Summary Report – Emma Lee
History
Fionnuala had been living in the small town of filchara and noticed that there was a need in the area for a new hairdresser. There was little competition in the area at the time so in 1990 she decided to set up her own hairdressing salon. She received a loan from her bank and invested her own saving in to the business, she knew it was a risk but she was confident it would pay off.
Employees
She has five full time employees and one part time employee working in the salon. The staff range from manager to stylist to trainees. Trainees must have a completed at least a six month trainee programme to work in the salon and stylist need to be fully qualified. She recruits staff through local media; advertisements in the local paper, local radio stations, etc. Certain health and safety procedures must be carried out by all staff; all electrical wires must be covered, all equipment must be properly sterilized, floors must be clean/ hair swept up etc.
Market research and promotion
Being a local herself, and by conversing with other locals she could tell that there was a need for this service in the area. She knew that her target market would be an all-round audience and that her salon would have to have a universal appeal. There were only two other hairdressers in the area, so she had little competition. She promotes her business through local media; newspapers, radio, sponsorship and word of mouth.
Finance
AS she didn’t receive any government funding to set up the business it is funded by the loan she received from the bank and through her own finances.
Self-employment
As an entrepreneur, Fionnuala is self-employed. She says that there are advantages and disadvantages of being self-employed. The advantages being that you get to choose your own hours and you only have to answer to yourself, you get a sense of achievement and she finds it very rewarding. The disadvantages are that you are always on-call (if someone...