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Navigating Non-Compete Clauses: A Deep Dive into Mindsets and Business Stability · Salon Success Secrets — The podcast for salon owners who are done hustling harder and ready to break their revenue ceiling.

• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to today's podcast.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: It is Lindsay Lowe and I'm here with my partner in crime, jen Booth, and we are super excited to be diving into what we would say is one of the hottest topics inside of the salon industry.
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: Now, you know, if you've been to a recent school visit or, you know, gone to a career fair or something of the sort, you're talking to anybody new inside of the industry.
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: One of the hot topics is about do not compete, about non-compete clauses, and so today we are going to be diving into non-compete clauses and really, what all does it entail?
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: And, you know, is it something that you want to be a part of or not something that you want to be a part of?
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I love that.
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: And so you're probably wondering.
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: I know this is a famous word that we've been hearing often.
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: Let's give you like, let's just clear the word and make sure we understand what a non-compete is.
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: So if you look at the definition, it says a non-compete agreement is a legal contract between an employer and an employee that restricts the employee from engaging in business activities that compete with their current employer's business during and after the employment period ends.
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: So what this could look like is if you have a stylist that's working for you and then in one year or six months she decides she wants to open a salon right next door or right down the street.
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: So if there's a non-complete in place, it may deter her from opening, could possibly not say it would, but it could deter her from opening that location for herself.
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: So today we're just going to really dive in and look at some different mindsets and just look at all kinds of different possibilities, of the do's and the don'ts of non-competes and what truly is possible when it comes to creating a life of abundance.
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: Yes, and so the first thing that we kind of want to explore before we dive into this non-compete world is just the different mindsets of different business owners and just people who exist inside of the world.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: And so the first one that we want to talk about is, like, the fixed mindset.
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: So this could be considered like your everyday expert.
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: They have fixed abilities.
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: They cannot be changed.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: They avoid new things and replicate what we already know.
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: So this is somebody who, like it says, is kind of it's almost like they're allergic to change.
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: Everything is working well, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: It could be one of their taglines.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: They just don't want to see change.
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: They really are just fixed on things staying as they are.
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: No change ever.
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: The next type of mindset that we want to explore today is the growth mindset, so this could be considered like your everyday learner.
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: They believe that basic abilities can be improved.
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: They also believe that becoming skilled at something requires practice, and so these people focus on how we can grow and improve.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: They're okay with change.
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: They're looking for ways to grow and improve, like we just mentioned, and are open to the idea that people can improve in life.
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: And the third mindset that we want to talk about today is the benefit mindset, and so this is what we would consider like your everyday leader.
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: So people who embody a benefit mindset really are making a meaningful difference.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: They build on that growth mindset by focusing on why we do what we do.
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: So and these people choose to bring out the best in each other in the world.
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: They're like that growth mindset, except they're also adding another level to it, where they're trying to bring out the best in each other and in the world.
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: And so I think we've all heard of scarcity mindset or an abundance mindset, and I would say that FIX is going to be closest to that scarcity mindset and growth and benefit is going to get up into that abundance mindset.
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: I think that benefit mindset really does embody that abundance.
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: There's enough to go around, and when somebody truly embodies that benefit mindset, they are willing to give away their knowledge because they know it's not going to take anything from them and it's going to make the world a better place.
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: And that's more important to them than it is to take things or hoard things or keep things for their own or never allow change to shine through.
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: I love that.
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: So that probably has your wheels of turn in thinking, okay, what kind of mindset do I have, first of all, and then, how does this relate to non-compete agreements?
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: Because we're not saying it's right or wrong to have non-competes.
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: We're just going to kind of give you some viewpoints to look at or some opinions to digest to say, hey, you know what I really get that and that makes sense to me.
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: Because something that I know is, when it comes to non-competes is, you know, at the end of the day, I really love to come from that place of having that benefit mindset, that abundant mindset, and this is just my philosophy and it's worked, really, it works well for me is I'm so certain in what we're doing at Arsalan company that it creates a lot of stability, and if someone doesn't want to be here, like I do not want them here at the end of the day.
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: So you know, I'm certain on what our business provides, I'm certain on what our guest experience is.
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: So I really it does not scare or fright me if they want to open a salon right next door to me.
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: Actually, when we moved into our location that we're in yet now the building that I owned before a salon owner wanted to go there and I was totally open to it.
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: Like that, just that doesn't really scare me because I'm so certain in what we provide here.
• 6:53
  Speaker 2: So I think a lot of times as salon owners we get kind of frightened or have fear around people taking things from us.
