Mumbai salons and spas deal with heavy demand for specialised treatments post Covid waves – Times of India

With the third wave out of the way and the government relaxing all protocols, salons in Mumbai have gone back to operating at 100 per cent capacity and business in this sector is witnessing a big rise. Salon owners and professionals say that the market is positive and there is a demand for specialised treatments.
“Footfalls in the stores are now 90 percent of pre covid levels but the great thing is that our average bill values are at over 40 percent. This is very encouraging for the business. The categories that growing are led by haircare, but skincare is on a fast growth path, in our new beauty format hair care leads followed by fragrances, makeup, and skincare,” says Vivek Bali, CEO, Enrich.
Growth in fashion services too
In the month of January when restrictions were on in almost all fields, salons experienced at least 50 percent reduction in footfalls. However, Samir Srivastav, CEO, Jean Claude Biguine Salons says, “But, the Mumbaikar spirit was always there and it was displayed by the 50 percent customers that still visited salons. Now with everything relaxed and the pandemic hopefully behind us, we are experiencing growth in not only hygiene services like waxing, haircuts, manicure pedicure but fashion services like hair colours, hair damage reversal treatments, hair spas and of course the ever popular smoothening and keratin service.”
While salons have gone back to operating at 100 per cent capacity, they are continuing to implement all safety measures across every touchpoint. Pushkaraj Shenai, CEO & Executive Director, Lakmé Salon says, “In terms of services, we’ve seen an increase in demand for our hair tech services, which focus on the technology and techniques in hair colour, cut and form services. Protein and tressplex treatments that restore lost protein in the hair and strengthen it have also seen an upswing, as has the demand for bright and bold hair colours.”
Salon owners across the city say that they are also experiencing growth in beauty services search – for example facials, nail bars and body treatments like body massages are getting popular. “I have a salon in South Mumbai and one in Borivali. And post opening up, both salons have seen a marked rise in both hair and skincare services. Business has been steady for us,” says Rukmini Honawar, Founder, Runah Salon.
Demand for ‘Dream Pinterest Wedding’ on the rise
We are living in the digital age where most of our lives are lived being online. Hence, we try to put our best foot (picture) on our social platforms, reflecting our personality directly. Elton Steve Vessoaker Brand Director at an international chain of salons, believes that since social media has become a platform for everyone to showcase their Lives, some of the most important moments of life need to be #instaworthy. Talking about the trend Elton says, “It’s the new way to show off our Bridal hair, makeup, wardrobe, the whole ensemble. Young girls would dream of a ‘Fairytale wedding’, now it’s a ‘Dream Pinterest Wedding’ where everything needs to be perfect!”
A client’s social media profile helps salons to curate a look for them
Salon owners say that social media has a huge role to play these days when it comes to Mumbaikars choosing a particular service. Anita More, Founder and director of Jean Claude Olivier says, “When we provide service to our customers these days, we want to showcase our new bridal makeup, hair and other services to attract new eyeballs. The traditional form of marketing has taken a backseat, and this is the trend catching up attracting more contemporary audiences. There are times when the customers know what they want, and other times we research by going through their social media to get a gist of their personalities which will help us design a specific and exclusive look for them for the wedding. Gone are those days where we copied Bollywood celebrities; with social media booming, everybody wants to be a celebrity or influencer on their own. The only way they can achieve that is through their social handles.”