A SANCTUARY FOR
Creativity By Anthony Gray
Located in heart of South Brisbane, David Murry Salon is a sanctuary for creativity. David and his team have built a reputation of excellence that spans 13 years and he generously agreed to give us an insight into the DMS journey.
David, tell us a little about your salon. What made you take the plunge?
Taking the plunge into salon ownership was a natural progression, having been raised in a family of small business owners. The conversations around the challenges of running a small business amongst my large family of 6 had an impact. I didn’t realise until later in life how impactful those conversations would be. Purchasing a salon was a goal I wanted to achieve by age 30, and of course like many other people I was naive to the reality of how much hard work goes into running a business. I thought I could do it better. Little did I know what it would involve, and I found myself having to learn very quickly. Fortunately, asking for help was something I was comfortable with, and I sought the advice of many influential people in my life, that included many clients and of course my partner Lloyd. My late father was very black and white and the best advice he gave me was “as long as you have more money coming in than going out, you’ll be able to pay people to do the things you do not know how to do”. It’s a simple statement but often forgotten. History: The salon opened on the 30 June 2013. The salon was created because at that time there were many large super salons trying to deliver a boogie boutique experience in pumping spaces and I wanted to cinch that into a smaller more personal environment. The remaining history of DMS is still being written.
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What is the makeup of your team?
Our team has expanded and contracted numerous times over the past 13 years, but we generally have 3 seniors and 3 assistants. A couple of years ago I transitioned my role into reception and administration for the salon. The running of the business was something I enjoyed, and it required more of my attention, and I found trying to juggle both roles very challenging. Business coach and industry legend Antony Whitaker once said to me at a seminar, “the definition of a successful small business is to make oneself redundant”. I have never forgotten this and was so proud to have grown my business to a level where this was a possibility for me. Stepping off the floor was a huge risk, but it worked. Moving into this role also created opportunities for my team to step up into salon management and education roles which they did with commitment. We have found 3 seniors and 3 assistants to be the sweet spot not only from a financial point of view but also from a client experience point of view. Recently we’ve decided to go back to a full team four-day work week from Wednesday through to Saturday. Staff have opted for this kind of roster to have three consecutive
days off a week, allowing them to really rest so they can pump it out in four consecutive days.
What is the DMS Philosophy?
The philosophy of DMS is very simple and it is our statement of belief: Create an experience where guests spend with a heart, not their head. Create a connection and be memorable in a positive way. We truly believe that if a client is happy with their experience, you will create loyal longterm client. It’s not just about being happy with their hair. When you have a hairdresser in your team that gives only good hair, they won’t create a loyal long-term client. When you have a hairdresser in your team that makes a client happy with their hair but also with their experience, you’ve got the winning combination.
How do you attract and retain great people? Like everyone now, recruitment is really challenging at the moment. I have a group of employees that are long-term and a group of employees that come and go. The long-term
