Confessions Of A Franchisor: Inside The Mind of Kyla Dufresne, Founder & CEO Of Foxy Box Laser & Wax Bar
This series, written by Kyla Dufresne, covers topics about franchising and running your own business. Join us for a sneak peek at what makes a successful beauty franchise!
I always knew Foxy Box was ‘cool’ but I couldn’t really tell you why… Why were we cooler than any other business in town? What set us apart?
Foxy Box started with just me, in an empty dining room in my shared house. I was a bartender at the time, and every patron woke up with a Foxy Box business card in their pocket. People would call or text me for an appointment, and I would give them the address on Stanley Ave in Victoria. People would show up at my house a little confused, asking for Foxy Box. I would welcome them into my curtained-off section of the house, offer them a shot of whiskey or tequila before their service, and make them feel part of this secret little club. It was on me to provide that positive experience and energy, even in a weird location and situation.
As Foxy Box grew to its own brick-and-mortar location with 6-10 staff on my team, I started to stumble a bit. I had trained all the staff myself, but for some reason, some customers weren’t happy with their results. How could I ensure everyone was delivering the same great experience I did? I realized I needed help.
Early on, I invested in a Branding Retreat. This retreat, which included an equine therapist and a branding specialist, helped us dig deep into the WHY of our brand, rooted in my personal life experiences. From these results, we systemized all the foundational elements integral to the Foxy Box brand. This made decision-making easy for me and left no grey areas about whether staff were the right fit. We identified three traits that every Foxy Box employee HAD to have to work here. Instead of second-guessing or making excuses for the team, I could just go to my drawing board and ask, does this person have these three traits? If the answer was NO, then I knew they weren’t the right person.
The three traits all Foxy Box employees must have are:
- Self-Responsibility
- A Positive Attitude
- Empathy
Doing the work early on to create your brand foundation and coming up with tangible criteria to answer questions like ‘Is this staff member the right fit’ will make your business journey much smoother as you grow your team. At Foxy Box, we help each one of our franchisees understand these important components to build their teams so their stores can be as successful as possible. Just one of the many supports we have in place for our owners and one of the many things that sets us apart in the franchising world!
To learn more about Franchising with Foxy Box, head to our Franchise Page.