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All About Hair...and So Much More.
EP313: Salon of the Year? Here's How to Make Your Space Stand Out in 2025
Is your salon ready for the spotlight?
The 2025 SALONS OF THE YEAR competition is open—and in this episode, I’ll show you how to enter with confidence. From photo tips to submission strategies, you’ll get everything you need to showcase your stunning space and stand out.
📥 Grab the free Salon Submission Prep Guide.
🗓️ Deadline to enter: June 30, 2025.
Salon Today Salon of the Year Contest Application Entry Here
The Salon Success System: The Training Toolkit is your step-by-step roadmap to building a confident, high-performing salon team—without the overwhelm. Designed for salon owners, this course gives you proven onboarding strategies, easy-to-use training templates, and real-world systems that save time, boost retention, and drive growth. This course will transform the way you train, mentor, and manage your team!
Grab your FREE PDF of The In-Salon Training Toolkit today.
Level up your onboarding and education! This free toolkit gives salon owners practical, done-for-you templates and strategies to train new stylists quickly, consistently, and with less stress—so you can focus on growing your business, not reinventing the wheel.
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Train With Confidence. Lead With Impact.
Running a salon is hard enough—training new stylists shouldn’t feel like a second full-time job.
If you're constantly pulled in a dozen directions, struggling to teach while juggling clients, and wishing your new hires would just get it faster—you’re not alone. And more importantly, you don’t have to keep doing it the hard way.
Download The Ultimate In-Salon Training Toolkit today and start onboarding your stylists with clarity, confidence, and zero guesswork.
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Today's episode is for all the salon owners out there who've created something beautiful, a space that feels like an experience from the moment someone walks through the door. So let me ask you could your space be named one of the most stunning salons of 2025? If the answer is even maybe, then you need to hear this, because Salon Today just opened entries for their 42nd annual Salons of the Year. Competition and your business might be exactly what the industry needs to see. Welcome to All About Hair, where we talk shop, share stories and spill the secrets behind great hair and a great career. I'm your host, denise Keilitz, a former salon owner, educator and a lifelong hair crusader. Whether you're a new stylist building your book or just someone who loves learning about all things hair, you're in the right place. Each week, we dive into real techniques, honest career advice and inspiration to help you grow behind the chair or just fall even more in love with the world of hair, because around here, it's not just about looking good. It's about learning, evolving and having a little fun along the way. So grab your coffee, your shears or your dry shampoo and let's get into it, okay. So every year, salon owners invest thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, into creating spaces that are not only functional but inspiring, and yet most of that effort stays hidden behind the doors of your local zip code. Too often, talented owners think their space isn't quite good enough to enter a competition like this, or they don't have the photos, time or confidence to apply. But here's the thing If you've created something with heart, intention and beauty, it is time to share it, because salons of the year doesn't just celebrate perfection. It honors innovation, vision and impact. Now, if you guys don't know what salon today's contests are, they have salons of the year. They have the top 200 salons. This is a wonderful way to get your salon represented nationally in a contest and it's pretty simple to do.
Speaker 1:We entered salon today 200 a few years when I first started my career. That was the biggest goal. I used to scour through my career. That was the biggest goal. I used to scour through salon today magazine and every year they would have this list of the top 200 salons and I would just oh my gosh read it cover to cover, because I wanted all those points and all those ideas and all the motivation and I would, oh, I just dreamed about being a top 200 salon one day and I thought it was impossible. I thought it was only for those big, big salons with, you know, big budgets that had celebrity clients. You know what I'm talking about. We all have seen salons like that, but it's not that way. Now the salon today 200, they have, like I don't know, lots and lots of categories you can enter in growth, education, leadership, all these things.
Speaker 1:That's not what today's podcast is about, but I wanted to kind of tell you about this because that's the contest we entered, and how I learned how to do this was from a dear friend of mine who's a salon owner. First time I met her, she introduced herself as a top 200 salon with Salon Today and I was like what? I had to ask her how, and so she said it was easy. I mean, it really is an easy entrance to get yourself involved with this. Basically, go to salon today official website, check out their contest They've got a few, they've even got one on marketing, I believe and read the rules. The top 200. It really is essays. They're looking, you have to write about what you've done, and so some people really don't like it. They look, they frown upon it about the whole contest altogether.
Speaker 1:However, it is one of those accolades that you could put on your business card, you could put on your front door and it just looks really good to say, and that you're in the presence of other salons who think the same way you do, who want excellence out of our industry. That's what I see it, as I remember when, when we got our award the first time, they were presenting the reward, the awards at in new Orleans and my husband and I flew there and, oh my gosh, I was so excited I could not believe it, and there was, like I don't know, like 20 other euphora salons that had gotten awarded as well. It was such an amazing, amazing experience to be in the same room with and you didn't have to be in a U4 salon, I just said that because they were my peeps but, um, it was just amazing to be in the same room with all these leaders from all these salons that you know. We all want the best for our industry. We're all trying to better the industry. So that's why, when I saw this come through my email about, um, uh, the salons of the year contest, I wanted to do a podcast about it, because I want my fellow salon owners who listen to this all over the world to know that we, as salon owners, it's up to us to level up our industry. Nobody else is going to do it for us.
