Shop Talk program takes advantage of informal salon settings
Women often tell their hairdressers more than they tell their doctors. After all, ladies visit the hair salon for a cut or color every six weeks or so.
A new business initiative is under way at hair salons and spas across Lake County to take advantage of the relationship between stylists and clients.
Shop Talk is a program that launched in October to inform customers about health issues, as well as to promote local health-related businesses. Impact Communications owner Michelle Rathman spearheaded the 5-year-old program that's operating in other parts of the state.
In Lake County, Rathman is working with Gurnee Radiology Centers, or GRC, sponsor for the local program.
Shop Talk is designed to teach salon, spa and barbershop owners and their staffs how to effectively educate clients about the importance of disease prevention and early detection. Kicking off in October, breast cancer awareness was the first focus disease.
To promote the program, stylists often wear T-shirts with the words "Shop Talk. Go ahead ask me." Stylists sported pink ribbons as another communication avenue.
GRC provides the shops with information, educational tools and easy to understand brochures about how to introduce sensitive health subjects. November's topic is back and joint pain.
"We know women are the health-care consumers for the family," Rathman said. She added that the program is about health-care marketing. GRC has partnered with an array of physicians whose information is available in the literature at the salons.
"The way the health-care industry markets to the patient is changing," Rathman said.
Shop Talk adds value to a salon owner's business, giving clients the "recipe" for better health, proactive screening and information on health experts in their community, Rathman said.
The program is a special one for Rathman, who operates her public relations firm in St. Charles. Rathman is a 10-year cancer survivor. She confided in her hair stylist and a workout buddy about her skin cancer.
The motto for October's breast health topic was "show them you care as much about their health as you do about their hair."
Lake County stylists say the program has started well. "It helps promote health and opens the doors of communication," said Rene Matayka, owner of Team Hair Design in Libertyville. "We talk to our clients about so many things. This gives us direction," she said.
About 30 salons are participating in the area program including: Any Kut, Island Lake; Fantastic Sam's, Mundelein; Hair Happening, Libertyville; Hair I Am Salon, Round Lake Beach; Paradise Salon, Lake Villa; Park Avenue Hair Design, Libertyville; Patricia Roseman, Antioch; Sindy's Signature Hair Salon, Lindenhurst; and Tangles, Lake Villa.
Salons in Gurnee participating include: Damoda, Essential Hair Studio, Impressions Beauty Salon, Johnathan IC Concepts, Kahzel Hair Design, Off Broadway, Pampering Den Spa and Trio Hair Design.
For more information, check out www.GRCImagingCenters.com.