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: But when you have that certainty it creates sanity in your life and I think that's a beautiful place to look at.
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: Yes, and really, jen, when you were talking about that, what came to view for me was just thinking about you know, we, when you are at least that growth mindset or you know, in that benefit mindset, you are just continuing to learn, you know.
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: And so when you get to a place where you want to be fixed or you don't want to learn anymore, you know, that's where you really can get in that fixed mindset and you can get into scarcity and you can start to think I don't want anyone to know what I know.
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: You know because I don't actually plan to get any bigger or better or learn anymore.
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: And so, you know, if people know what I know, then eventually they'll know more than I know.
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: And the truth is like, the way that you can learn more and really step into that growth and benefit mindset is, you know, by giving away your knowledge and helping somebody become even bigger, better, faster, more amazing at what it is that you do.
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: And they do because you get something out of that as well.
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: You know, I think it's like a.
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: It's definitely a win-win for sure when you are sharing your knowledge.
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: And so, you know, when we're thinking about this, you know, to kind of dive back into that non-compete.
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: You know, I think of course you're going to have some due diligence as a salon owner.
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: You know, if Target was like, hey, it's okay, we're not going to, we're just going to like, open up all of our client information and yeah, sure, if you want some credit card numbers, go ahead and feel free to take those Like that wouldn't fly, okay.
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: So we're not like so ultra, ultra-ristic that.
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: You know.
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: We know that there needs to be things in place to protect our guests and to protect some client information and stuff like that.
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: But when it comes to a non-compete, you know that's really saying like, hey, if you come to work for me, then you can't go to work for somebody else in, you know, a five mile radius or a 10 mile radius or whatever that could look like.
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: And so you know, I think that there's different ways to really look at this and to get really clear on that non-compete, just to see what it is that you're trying to create.
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: And you know, knowing, hey, we want people to learn here, we want them to know that this is a place where they can come, they can learn, they can develop into the human beings that they are desiring to be, and hopefully they'll have that benefit mindset and pass it along to somebody else as well.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: I love that and here's a stat for you because it got my mind thinking how many people are in the United States.
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: And so my good old friend, google, here said that there's 331 million people, roughly about 331 million people as of 20, I think it said 2022.
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: So I did some math, like, okay, let's just say you needed 1000 people to harbor all your different salon companies.
• 9:58
  Speaker 2: Like, if you do the math on that, that was like 0.0000003%.
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: And so you know that to me just says sometimes it's okay to come from a place of there's enough to go around, and it's like Lindsay was saying it's sometimes a beautiful place.
• 10:16
  Speaker 2: Think how this world would be.
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: It's a beautiful place to share knowledge and to know that you know you don't have to be scared if someone leaves and they open a salon 10 miles down the road.
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: That when you have that certainty, like I said again before, then the right people will stay working with you and they'll be enrolled in your mission and you'll really truly know what's possible.
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: Yes, I love that and really so.
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: When we're looking at these non-competes, you know, I think just kind of understanding fully what it is.
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: You know, I did a little bit of research to see how often these hold up in court and I personally know someone who was in a totally different industry who had a non-compete agreement with someone and they ended up going to court over the non-compete agreement and the former employee won and they actually won a settlement of money from the business because of some other things that were going on.
• 11:18
  Speaker 1: But so I just, I just found, you know, when looking it up, in most states, you know, it's a right to work state and so any time, you know, if you're considering this for your business, just, you know, consider, hey, there's a really high likelihood that this wouldn't even hold up in court, and if it did it would, it might cost you a lot of money, you know, and the cost to acquire a new guest is probably quite a bit cheaper than it would be to really go and try to fight somebody on a non-compete, you know, and at the end of the day, what would you gain from that?
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: You know, I just, I just think, truly, like, if you know, the salon doesn't own a guest.
• 12:10
  Speaker 1: Yes, you do own the guest information.
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: You do need to protect that, but there's, in this day and age, there's a million ways that people can get a hold of each other, and I think that that's what's beautiful about today's world is that it's easy to stay connected, and and I don't think that that should ever be something you know as a salon owner that you should try to manage like really helping people to create deeper connections.
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: I think is is so important as a salon owner and, and so you know, I just really want to point out there's probably not a good chance that, even if you did sign that it that it would even hold up in a court of law.
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: And so if, if you are a student, or if you know any students, or if you're going in and visiting students, you know, at career fairs or doing visits to to teach at your local class mythology schools, you know I would definitely.