Speaker 1:So and this is part of doing that is, you enter contests. The cream rises to the top right. You get yourself recognized. Then you can use that in your marketing and then other people look at you. You can use that in your marketing and then other people look at you. Clients look at you like, like I used to look at those salons Wow, this must be a really special place. So that's why I'm doing this. Okay, let's talk about the part kind of like me. I mean, it was. I didn't think I was capable of doing that, but I won like four years in a row.
Speaker 1:The part that stops most people cold is the submission process. Now, in this contest, yes, it's photo based. Yes, there's a form. Yes, there's actually a fee to enter a $75 fee. But what if I told you that the real magic is in how you prepare for the submission? Let me walk you through the key strategies that can make your entry stand out and dramatically increase your chances of being recognized. Okay, here's what you need to know If you're even thinking about entering this contest.
Speaker 1:Number one use a professional photographer. Salon mirrors and lighting are really tricky. A professional who knows how to photograph interiors can highlight your color bar, your retail area, your shampoo lounge, all without glare or distortion. And bonus guess what? You'll be able to reuse these photos for your website, social media and staff recruitment. Okay, my second tip keep it people free. Now you're allowed one photo with owners or your team, but everything else should be all about your space no clients, no stylists in action, just clean architectural storytelling.
Speaker 1:Third tip remove all the clutter. This drives me up the wall anyway on a daily basis in a salon, but just remove the clutter. Tidy up all the wall anyway on a daily basis in a salon, but just remove the clutter. Tidy up all your stations. Wipe down the front desk and clear away cups, cords and chaos. Product is welcome in your retail area and color bar, but keep everything neat and intentional.
Speaker 1:Take off the plastic wrap. If you've got new chairs, resist the urge to leave on the protective vinyl. It's distracting and it takes away from the luxury vibe you've created. After the pictures you could pop those things back on, because I know some of these chairs. You don't want color to get on them and you just invested a bunch of money on them. Skip the seasonal decor Like Christmas wreaths or Easter bunnies Might be cute for the season you're in, but they date your photos for the judges. So keep your design timeless and season neutral.
Speaker 1:And then, last but not least, tell a visual story. The judges will read your written application, including questions about your three favorite design choices, so make sure your photos highlight those moments. Use file names or captions to make it clear which image aligns with which story. This is relatively important, just so it makes the job easier for judging. Let me tell you one of my friends in Temecula, california. She entered and she actually won Salon of the Year and I remember congratulating on her and I got to tell you her salon is beautiful, beautiful and her photos of her salon stunning. She well, well deserved award for that salon.
Speaker 1:Let's talk about the key deadlines and information you need to enter this contest. Your salon must have opened or been remodeled between January 1st 2023 and March 30th 2025. You must submit up to 10 high-res images and these need to be at least 300 dpi and 9 by 12 inches. Your entry must be fully completed and submitted by the end of June this month. I'm recording this on the 2nd of June, so you have almost a month. So June 30th 2025 is the deadline. Entry includes a short application. Entry includes a short application, which you can find on their website, three essay questions, a signed release and the $75 processing fee. Now winners may be asked to submit a video tour to be featured in the digital issue. That's if you win.
Speaker 1:And this year, salon Today will recognize excellence across six categories Hair salon or salon day spa, day spa or medical spa, barbershop, nail salon, salon suites or independent workspaces that's cool, huh and blow dry bars. So no matter what you're set up, and if it's beautifully designed, it belongs here. So why does this matter? Let's get real. Designed, it belongs here. So why does this matter? Let's get real.
Speaker 1:Winning or even being featured in salons of the year is a powerful moment. It validates your vision, it gives your team a sense of pride and it puts your salon in front of tens of thousands of industry professionals and potential new clients. And, more than anything, it tells the story of what's possible when creativity meets leadership. If your space has been transformed, if you've created a salon, spa or barbershop that feels like magic, this is your sign to go for it. Visit salon todaycom to grab the application, or check the link in the show notes to download my free PDF.
Speaker 1:You've already done the hard part. Now it's time to shine and remember when you know better, you do better. Thanks for tuning in to all about hair. If you loved this episode, hit, subscribe, leave us a review and share it with a fellow stylist or hair loving friend. You want more tips, tools and behind the scenes goodness? Follow me on YouTube or head to my website at DeniseKylitzcom. Yes, I know it's hard to spell, so don't worry, the link is in the show notes. Until next time, keep learning, keep creating and keep loving what you do.
