Live with Charity and Emanuel!

In 2025 there’s no choice but to be a business savvy barber – and the business savvy barber uses Vagaro. With over 85,000 businesses already working with the platform, engaging with the tool to grow enterprises, boost innovation and make the daily running of their business go smoothly.  

Towards the end of last year, we at BarberEVO began our collaboration with Vagaro to create a series of Instagram Lives that gets into the nitty gritty of the barbering business. In the first edition of the series, SalonEVO & BarberEVO Editor, Jennifer Paxton, was joined by Vagaro CMO Charity Hudnall and lead technical trainer, Emanuel Nevarez. The trio of industry experts sat down to discuss the all-important question… Are business savvy barbers underrated?  

“Well, first off, the barber industry itself, I feel, is underrated, right?” Charity said. “Barbers in general, they’re a necessity. Not only that there is such a rich culture and history behind it all – it’s a community. So, barbers are thriving. Additionally, I’ve been watching barbers over the years and the business savvy is just amazing. It’s more than just the legacy, the history, and the culture – the marketing component that barbers are able to now do, especially through software like Vagaro, it’s insane.” 

For Charity – marketing is key to great business, and a huge part of marketing is understanding your market! In 2025, clients want that one stop shop – which is where Vagaro can give you a helping hand.  

Emanuel said: “When I’m working with businesses, I first identify what business stage they’re in. And for barber shops, it starts with just building that professionalism that they need. They’re usually ready to take that next step. It’s about looking at who your audience is and who you are, whilst trying to market towards your ideal demographic. The more you can start being strategic about how you target them, the more success you’ll find.” 

Find this, even more, and the answer to the question… ‘Are Business Savvy Barbers Underrated?’ in the full live down below.  

Vagaro Enhances E-Commerce Capabilities with Introduction of Product Variants

Vagaro, the leading software for businesses in beauty, wellness, and fitness, has announced the launch of its new Product Variants feature, offering businesses even greater flexibility in managing their retail sales all in one place.

The new feature allows businesses to easily manage product variations, such as different sizes, shapes, or colors, by simply indicating these details in a dropdown menu. This eliminates the need to enter each variant as a standalone product, simplifying the inventory process. Additionally, users can manage essential product details such as ingredients, instructions, and size guides, all from one centralized page.

The launch reflects Vagaro’s commitment to being a comprehensive, all-in-one solution for beauty business owners. Industry data shows that retail sales contribute between 15-40% of revenue in the beauty industry. With the addition of product variants, users can maximize these product sales directly from their Vagaro account.

“Beauty & wellness professionals know that time is money. Our product variants feature will give some of that time back while also helping them improve their retail sales; enhancing their revenue in more ways than one,” says Vagaro CMO, Charity Hudnall.

Businesses can efficiently manage and sync their entire online inventory without the need to dedicate excessive time to stocking or updating multiple platforms. Vagaro AI also offers businesses the ability to craft product descriptions and details quickly, further enhancing the efficiency and professionalism of their online stores, especially when used in combination with product variants.

In Conclusion: The addition of product variants streamlines the retail experience for beauty professionals, enabling them to manage their inventory and product details with ease. With this new feature, Vagaro continues to help businesses grow by simplifying complex tasks and enhancing revenue potential.

For more information on how product variants can help businesses thrive, visit Vagaro.

Vagaro Launches Connect App to Enhance Real-Time Communication for Businesses and Clients

In today’s fast-paced business environment, effective communication is more important than ever. Vagaro has introduced Vagaro Connect, a two-way messaging platform designed to improve communication between businesses and their clients, as well as among team members. Accessible via the Connect App or Vagaro Desktop, the app enables seamless, real-time conversations, empowering businesses to deliver a personalized experience to clients while improving team collaboration.

The dedicated business communication channel within Vagaro Connect ensures that work-related messages are kept separate from personal messages, allowing business owners to set clear boundaries. This helps improve professionalism while maintaining effective communication.

What is Vagaro Connect?

