right people, follow the seasonality, have tough conversations with employees, you know, make sure employees aren’t taking vacation wherever they want. If you’re going to be a good manager, you have to be able to be strict and not waver on some of these things.
It’s a very rewarding business in terms of being in the store. When I get a chance to come into the store on the weekend, and you just see the buzz of like the father with his children, and the children are coloring and they’re excited for their lollipop, and they get the first haircut and mom’s there, there’s something rewarding about seeing people regularly come in and do that. And then they bump into their neighbors and their kids are there, and then they’re like, let’s go grab a coffee, you get that community feel, because everyone coming is from the community, they’re coming regularly.
Learn More about Starks Barber Franchise
Starks Barber Company is a revitalization of the classic barbershop experience. Using a proven business model and hands-on support, the Starks business opportunity is primed for expansion. If you’re looking to start and grow a business, Starks Barber Company may be the opportunity for you.
Learn more about this exciting business opportunity by visiting our research pages here. To start a conversation about investing in the Starks Barber Company franchise opportunity, fill out our form here. Once we have your information, we can contact you to share more details about Starks, and answer any questions you may have. We look forward to hearing more about your business development goals and if they can be met by investing in Starks Barber Company!