Sometimes the most important conversations are the ones that happen between two friends who are deep in it themselves.

In this episode, Sam and Jen pull back the curtain on where they are each at right now. In their businesses, in their teams and in their lives and give each other, and you, permission to just be in the season you are in.

Sam is back on the floor full time and genuinely loving it. Jen is in the hustle, building her team and finding her rhythm. Neither of them is where they thought they would be. And both of them are okay with that.

This episode is a honest, grounded and at times deeply personal conversation about what it actually looks like to run a small salon business in real time, without the highlight reel.

From wage ratios and retail to radical honesty and gratitude, this one covers a lot of ground. But the thread running through all of it is the same. The season you are in right now is not a detour. It is the journey.

What we cover

Where Sam and Jen are each at in their businesses right now

Sam's return to the floor and what that season has taught her

Jen's hustle of building and filling her team's columns

Wage ratios, what they should look like and how to check yours

Retail as a tool for genuinely helping clients, not selling to them

Training young team members consistently and why bite size beats once a week

The difference between being in your business and running it from above

The time is going to pass anyway. You may as well be in it.

Timestamps

00:00 Episode Summary

02:29 Hospital Detour and Boundaries

04:50 Easter Break Reset Rituals

06:59 Back on the Salon Floor

09:00 Booked Out and Waitlist Systems

10:34 Jen’s Hustle to Fill Columns

12:24 Training Young Staff Fast

14:43 Offers Referrals and Memberships

16:37 Choosing Your Season in Business

18:27 38 Hours on Floor Plus Admin

19:42 Capacity and Wage Ratio Basics

22:23 Salon Cost Benchmarks

23:38 Tracking Wages Weekly

24:39 Team Targets and Performance

25:47 Retail Without the Ick

28:05 Owner Lessons and Expectations

32:09 Work for Yourself Myth

35:25 Quarter Two Focus

36:55 Gratitude and Seasons

46:04 Closing Thoughts

Mentioned in this episode:

💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM Imports

We’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:

➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.

➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.

It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.

Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇

MCM

💛 A HUGE Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors - Timely

We’ve partnered with Timely to bring you something special:

➡ Enjoy a 14 day free trial to see how Timely can transform your salon.

➡ New customers get 50% off their first 3 months.

If you've been thinking about levelling up your salon systems, this is your moment. Timely is designed specifically for salons. Helping you manage bookings, clients, staff, and more with ease.

Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to to claim the offer. 👇

Timely

https://www.salonrising.com

Retention. It is one of those words that gets thrown around a lot in this industry, usually tied to numbers, rebooking rates and revenue. But Sara Briscoe from Roca Verde has a different way of looking at it, and once you hear it this way, you will not be able to unhear it.

Because retention is not just good for your bottom line. It is good for your nervous system. A column full of familiar faces means less anxiety, less tap dancing to impress someone new, and more of the kind of days that remind you why you love this job. That is what is in it for your team. And that is exactly the conversation most salon owners are not having.

In this Mini Moment, Sara breaks down the why behind retention, the how behind building it, and why teaching your team to care about it starts with making it personal.

What we cover

• Why retention is an emotional conversation as much as a financial one
• The real cost of a column full of new clients on your adrenals and your confidence
• How to teach your team the why so they actually care
• The power of a consistent consultation and giving clients a hair journey
• Social media as a retention tool, not just a marketing one
• Why a calm familiar column is one of the greatest gifts you can give your team

When you and your team understand what retention actually does for you and them, everything shifts.

Mentioned in this episode:

https://www.salonrising.com

💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM Imports

We’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:

➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.

➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.

It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.

Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇

MCM

💛 A HUGE Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors - Timely

We’ve partnered with Timely to bring you something special:

➡ Enjoy a 14 day free trial to see how Timely can transform your salon.

➡ New customers get 50% off their first 3 months.

If you've been thinking about levelling up your salon systems, this is your moment. Timely is designed specifically for salons. Helping you manage bookings, clients, staff, and more with ease.

Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to to claim the offer. 👇

Timely

Some episodes stop you in your tracks. This is one of them.

Sam & Jen are joined by one of Sam's closest friends and hair besties, Brooke Wolf from Paper Rokk. For a conversation that is as honest, warm and real as it gets.

Brooke has built her salon business over 12 years through some of life's most defining moments. Loss, burnout, single motherhood, a new build and now navigating the early days of a significant personal change. And through all of it, one thing has kept showing up as the answer.

Connection.

This episode explores what connection actually looks like in business and in life. The connection you have with your team, your clients, your closest friends and yourself. It is a conversation about showing up for people in ways that matter, about the salons that save us when everything else feels uncertain, and about what happens when you finally let yourself lean into the people around you instead of pushing through alone.

Brooke's story is one of resilience, self awareness and grace. And her reminder that we are in the business of connection, even when we forget it, is something every salon owner needs to hear.

What we cover

• Brooke's journey from heartbreak to building Paper Rokk over 12 years
• Opening a salon after loss and figuring it out as you go
• Running two salons, burning out and knowing when to let one go
• Navigating separation as a business owner and a mother
• Why grief doesn't stop, it just moves with you
• The difference between sending a text and actually showing up
• How your salon can save you in the seasons you least expect
• What connection really means for your team, your clients and yourself
• Why saying yes more often can change everything
• The glass balls and the plastic balls, what you let fall and what you don't

The answer was always connection. It just takes the hard seasons to remind us.

Timestamps:

00:00 Episode Summary

02:33 Meet Brooke Wolf

03:27 Friendship And Support Crew

06:27 Starting A Salon After Loss

09:27 Second Salon And Burnout

12:15 Closing Palm Beach Lessons

13:43 New Space Pregnancy Chaos

15:07 Group Chat Lifeline

19:20 Separation And New Chapter

25:43 Grief While Leading

28:49 Finding Joy In Small Moments

32:37 Saying Yes Again

34:31 Glow Up And Bucket List

35:44 Better Apart Realizations

36:45 Trauma And Overworking

39:13 New Hobbies And Joy

42:57 Friendship Web Story

46:13 Connection Over Everything

51:02 Salon As Safe Haven

56:21 Business Lessons And Team

59:03 Show Up For People

01:05:30 Grace In Breakups

01:08:30 Co Parenting And Closure

01:10:02 Final Connection Reminder

Mentioned in this episode:

https://www.salonrising.com

💖 Celebrating Our Podcast Partner – Christophe Robin, proudly distributed by McM Imports

We’ve partnered with Christophe Robin and MCM Imports to bring you something beautiful:

➡ Experience the Christophe Robin Discovery Box — curated by pro ambassador Monique McMahon.

➡ Inside, you’ll find her handpicked favourites — the hero products she swears by in the salon.

It’s your invitation to explore the range and discover why Christophe Robin has become a quiet obsession among stylists who know their craft.

Click the link below to request your FREE Christophe Robin Discovery Box, exclusively through McM Imports. 👇

MCM

💛 A HUGE Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors - Timely

We’ve partnered with Timely to bring you something special:

➡ Enjoy a 14 day free trial to see how Timely can transform your salon.

➡ New customers get 50% off their first 3 months.

If you've been thinking about levelling up your salon systems, this is your moment. Timely is designed specifically for salons. Helping you manage bookings, clients, staff, and more with ease.

Use the code SALONRISING at checkout or click the link below to to claim the offer. 👇

Timely