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: This is a hot question.
• 13:06
  Speaker 1: I know, jen.
• 13:06
  Speaker 1: You said you were just, your team was just at a career fair and that was the number one question that was asked.
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: We just got to do a school visit a couple weeks ago and that was one of the top questions that we got asked as well is does your salon have a non compete?
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: And you know we were really proud to say no, we don't.
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: And you know, like Jen mentioned earlier, we, we truly only want people who want to come into work every day coming into work at the salon Just because, like you, spend a lot of time at work and so we want you to love it and we don't ever want you to question it.
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: For some reason you're not feeling that love anymore, or you're moving or you know, whatever it might look like for an individual.
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: We want you to know, like, hey, you're at free will, you know, and in people are free will, no matter what.
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: But you know we don't ever want somebody to think that they have to really reconsider saying, or that they feel like handcuffed to a workplace because, oh, that, just you know the, that thought alone, just you know, would repulse me as somebody on a team.
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: You know why would you want to be there, like if you were forced to be there.
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: It's just a you walk into work totally different than if you love being there and you enjoy being there and you hold the same values and the same vision for the future, you know, and it's surrounded by people who want to see you grow and want to see you win.
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: I love that lens and you know I had a salon owner share with me one time.
• 14:38
  Speaker 2: They said, well, we want to non-compete because we want to scare them.
• 14:41
  Speaker 2: We ain't going to take them to court, we just want to scare them.
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: I was like, well, halloween's over, girlfriend.
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: I don't know if you want to scare them, but you know that's like if you're already using that kind of tactic in a hiring process like that, energy is contagious and so like, at the end of the day, do you really want to start hiring people that you've already scared?
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: I mean you know.
• 15:04
  Speaker 2: so it was really interesting because when we were at the career fair, my team said yeah, that was the number.
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: My recruiting team said that's the number.
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: One thing we got is is do you have a non-complete?
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: And I said, well, what did you guys say?
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: And they said we said you know what we said.
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: We said our mission at JB's salon is an experience so exceptional that everyone leaves feeling beautiful inside and out.
• 15:25
  Speaker 2: So at the end of the day, that's truly what we're looking for and so if you know, if that sounds like something that you want to be part of, then that's the people that we truly want on the bus and you know, I've been in that place too before if a student asks, it just says tell me what a non-complete means to you, because in some schools not all schools, you know they're talking about it because of all the students are asking about it.
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: That's the hot topic of the classroom, and so you know, sometimes just understanding why it's important to them or what they know about it, and then building upon that to also helps give them knowledge in that room.
• 16:02
  Speaker 1: Totally, you know, and I think it's also important to just consider, like, if somebody you know, if that's like their number one concern.
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: If it's not like they're, you know they want to come to work for you because you don't have a non-complete, that's way different than somebody wanting to come to work for you because they love the mission that you're on or they love the values that you, you know, hold together as a salon company.
• 16:26
  Speaker 1: And so even just kind of being aware of just the light of life that somebody is in at that moment doesn't make them good or bad people.
• 16:34
  Speaker 1: It just is for you to be aware of, because, you know, we don't ever want to handcuff anybody to our organization.
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: We want people to love coming here each day and if they don't, then we want them to find that for themselves.
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: But you know, we also just want to be aware if we are interviewing and that's one of the main driving factors for somebody.
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: It is just something to be aware of, you know, because for us we do want to serve out our mission and we do want that to be the most important thing and we want people to love coming into the salon and we don't want it to be where somebody has a fixed mindset, where they're like I'm just here to gather my 50 people, or whatever the magic number is in their head, so that they can go.
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: You know, do whatever they want to do, take them somewhere else, because they think that you're keeping the other portion of their money.
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: So a lot of that comes down to just education.
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: You know they need to know, hey, what's happening with the other portion of the money?
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: You know, because that's, even if they took them somewhere else, there would be something happening with that other portion of the money.
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: So, you know that's an education thing that you can just give to new stylists inside of the industry, just so that they have that understanding of business and the way you know things run and operate, but then also just knowing to like hey, you know, for us we want people who are here to serve others to grow.
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: We know for us, working together as a team, we can earn more money.
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: We can help people.
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: You know it doesn't matter like if somebody's got something going on in their life.
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: There's tons of people to support on the team.
• 18:24
  Speaker 1: You know, if somebody's out, you know because they're having a baby, they've got people that they know and trust on the team that can support their guests while they're gone.