Vagaro Connect is an extension of the Vagaro Pro apps that provides an easy-to-use platform for direct messaging between clients and businesses. By enabling two-way chat for both client and team communications, Connect helps simplify the process of staying in touch, with all features fully accessible through the Vagaro Pro app on desktop and mobile. Full functionality is available with Vagaro’s text messaging (SMS) feature, making it easier to stay connected at all times.

While many business owners already communicate with clients and employees through emails or phone calls, Vagaro Connect offers a more streamlined and efficient solution. Unlike traditional methods, Connect enables real-time, personalized communication that’s more efficient and easier to track.

Turn Conversations into Conversions

In addition to facilitating communication, Vagaro Connect helps businesses convert positive client interactions into booked appointments or upsell opportunities. When communicating with clients through the app, business owners can send appointment links directly to their calendars, allowing clients to book services on the spot. The integration with the Vagaro Calendar makes it easy to send clients links that go straight into a service provider’s schedule, ensuring that every interaction has the potential to turn into revenue.

This seamless integration between chat and scheduling simplifies the booking process for clients and helps businesses secure revenue quickly. The combination of fast response times, personalized service, and easy scheduling ultimately enhances the customer experience and boosts the likelihood of repeat business.

Acquire Client Information Quickly & Easily

In today’s fast-paced environment, speed and accuracy matter. With Vagaro Connect, businesses can quickly obtain important client details through direct communication, without the need for time-consuming phone calls or emails. By enabling text messaging, businesses can immediately gather essential information, update appointment details, or request feedback, all while ensuring a personalized and efficient interaction.

The platform also includes an internal notes feature, allowing businesses to leave relevant client details within the chat history. This keeps all team members informed about a client’s preferences, upcoming appointments, and any other important information, ensuring a seamless experience for the client at every touchpoint.

Clear Communication Across Multiple Platforms

Another standout feature of Vagaro Connect is its ability to maintain consistent communication across various platforms. Clients can reach out via the Vagaro Marketplace, your Branded App, or your MySite. Once a client initiates a conversation, the message icon will appear across all platforms, so businesses can respond quickly, regardless of where they are.

Even if the conversation doesn’t proceed in one uninterrupted stream, Vagaro Connect allows businesses to pick up right where they left off, ensuring continuity and preventing any information from falling through the cracks. With access to message history and internal notes, your team can stay aligned on client interactions, no matter where they take place.

Improved Team Communication

Effective team communication is a cornerstone of any successful business. Vagaro Connect enhances internal communication by allowing team members to engage in one-on-one chats or group chats, helping managers communicate with employees about important matters, including:

• Scheduling and shift changes
• Payroll and staffing updates
• Training opportunities
• New inventory or promotions
• Daily deals or special events

In addition, Vagaro Connect syncs with employee calendars to provide a real-time view of each team member’s availability, ensuring that scheduling issues are addressed quickly. Whether it’s ensuring that a team member is free to take a client or sharing important business updates, Vagaro Connect improves operational efficiency and promotes a more informed, connected workforce.

Better Work-Life Balance

While it’s important to be available for clients and employees, it’s equally important to maintain personal boundaries. Vagaro Connect helps business owners preserve their work-life balance by keeping professional communication separate from personal messages. By using the app, business owners can respond to clients and employees when needed, without worrying about personal conversations mixing with work communications.

This not only maintains professionalism but also prevents the mix-up of private and business messages, offering a much-needed distinction between the two. By allowing business owners to manage all their communications in one place—without using personal phone numbers or email addresses—Vagaro Connect helps maintain the right balance.

Conclusion

As businesses seek more effective ways to manage client and team communications, Vagaro Connect emerges as a crucial tool. The app enhances the overall client experience, streamlines internal communication, and supports a healthy work-life balance for business owners. With its seamless integration with Vagaro’s other tools and features, Connect enables businesses to manage real-time communication more effectively and efficiently.

Businesses looking to improve communication, streamline client interactions, and enhance team collaboration can start a FREE 30-day trial of Vagaro Connect today and experience its impact firsthand.

Fred Helouis is the driving force behind Vagaro, launching one of the longest standing scheduling software systems. Here, fred tells us about the triumphs of building a business from the ground up, and his commitment to empowering professionals with cutting-edge tech.

