The Boston-based hair salon chain Fantastic Sams wants to double its presence in metro Atlanta in the next five years from 40 to 80 stores, mirroring its push to go from about 1,300 to 2,600 salons nationwide.
The company is focused on Atlanta at the same time it is pursuing more business from two sets of consumers -- ethnic communities and men -- as a way to expand its share of a market estimated in the tens of billions of dollars.
That focus is what attracted franchisee Eric Hardaway, who recently signed a deal to open three salons in Atlanta’s urban core.
“One of the things that really grabbed me and we latched on to is that Fantastic Sams is looking to go into new markets, including the ethnic consumer,” said Hardaway, who is African-American.
Hardaway, a former executive at InterContinental Hotels, said he interviewed Fantastic Sams’ CEO Scott Colabuono to make sure the company was dedicated to the ethnic market.
“I was fairly convinced that he had the right vision,” Hardaway said.
Hardaway would like to see Fantastic Sams become a go-to salon nationwide for African-American women.
“If I am spending time in Chicago, where do I go for hair?” he asked. “I want to help Fantastic Sams create a model with familiarity among all consumers. A woman could go to a Fantastic Sams in any community and know exactly what she’s getting.”
Said Colabuono: “Fantastic Sams prides itself on offering all of our services on a multicultural basis. The African-American woman spends more money than a Caucasian woman on hair. That requires special training on relaxing and straightening.”
The company also has a special line of products for men, who more often are coming to the salon for cuts, color and waxing, he said. Haircuts, with a shampoo, range from $15 to $17.
In the past two years, Fantastic Sams has added about 10 metro Atlanta stores, said Ben Smith, the chain's director for the Southeast region.
“With about 6 million people in ... metro Atlanta, doubling [store count] should be fairly easy,” he said.
Fantastic Sams prefers real estate in grocery-anchored shopping and regional power centers.
“Hair salons thrive on traffic generated by grocers such as Publix and Kroger, so hair salon tenants are a natural fit for us,” said Matt Hagan, who leases properties in Atlanta for Jacksonville-based Regency Centers, a shopping center developer. “Fantastic Sams offers a good value for their services and serves as a positive addition to our tenant mix. That's why we already have 13 Fantastic Sams stores in Regency shopping centers.
Still, Fantastic Sams has a lot of competition in the hair care market.
Regis Corp., a major chain, estimates annual revenue from the hair care industry at up to $55 billion, but 90 percent of salons are independently owned.
Edina, Minn.-based Regis had $2.4 billion in revenue in fiscal 2009, with 12,700 salons worldwide under brands that include Supercuts, Sassoon Salon, Regis Salons, MasterCuts, SmartStyle and Cost Cutters. Fantastic Sams is privately owned and does not release revenue numbers.
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