Bellissimo Business Profiled

Bellissimo opened its doors to the general public in 1998, offering a new concept in the hair and beauty industry, to have everything in the one building - hair and beauty, café - all in the one spot. The same formula is still working for Bellissimo today.

Mike O’Connor set up the salon, with Brendan coming on board in 2004. Mike was already well established in the industry as one of the most prominent Hairdressers in the West of Ireland so combining his talent and business acumen with Brendan’s management skills was the driving force behind the expansion of the company.

Brendan had spent 22 years in buying and licensing with Digital, Compaq and HP. The change from IT to the beauty business was challenging, but Brendan has always taken a target driven approach to his roles and regardless of the Industry the fundamental business principals and management techniques are the same.

‘Customer Service is key in any industry but of course this is even more prevalent in a company like Bellissimo – here the business model starts and ends with Service’ Brendan says, ‘the salon’s staff are committed to providing extemporary service and that’s why we have such a loyal customer base.’

‘The skill and creativity of our team is of equal importance to the customer service. Our business, like the fashion industry, is constantly changing. The salon also places a huge emphasis on continuously updating the staff’s skills to ensure that the team “stay ahead of the posse.”

“We have a World Hair Dressing Champion here in Mary Kennedy and Louise Jordan has won numerous competitions in Europe over the last couple of years. They are inspirations to the newer members of the team and a great source of knowledge and expertise for our in-house training,” Brendan says.

The salon has moved with the times too, computerising their entire appointment system and introducing The Loyalty Club, which now has 4,500 members. “Our Loyalty Club is driven through the Bellissimo.ie web site and our strong facebook following, both of which allow us to get in direct contact with our customers to let them know as soon as a promotion or special offer is available. It has really worked for us and the customers seem to love it – they get value for money and we get a chance to say ‘Thank you for your business” Brendan says.

As regards the future, Brendan says while management are very happy with the current position in the industry, the priority is to consolidate Bellissimo’s position as the leading hair and beauty experience in Galway - this will be achieved through the introduction of new services such as the Genie Complete non-surgical Face Lift in beauty and the 12 Week Blow Dry and Wigs service in Hair.

“We have expanded the service very much in beauty. The training part of hair is substantial. Bringing trainees through the three-year training process is one area where I get a huge amount of personal job satisfaction. 95 per cent of the time they stay on with us when they finish their training.”

However, Brendan concedes that they are keeping an eye on bigger targets and the possibility of further expansion.

“It is a hard business to read; it’s prone to fluctuations and cycles. Definitely there are plans to expand, but that may be a year or two away. In the meantime we will concentrate in giving our customers the most technologically advanced hair and beauty services available. This will require more investment in equipment and training,” he says. ‘Our longer opening times, including Sundays, has also allowed us to expand the business and create more employment without taking unnecessary risks. It is not as easy for our customers to take time out from work for their hair and beauty appointments so we stay open to 9pm Monday to Friday to facilitate this changing trend.’

And, at a time when retaining jobs is high on the Government’s list of priorities, Bellissimo is playing its part for the economy, employing 92 between its Galway business and a second Bellissimo in Limerick