Struggling with retail? Try this experiment

If your salon offers retail, chances are you'd like to be selling more product than you currently are. Retail sales boost profit margins, enhance client loyalty, and help clients maintain salon-quality results. But there are a number of reasons we fall short of our retail goals. For instance, providers get busy and don't find the time to talk to their guests about home care; suggesting a guest increase their total ticket can feel icky (especially in a time of high food and gas prices); and service providers aren't motivated by commission.  Our guest this week is Lisa Musgrove, owner of LoneStar Salon & Spa in Tumwater, Washington. Lisa noticed that for all of her stylists, from newbies to veterans, the one common struggle was retail. So, she tried an experiment. Lisa launched the LoneStar Retail Lab, a four-week voluntary program. The Retail Lab combined introspection, education, collaboration and experimentation. It was eye-opening for Lisa. She learned that service providers were projecting their own financial anxieties onto their guests, and that many weren't familiar with the products her salon carries. The Lab also gave participants the opportunity to try new strategies, and bond with each other.  "It was a rare and special time with the team. I didn't have to just track KPIs. I really got to know everybody on a much deeper level and explore together how to be successful in that," she says.  The results were phenomenal and earned Lisa the 2026 Salon Today Retail and Merchandising Innovation Award. In this episode -- **full of actionable insights** -- Lisa lays out the roadmap for the Retail Lab. Blake and Lisa discuss: - The self-sabotaging mindsets that hold us back from offering retail - The positive mindset shifts into "solving not selling" - How to assess guest needs and spending power and offer home care accordingly - The power of intake forms - Why promotions should be fun, and even a little silly (because it works!) And more.  Follow Lisa on Instagram @lisaloveslonestar.   Read the Salon Today article featuring Lisa Musgrove and the Retail Lab, "Rethinking Retail in the Era of E-Commerce."   Follow Summit Salon Business Center on Instagram @SummitSalon, and on TikTok at SummitSalon. SUMM IT UP is now on YouTube! Watch extended cuts of our interviews at www.youtube.com/@summitunlocked Find host Blake Reed Evans on Instagram @BlakeReedEvans and on TikTok at blakereedevans. His DM's are always open! You can email Blake at [bevans@summitsalon.com](mailto:bevans@summitsalon.com). Visit us at SummitSalon.com to connect with others in the industry. SUMM IT UP is produced and edited by Andrea Muraskin. The executive producer is Tim Fisk.