PhorestFM: Building a Stronger Industry, Together

[340] Building a beauty business calls for more than a compelling idea. It takes an understanding of the market, people who can turn ambition into action, and a clear-eyed view of what growth will demand.

Alec Neville has worked at the intersection of ideas, markets, and execution. In this candid conversation and through the lens of his various experiences, he reflects on the business lessons he's learned along the way: the importance of getting the right people into the right roles, building trust alongside desire, differentiation, and more. This episode is an honest look at recognizing the strengths and limitations that shape you, turning conviction into practice, and understanding not just how quickly you could grow, but what that growth will cost.

Connect with Alec Neville on LinkedIn

Learn more about Joanna Czech's luxury skincare products and studios & follow @joannaczechofficial on Instagram

Love Letters to the Industry & Its People: contribute to our Season 10 finale
Who in your community or network deserves their flowers? Write a letter for someone at Phorest to read, book time to record it with Alex, or submit your own recording. Share your love letter here by November 15, 2026.

Need some inspiration? Listen to last year’s Love Letters to the Industry and Its People episode.

All things Phorest

Find out how Phorest helps top salons & aesthetic clinics steer their businesses toward happier clients, more productive teams, and greater growth. Say hello to life with Phorest!

Learn more about the Phorest Summit & secure your tickets: https://www.phorestsummit.com/

Enjoyed the episode?

Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!

Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter.

This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.

[339] A Salon Today 200 entry is more than a chance to earn recognition. The process can help you take a step back, see what’s working in your business and spot where you want to grow next.

In this episode, past honorees Lou DeCola, Stacey Steffes and Danielle Moniz share what it's really like to submit an application. They delve into how to choose the story and category that fit your salon, bring data into your essays, and move past the feeling that your business isn’t “special enough” to apply. From Stacey and Danielle’s 48-hour application sprint to Lou’s many years of entries, you're left with a reflection on the growth that gets uncovered in the process and a reminder that honest, heartfelt storytelling matters.

The 2027 Salon Today 200 application deadline has been extended to November 15, 2026, and 46% of last year’s honorees were first-time applicants!

Want help building your entry? Watch the on-demand webinar, From Stats to Story: Building a Strong Salon Today 200 Entry, for practical application advice, Phorest reports to explore and a weekly action plan.

Apply for the 2027 Salon Today 200

Connect with Lou DeCola, Stacey Steffes & Danielle Moniz

Learn more about DeCola Salon and connect with Lou on Instagram @lou.decola

Learn more about Envy Studio / Drift Spa and connect with Stacey & Danielle on Instagram @stacey_steffes @danimonizmua

All things Phorest

Find out how Phorest helps top salons & aesthetic clinics steer their businesses toward happier clients, more productive teams, and greater growth. Say hello to life with Phorest!

Learn more about the Phorest Summit & secure your tickets: https://www.phorestsummit.com/

Enjoyed the episode?

Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!

Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter.

This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.

[338] Michelle Tanner is an Australian multi-salon owner, business coach and international speaker based in Switzerland. Driven by an appetite for learning, problem-solving and building better systems, she’s turned lessons from growing her own businesses — from profitability and team development to leadership and life in and out from behind the chair — into tools to help other owners build stronger, more sustainable businesses.

Through the lens of her ambition and evolution as a business owner, this unfiltered, meandering conversation, underpinned by an understanding that every “yes” has a cost, explores what it means to build a business in service of the life you want. A business that can eventually carry you, rather than one you have to keep carrying.

Connect with Michelle Tanner

Learn more about Tanner Consulting: https://michelletannerconsulting.com/

Connect with Michelle on Instagram @michelle_tanner_consult and check out her podcast, The Shift (on pause indefinitely, but still available on all podcast platforms)!

All things Phorest

Find out how Phorest helps top salons & aesthetic clinics steer their businesses toward happier clients, more productive teams, and greater growth. Say hello to life with Phorest!

Learn more about the Phorest Summit & secure your tickets: https://www.phorestsummit.com/

Enjoyed the episode?

Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!

Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter.

This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.

[337] When Phorest announced the 2027 Summit earlier this year, it marked a major shift for the brand: next January 24th and 25th, the flagship event moves from its long-time home in Dublin to the breathtaking landscapes of Killarney, County Kerry.

Formerly known as the Salon Owners Summit, the transition to the Phorest Summit marks a milestone in the event’s identity, reflecting the inclusive community Phorest serves and bringing together hair, beauty, and clinic professionals under one unified banner of innovation.

Both a look back and a look at what's next, this episode revisits the event's origin story, all the while featuring stories from the people who've shaped it along the way.

Learn more about the Phorest Summit & secure your tickets: https://www.phorestsummit.com/

All things Phorest

Find out how Phorest helps top salons & aesthetic clinics steer their businesses toward happier clients, more productive teams, and greater growth. Say hello to life with Phorest!

Enjoyed the episode?

Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!

Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter.

This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.

[336] From the salon floor to industry leadership, Scott J Buchanan has been a dream builder for over 35 years. He is the president and owner of Scott J Salons and the current president of Intercoiffure America/Canada, but he’s held leadership positions in other industry organizations, such as the Professional Beauty Association, and is also recognized for his philanthropic support for numerous charities, in and outside the hair and beauty industry.

Throughout his career, he has built businesses, teams and industry relationships around a belief that what we make possible for each other is ultimately more powerful than what we build for ourselves. In this open and warm conversation — and through the lens of what Scott calls one of the most underutilized business strategies available to business owners — we discuss creating salon cultures rooted in communication and care, having the conversations fear sometimes keeps us from having, developing people through opportunity, and raising the industry through service and collaboration.

Connect with Scott J Buchanan

Connect with Scott on Instagram @scottj_dreambuilder_

Learn more about Intercoiffure USA/Canada: https://intercoiffure.com/

All things Phorest

Find out how Phorest helps top salons & aesthetic clinics steer their businesses toward happier clients, more productive teams, and greater growth. Say hello to life with Phorest!

Learn more about the Phorest Summit & secure your tickets: https://www.phorestsummit.com/

Enjoyed the episode?

Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!

Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter.

This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.