• 18:31
  Speaker 1: There's just a lot of things that you can eliminate, a lot of worries when you're working together on a team, and so we want people who want to depend on each other, who want to share guests, who want to share ideas, who want to share in that growth, who are looking to see their teammates win, and so there's just so many other things besides a non-compete, but that is, you know, such a hot topic when you go inside a school today.
• 18:57
  Speaker 2: I love that lens, and so you're probably wondering well, what if I don't do a non-compete?
• 19:00
  Speaker 2: What are some ways to protect my business?
• 19:02
  Speaker 2: And so that's a viewpoint to look at too is one thing you could always say is establishing a strong brand identity and client loyalty.
• 19:12
  Speaker 2: Think of Apple, think of their loyalty that they have is like how can you create that so grand in your space that you have an unlimited number of new guests to supply?
• 19:23
  Speaker 2: Your retention is through the roof.
• 19:25
  Speaker 2: People are creating raving reviews for you, and when you create that kind of brand identity, people want to stay and be part of that.
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: So I would rather spend my time working on that stuff than working with an attorney fighting a non-compete, and I just think that the ROI that you get on that will be so much greater.
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: And then also, too, another tip would be provide ongoing education and training.
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: I know, as commission salons that we work with, that's usually a positive vertical that has a benefit of working in those kind of spaces.
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: It is like if you have that ongoing education and training and help them understand truly the power of money that they're making in your salon space, looking at hourly wage even if they're commission, what are they making an hour, create that certainty with your team and that in itself prevents them from wanting to leave.
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: I know not everybody, but it creates a space for the right ones to truly stay and I think, creating a positive work environment and forcing for most a very supportive community, like Lindsay was referring to.
• 20:30
  Speaker 2: When someone goes on leave, on maternity leave, or when you're running behind, making sure you have that trust in the team that someone can always jump in and help that person finish or complete the experience.
• 20:44
  Speaker 2: So I think I don't know.
• 20:46
  Speaker 2: Just my viewpoint is I would just rather work on things like that instead of working on making sure that I have a non-compete agreement.
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: Spend my time on things that are going to bring us more joy in the long run.
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: Absolutely.
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: I love that.
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: And if you do get put in that place where you are needing to navigate that non-compete, I think as a salon owner it wouldn't really be a recommendation to have people sign that non-compete.
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: It would be going down the avenue, like Jen mentioned, all the different ways, but protecting that client information and really just trusting that things are going to work out in both parties' favor.
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: But if you're a stylist or if you are looking at another opportunity inside of the industry, having an attorney look something over, we would always recommend it's very inexpensive to have an attorney look over a non-compete because people will try to sneak some wild stuff in there and so you just want to be aware and just know you don't have to sign it.
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: And sometimes people will have these non-competes and ask you to sign it when you're a part of their team and if you don't sign it sometimes they'll even continue to let you work there or whatever.
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: So just know hey, that's always an opportunity to.
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: You don't have to sign it and then you're able to negotiate if for some reason you do feel like it would be in both parties' interest to do that.
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: But truly, at the end of the day, you do have the choice, and so I would even just empower the future generation of stylists to just know, hey, you can get a lot of really great information from really great people if you go into it with that benefit mindset, if you're going to show up to not only take some information but also to give, you want to be able to give back in a big way when you're a new person inside of any organization.
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: So just arriving with that benefit mindset can really kind of level the playing field for not even having to need a non-compete, in my eyes, yeah, I love that.
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: And so, again, there's no right or wrong way to approach this.
• 23:14
  Speaker 2: We just wanted to really open your eyes to a whole new vertical that sometimes, as salon owners, there is a fear of change and sometimes we have that fear of change.
• 23:22
  Speaker 2: It kind of creates that scarcity.
• 23:24
  Speaker 2: So this is just a beautiful time to really look in, like Lindsay said, and see if you have that fixed growth or benefit mindset, to see where you, as a salon owner, are living on the lights of life red, yellow or green and to truly know is like, how can I make my environment so grand that you know someone leaving?
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: We're so certain that someone leaving is not going to dictate our success.
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: Yes, I love that.
• 23:53
  Speaker 1: So if you have learned some amazing things and have a new, fresh outlook on non-competes, I would love for you to share this with one of your salon owner besties or someone that you would like to get to know more inside of the industry.
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: We love working with incredible salon owners across North America, so feel free to send them our way if you feel like they could get some benefits from any of our podcasts.
• 24:22
  Speaker 1: We appreciate you tuning in and we can't wait to see you again soon.
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: Awesome.