A Lesson in Understanding What it Takes to Build a Barber Brand
All over the world in the last 10 years, there has been a huge renaissance of the barbershop. Quite simply barbering has become ‘cool again’ and there has been a return to the ‘Barbershop’… that uniquely ‘male space’.
I don’t for one minute think that it’s a trend that will return back to the ‘unisex model’ that existed since the ’70s. But like everything, there are inevitably some people that have done it far better than others.
My guest on today's Podcast is Matty Conrad who amongst other things is a barber and founder of ‘Victory Barber & Brand’ based in Victoria the capital of British Columbia in Canada… which if you haven’t been there is a stunningly beautiful part of the world.
In today’s podcast we talk about:
- The heart and the passion that sits behind the Victory brand
- What is it that makes a successful barbershop and why it’s essential to control your culture
- Matty talks about how he has overcome the hurdles that exist in growing any business…
- When is the right time to expand
- What it really takes to start a product line
And lots more!
Matty Conrad is one of those people that is well worth listening to and I’m sure you won't be disappointed there is an authenticity and humility about him that is hard to find and I think that is one of the things that makes him the success that he has become and rightly deserves…
In This Episode:
[02:03] Welcome to the show, Matty!
[02:46] Antony, where he first met Matty.
[05:33] Matty speaks about sitting in the front row during a talk that Antony was giving.
[07:50] Matty discusses going from owning a salon to opening a barbershop and making the transition.
[10:21] Matty speaks about being obsessed with old school barbershops.
[13:27] Antony shares a story about Matty carrying a moose head into his brand new shop.
[14:56] Do you recognize consciously that you are the brand?
[17:07] Matty speaks about becoming himself wholeheartedly without reservation and how that drew people to him.
[18:48] Matty shares why he put the moose head into his new barbershop.
[21:00] Matty discusses his ballooning debt when he opened his first barbershop.
[23:33] A week before he opened, he had no barbers and wondered how he would handle all six chairs by himself.
[25:24] Matty speaks about selling his salon and the person he sold it too.
[29:15] Matty discusses what he learned from Antony's books about people leaving your salon.
[32:09] Matty shares about opening a bar that had a barbershop in the back that clients can wait in for their haircut.
[34:35] Someone tried to duplicate his shop, failed, and then asked Matty if he wanted to buy it.
[36:32] Matty speaks about moving to Vancouver to grow the shop.
[38:54] What's the key to successful expansion?
[41:33] Matty discusses trying to rehabilitate his employees and realize that it's not his job.
[43:38] “It's easier to employ people who share your values than try to change the values of people you've got.”
[45:24] Matty speaks about fear, and who is holding the bag.
[48:33] Matty discusses his product development and the stories he tells about the products.
[50:20] He shares the challenges he faced trying to get his products manufactured.
[53:19] His products have never made him money, even though he owns the brand.
[56:23] Matty thinks barbershops are a trend, but momentum will keep them going.
[59:31] Matty shares some final thoughts with Antony.
[1:00:10] Thank you for being on the show!
Thanks for listening!
Thanks so much for joining me this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons at the side or bottom of this post.
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Special thanks to Matty Conrad for sharing his words of wisdom with me for this week’s episode. Until next time!
Links and Resources
Find Matty:
@mattyconrad
