International And Online Expansion Planned For Hairhouse Warehouse

What better way to celebrate 20 years of business growth than with a new online retailing platform and strong plans for expansion both here and abroad? The founders of Hairhouse Warehouse share their excitement.

A lot can happen in 20 years. For franchise Hairhouse Warehouse, it has involved the opening of more than 130 stores across the country, the initiation of over 100 franchisees and the evolution of a brand from a single store in Knox City, to a huge network of hair and beauty one-stop shops.

Tony Lattouf, who co-founded the business with brother Joseph, remembers when the pair dived into business ownership, first with the Lattouf salon brand, then with Hairhouse Warehouse in 1992. "We opened our first salon in about 1983 and that was a Lattouf in Doncaster. We had no customers. We were both young businessmen. I used to walk out in the mall and say to a lady or gentleman 'Excuse me, my name is Tony, why don't I give you a complimentary wash and blow wave?' and they'd think I was trying to make a pass at them," he says.

Unlike Lattouf, Hairhouse Warehouse, which first opened in Knox City, boasts a huge range of haircare products, with the focus as much on providing haircuts and treatments as it is on selling retail products. "We put everything under one roof: hair care, beauty products, nail, waxing, body piercing, spray tanning, hairdressing - and people would go there and buy products that are value for money. It was a new experience in hair and beauty," says Tony.

And after 20 years, the franchise, which last year claimed the Established Franchisor of the Year award at the Westpac FCA Excellence in Franchising Awards, shows no sign of slowing down. It will be celebrating its anniversary by launching online retailing capabilities and is also in the process of assessing opportunities for expansion overseas, with Singapore, America, England and Asia all being considered.

But at the moment, like with many big businesses, e-retailing is first on the priority list. "Basically, we want to have a website where people can go and are able to ask questions and to look at what a store has," Joseph Lattouf says. "So online will definitely be a big part of where we're going, but we're going to do it with our franchisees, we're not going to do it against them. We want them to be part of it so we can have the successes together. We want to make it easier for the customer to shop but we don't want to disadvantage our franchisees." The Hairhouse Warehouse team plans to launch the e-retailing facilities later this year, not only as an online shopping tool, where customers can have goods delivered to their home, but also as a platform where customers and brand representatives can communicate with each other. But with these capabilities still in the planning phase, Joseph and Tony are currently focusing on getting franchisees on side.

"It's a very touchy subject and some franchisees could think 'Oh my God my business is going down the drain and head office is going to take all the money' but that's not the case at all. Ultimately our main goal is to get the customers back into stores, so we're really going to promote the salon side of it," says Joseph.

In order to maintain in-store visits and reassure franchisees that online retailing isn't a threat to their bottom dollar, Hairhouse Warehouse will reward online customers with in-store treatments when they make a purchase. The brand won't be offering cheaper products online either, but the same products, and the same prices that bricks and mortar outlets advertise.

"We've made a strong commitment that our online business won't be in competition with our stores. We can't be cheaper because that defeats the purpose [and] the franchisees were happy and very excited about how we are going to reward the customer with salon services." Hairhouse Warehouse's expansion to new international markets must also reassure franchisees of the security of bricks and mortar stores, as well as the franchisor's commitment to the offline retail world. "We've hired a company called DC Strategy, we've done two years of research and we're looking to see which countries we can go to, which ones we can't and which ones would suit our concept," said Joseph.

"We've had a lot of interest from the states and from Asia, the UK and the Middle East. Hopefully we'll have one country definitely signed up for 2012." Online sales will not come at a price for bricks and mortar stores, the Lattouf brothers insist.

Growth on the home front is also on the cards for Hairhouse Warehouse's 20th anniversary and beyond, with plans to open 10 to 15 stores a year, until the franchise can boast at least 200 stores across the country.

So with a very full plate of national and international store openings as well as the launch of e-retailing capabilities, the Lattouf brothers are excited about what the next 20 years of business might bring. And while the brand will surely continue to grow and diversify, the pair are staying true to their very simple business philosophy: understand what you're offering and love your job.

Tony says, "We really understand this brand, and when you really understand the retail component and the hair component, then one plus one equals two. And also, you've got to have the passion. We're here every day and we want to grow and see our franchisees be successful. That's what makes us really happy and keeps the brand strong."

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