Life and Money - This article was submitted on 11/5/07 to be published in the 11/16/07 issue of the 9 newspapers of Rising Publications (formerly Martinelli Publications) in Westchester County, NY including The Westchester Crusader, The Rye Chronicle, The Eastchester Record, The Pelham Sun, The Sound View News, Home News & Times, The Mt. Vernon Independent, Harrison Independent, and North Castle News.

Written by:

Fran Sisco, 30 Mill Road, New Rochelle, NY 10804

Cell and Home office - 914.589.1013; Email – FrancisSisco@aol.com

Copyright 2007 Fran Sisco

Life and Money - "Beautiful Business"

By Fran Sisco, CPA, PFS

(Word count = 727 including "Across the Media" section (40 words) plus 61 words for About the Author)

Pulling up in front of the salon, on an early Saturday morning, a few weeks ago, the first thing I noticed was the white and black banner hanging under the "Salon Atelier" awning. In an eye-catching but tasteful script font it said, "Celebrating Our 10th Anniversary" and under it within a long black box were the white letters that said "We Would Like to Thank All Our Clients For Keeping Us In Business For 10 Years." As I exited my car and gathered my video camera and tripod, I noticed several young women entering the salon with black T-Shirts that proclaimed on the backs "Happy 10th Anniversary." In the space of a few minutes, my enthusiasm began accelerating about videotaping sections of the day.

Several weeks before the anniversary date, I offered to take videoclips of the activities of the day including interactions among staff and with clients, and then I would upload the videoclips to the internet so that a wider circle of people could enjoy the videoclips and do so easily. I wanted to do the work primarily as a way to share with a larger audience the great experience I had over the years as a very satisfied customer. Athough I originally thought I would be giving something back to the salon for all the great service and warmth they showed me, I was the one who truly benefited. I got to see a world-class small business in action, from the inside, up close and personal. I got to understand better what "beautiful business" really means. From behind the lens of my camera and talking with the vibrant, intelligent workers and customers, I came to notice certain key business principles that were in action and having a major impact. As my observations increased during the day, I got to see common threads of good business sense and good people sense. Traditional beauty captured my eye and held its interest. But it was the beauty of good business that excited my mind. If you go to my website www.videovoom.com you can view any or all of the 15 videoclips of varying length, I think you will agree on the following summary of principles, along with the related observations.

1. Life is beautiful when life around you is beautiful. - The emphasis is on making people pleasing to the eye, and in so doing develops a love for making things better. People inside have fresh faces with smiles that are contagious. They easily share with each other their hearts. The salon's physical space is beautifully designed with many levels, high ceilings, contrasting colors, corners and alcoves, lighting, classy furniture, conveniences, etc.

2, Pause to celebrate business milestones and express gratitude - Just like the 10th anniversary signs. Too often we don't stop and give thanks.

3, Your business's mission should be clear, concise and emotional. - When I asked Barbara, the salon's owner, what is the mission of her salon, she answered very naturally and spontaneously, with a wide smile - "To make people happy." She didn't clutter the statement with phrases like "to offer a wide array of professional services" or 'to be open extended hours" etc.

4. Everyone should do everything, gladly. - I noticed several employees washing the hair of clients, with the same level of care and professionalism as cutting and styling hair. All tasks are important to an enterprise. Even mundane ones like stripping hair, were done enthusiastically and well.

5. Put big beauty into little things. - As I videotaped, I noticed many of the smaller touches around the salon, like the art and collector objects, the vases of flowers, the immaculate bathrooms, the highly-organized clutter free decorating, the gold party balloons signifying ten years, the celebratory bottle of champagne, etc.

6. Express yourself and often. - The exchanges among staff and clients were quite candid and honest. They showed a deep sense of connectedness, that doesn't just happen randomly, but rather as a result of people doing things for one another, in their own special individual way. Every woman had the same black "Happy 10th" T-shirt showing common purpose, but each had their own unique individual style and look.

In the salon are a bevy of beautiful women helping to make people look and feel more beautiful, outside and inside. Don't we all want that?

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References Across the Media:

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For the 15 videoclips and many photos of Salon Atelier and the 10th anniversary party on 9/29/077, go to www.VideoVoom.com, and then select the link under the "Places" category for the subcategory "Business - Salon Atelier." (also available on www.youtube.com)

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About the author:

Fran Sisco is a CPA and Personal Financial Specialist and writes on topics related to life and money. You can contact Franby email at FrancisSisco@aol.com or by phone at 914.589.1013 in order to express your opinion about this article or to obtain copies of prior articles. She resides in New Rochelle, NY with hher spouse and daughter.