For a brand to outshine others, influencing your audience’s interest is precarious- Manoj Samuel

The salon industry is doing quite well. The number of new brands that are entering the market is impressive as this shows the huge scope the industry holds. Brands are doing everything possible to make it big as the competition is quite tough. It is hard to be on top of your game when there is something new entering the market every day. Salon brands battle it out by keeping their best services or elements forward. Whether it is the quality of products used, the services offered, the affordability factor or the ambience, everything plays an important role in taking a brand to the height of success they desire. Ina conversation with Manoj Samuel, Co-founder, Vurve Signature Salon, for our Indian Salon and Wellness Yearbook 2017, he tells us the factors that have helped him to make his brand stand out among the heavy crowd and what distinguishes his brand from others.

Kindly share a brief about your brand, Vurve Signature Salon.
Vurve salon, incepted in 2015, presently has three centres in Chennai. The salon business model functions on multiple factors, which are our key partnerships, target audience, customer relationship, value proposition, resource- skill management and competence development. Having an optimistic vision to expand its sense of style and wellness, the salon sets great standards and selling experiences.

Let us know something about your entrepreneurial journey.
The journey is still going on. It’s been great, but definitely not a bed of roses. Every day is a new day, challenges are inevitable and learning is a continuous process in this industry. We are glad to say that we are at a place right now where we have the upper hand over situations.

What are some of Vurve Signature’s USP?
To describe in one word, its personalisation. The brand takes every customer seriously and caters to their specific needs. It has built a great relationship with its customers over the years. We believe in selling experiences and not just services. Vurve Signature salon is quite proud to confidently say that there is no going back once you have become a recipient of our expertise.

Kindly share some of your unforgettable moments with your brand.
The salon has a handful of them at a personal and business level. When it comes to the former, salon’s employees consider Vurve Signature Salon as their own brand. On a business front, it was the time when the salon was rewarded for its talent and was the winner of Cut & Style and Colour Trophy for L’Oreal Indian Hairdressers Awards 2016-2017 (South Zone). Vurve also won the Best Salon Design Award in 2016-2017 at the finals.

What are your views regarding the salon and spa industry?
To be honest, we lean a little more towards salon than the spa. We have positioned Vurve as a creative destination for hair and makeup. It is definitely correlated because, in our fast-paced lifestyle, customers prefer a one-stop solution. But, until a brand can outshine in both the fields, influencing your audience’s interest is precarious. When done right, the salon and spa industry does have a great future.