How Pigtails & Crewcuts Adapted & Supported Franchisees During Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 changed life for everyone. Like many other franchise brands, the Atlanta-based Pigtails & Crewcuts was not immune to changes and disruption in business during such an unprecedented event. Early in the pandemic, brand executives were actively communicating with franchisees, making daily calls, helping them get supplies that were in high demand, developing new and enhanced salon sanitation and safety procedures, and adapting numerous other operational directives to put the safety of the brand’s franchisees, their employees, and their customers first. None of this is surprising considering the brand was created by parents for kids. 

The children’s hair salon franchise is a pioneer in offering a stress-free haircutting experience for the entire family. Along with haircuts, the brand offers a custom line of kid-centric hair products and accessories, gifts, and private party rooms for birthday celebrations. 

One of the key support components of the Pigtails & Crewcuts concept and its success is soup to nuts franchisee support. At no time was this ever more important than during the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020.

“We knew it was important to stay in close contact with our franchisees and let them know we were here to help and support any way we could,” said Theresa Vona, Vice President of Franchise Support. “Our support specialists worked to make sure franchisees knew all the steps we had taken to increase salon sanitation and implement other important operational changes.” 

In addition to regular phone calls and Zoom calls, the brand was there to help franchisees when closings were mandated – and again when those mandates were lifted - help them negotiate with landlords for rent relief and deferment, and even help franchisees understand and gain access to the federal government’s Payroll Protection Program (PPP). Other measures introduced included the development of an appointment-based system to help keep the salons in compliance with social distancing mandates and keep customers and employees safe.

Meanwhile, the Pigtails & Crewcuts franchisees stayed in constant contact with each other through their own peer-to-peer network offering advice, encouragement, and support to one another. “We have always felt like our system was one big family,” said Michelle Holliman, Vice President of Franchise Development. “It’s more important now than ever to show our franchisees we support them and want them to succeed. That’s why we’ve worked so hard to make our salons safe, follow guidelines, and create sanitization efforts that exceed the highest standard of federal and state mandates.”

Then there was the brand’s marketing message. The brand again looked to support its franchisees by adjusting  communication efforts with their customers. Vona said it was important to communicate to customers that their safety was a top priority. So the brand worked with its marketing firm to develop materials and graphics that were Covid-19 specific (new handwashing requirements, sanitization changes, and facemasks, for example) and could be downloaded and used by franchisees anywhere. The materials could be used anywhere from social media to the salon’s POS. The brand has striven to stay in front of all the continuing changes so that the franchisees know what’s happening and can inform their customers. The goal was to build trust and make sure the brand was known for safety.  

Pigtails & Crewcuts is a proven model with simple operations and comprehensive training and support.  The brand is looking for qualified candidates. To learn more about franchise opportunities and available territories throughout the United States, visit www.pigtailsandcrewcutsfranchise.com, call 770-752-6800, or contact Hannah Swanson, Franchise Development Coordinator, at hswanson@pigtailsandcrewcuts.com

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