“I was born in Lebanon, and I came to the United States when I was 18 years old, fleeing the Lebanese Civil War,” Fred told us. “I went to school to learn computer programming, which was a skill I developed in my first job at a very small company. I found out that I had a real passion for it, finding the quick results you could create very rewarding.”

Fred’s idea for Vagaro originated over 20 years ago, and although it didn’t happen right away, the spark for his innovation never quite died. During one of many work trips to Korea for a computer company, Fred thought to himself, “Man, I really need a haircut when I get home.” But in order to get one on the books, he was going to need to spend $3.00 a minute to make a call to the shop – and even if he did, the time difference meant he would have to make the call in the middle of the night. That’s when he thought, “I wish I could just do it online…”

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Early days

Once that seed was planted, Fred had the idea of creating a scheduling software for salons and barbershops in the back of his mind for years.

“I got a job at a new company, and I was trying to focus at the job at hand, even though I had this great idea,” he explained. “Anyway, my background was in programming robotics, not website programming. I was just like, ‘How do you even start a company? How do you get money to start a company?’ I had no idea how to do any of that.”

“When I started to investigate other businesses, everything had an E in front of it, so initially I called the business eappointment.com and bought the domain for that website. Every time I would mention this to one of my friends at work, they’d laugh,” Fred told us. “It took 10 years until I fully launched the business. I had been laid off during the 2008 recession and took that as a sign to dive in. That’s when I decided that to create my own company and decide my own destiny.”

“I went to Dubai and started working on a business plan. I had my sister and a couple friends invest in the business, so it’s nice knowing that the company was started by four Lebanese people. Two years after that, we were profitable. Now, 15 years later, we have become a household name in the industry – and it’s pretty cool that we were the first app of our kind on app stores.”

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Five star culture

Customer relations are at the forefront of Vagaro, which prompted Fred to develop his five-star company culture. “The way I explain this is that if you go to a restaurant, you should receive excellent service – the water comes right away, and the waiter takes your order, and your food comes… but it’s stone cold,” Fred explained. “The whole time you were having this five-star experience, but one person on the team messed up.”

“It could be either the cook or someone else in the team, which brings your entire experience down to two-stars. So, at Vagaro, we work with this concept in mind that we are a team, and if one of us lets the customer down, then we all do,” he explained. “The entire team is committed to the five-star experience, and that’s not just about customers. Internally, I want everyone in the company to treat each other with respect.”

And how does Fred ensure that this ethos is met across all aspects of the business? It all starts before the customer has even signed up to Vagaro, he explained: “From a customer experience, we want our quality to shine through, right from the advertisements to our webpage. Then, when you get to the point of signing up, we want to ensure the customer still feels like they’re having the same experience. Sometimes, once you sign up for a software, it looks like you’re about to pay taxes on the government website,” Fred laughed.

“We want the experience to be always modern. When you call us for support or you want your information, our employees will treat you with respect and friendliness, while offering you support. We aim to answer the phone in less than two minutes. We offer 24/7 support so people can reach us, whether it’s by phone, chat, or email. We’re more than happy to talk to them, and we want to be relentless in our support. We’re not going to hang up the phone until the customer feels like their question is answered or their issue is solved.”

Fred hopes that this 5-star experience then reflects on the end user. As a barber, you might give 5-star service and haircuts all day long, but if your client’s booking experience was strenuous or frustrating, that could be as detrimental as cold soup during a nice meal.

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Values

And a huge part of Vagaro, is the values and hope they instill in their customers – something Fred feels extremely passionate about. “Our ideal for business is that if our customers prosper, then we prosper with them,” he told us. “We’ve been profitable in business for the last 14 years doing what we are doing, and we just want to ensure we are the best value salon and barbershop software out there.”

“There’s nothing for free in this world, trust me. So many other companies will draw you in with an offer of something for free, but there will be hidden costs. Unfortunately, that’s just the hook to get people in the door. Whereas our aim is to be responsible, we want to support our customers throughout their business journeys, and be a steady, reliable constant, in this ever-changing world.”