“I am thrilled to be joining the Great Clips family,” says Cathy Sweet. “I’ve seen the great success that other Great Clips salon owners have had in Pittsburgh, and I feel quite confident that I’ll be able to duplicate that with the backing of this company.”

Great Clips salons serve more than 55 million customers each year. For almost 25 years, Great Clips has grown by focusing on providing the customer with outstanding service and value. Today, there are Great Clips salons in 130 markets and thousands of neighborhoods throughout the United States and Canada delivering the Great Clips brand through well-trained, enthusiastic professional stylists.

“Our strong, unwavering commitment to our customers sustains the Great Clips brand,” says Rhoda Olsen, Great Clips president. “Keeping the needs of our customers as our main focus has allowed us to realize and take pride in our growth over the years and to propel the Great Clips North American organization to where it is today.”

“For more than two decades, we’ve had consistent, steady growth in the number of Great Clips locations and the number of Great Clips franchisees. That says a lot about our company and the strength of our infrastructure,” states Steve Gemlo, director of franchise development for Great Clips. “In terms of franchise development, our driving force over the years has been a philosophy of quality, not quantity. We want to make sure that each and every one of our salons is maximizing on its results.”

According to Gemlo, another key to the success of Great Clips has been a close, solid partnership with each of its franchisees. “We know how vital it is to listen to our franchisees. They’re in contact with Great Clips customers everyday. As a company, we want to do everything we can to not only meet but exceed our customers’ expectations.” 

Gemlo notes that what makes Great Clips unique from other franchise businesses is that, despite its 24-year maturity as a business, Great Clips is still consistently providing opportunities for business people looking to enter the system. Currently, Great Clips has 1,065 franchise owners and expects to add 100 more each year. Many Great Clips franchisees own more than one salon; the average number of salons per ownership (over five years) is 5.7.

Entrepreneur magazine named Great Clips as one of the top 20 fastest-growing franchises in 2006. Great Clips anticipates having 2,730 salons opened by the end of this year.