VOA常速英语:未来美发沙龙该何去何从？

There are 29 beauty salons behind this door, each one has only one stylist.And to make an appointment, all you need to do is contact the stylist directly.Every professional has his or her own salon and brand and has fewer worries that are typical for small business owners. They are their own bosses with no employees and only one requirement---paying rent on time.

“People want to be independent and they want to have control of their own schedules. They want to have control of their pricing and the services that they offer.And it provides the incentive for them to make more money if they know that the money they get paid is theirs.So they can build their business, okay? And they pay a fixed rent.”

The first Sola Salon Studios Franchisee opened in Denver in 2004.Don and Jeff DeBolt heard about its success and visited it in 2012.“We went and were greeted by this lovely, lovely stylist, we said, ‘we’re not just looking because we’re interested in this.We may want to take it into Washington, D.C.. ’ She exploded.She said, ‘I can’t tell you how this is changing my life, four years ago, I couldn’t even make a car payment some once.’”

The DeBolts leased office space in Alexandria and furnished it according to the Franchisee agreement.Then they put an ad in the local newspaper that said, ‘Own you own salon and be your own boss.’Within minutes, they got a phone call from local hairstylist Sue Scott.“I called Jeff and he said, I said, ‘Oh my gosh, do you have any more studios left?’ And he said yeah.I mean he posted it like ten minutes before I called him.

“I’d like to be a little bit lighter,” with the support from several clients, Sue was able to start her own business.“You’re like one... like a one-woman show, one -man show.”

Iya Dedo waited for an opportunity to open a salon for two years. “They help with my life now because I don’t have to stay here till nine o’clock just sitting if I’m not busy.I can do a client, go to something else, come back and you know, take another client and finish up my day like that.”

Some stylists have curtains and blinds on the window, some leave their doors open for privacy withdraws new clients.“This is nice because it’s quiet and it’s private, so when we were here, just the two of us.”

Landlords Don and Jeff rarely drop by, their goal is to help the tenants, not to control them.They provide stylists with the equipment and pay for the first shipment of products.The DeBolts now own three Sola Salon Studios, all units are rented out, what is the secret of their success?Don and Jeff have a simple criterion---Who wants to share their profit?

For Anush Avetisyan, I’m Joy Vagner, VOA News, Alexandria, Virginia.