AVENTURA, Fla., Feb. 4, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Thanks to quick response and forward-thinking,UKW Franchising Company, LLC, parent company to Uni K Wax Studio, a national franchise offering all-natural, unisex, body waxing services, is now experiencing a rebound from the impact of the Covid-19 crisis.
At the height of the pandemic, all Uni K Wax (UKW) Studio locations were forced to shutter their doors for several weeks. As a result, the UKW corporate team huddled on how to help the system overcome the reopening hurdles, navigate state and local restrictions and loss of revenue.
"While the events of the past few months have presented a challenge, Uni K Wax has been able to respond to the restrictions quickly with innovations and solutions that benefited both customers and franchise owners," explains Ozzie Grupenmager, Chief Operating Officer at UKW Franchising Company, LLC. "We know all of the small-business owners in our system are counting on us to have their back and do what's right."
Virtual Customer Experience
As a way to reduce person-to-person contact in the salons and ease customer concerns, the Uni K Wax team moved quickly to launch a mobile app, which gives customers the option to book appointments, self-check-in and pay using a smartphone. The app, which had been in development prior to the start of the pandemic, was put on the fast-track in order to help studios react responsibly to reopening rollouts.
UKW also implemented a live video-based virtual customer experience coordinator in some studios where staffing was an issue due to the pandemic. This also cut down on the amount of contact within the studios but allowed for socially distanced interaction through the safety of a computer kiosk and mobile app.
Safety Standards
Uni K Wax Studios stepped up its already extensive cleaning measures, which include personal waxing warmers for each client to eliminate cross-contamination, soaking all tools in a hospital-grade germicide and disinfecting all waxing beds in between services.
Waxers traditionally wore masks during services in pre-pandemic times, now studios require customers to wear masks as well.
Studio owners reconfigured public spaces in the studios to allow for social distancing, scheduled more time in between appointments to reduce in-person contact and allow for deeper sanitization between clients, as well as more frequent cleaning of high-touch points within the facilities.
The company leveraged its deep relationships with suppliers to make sure all personal protective equipment (PPE) was delivered to each location in excess of what was required. They also worked with each studio on a reopening plan in accordance with the respective state and local protocols.
"Our customers were eager to return to our studios, but we wanted to make sure we welcomed them back in the safest way possible," explains Grupenmager. "Once we got the green light to reopen, we were confident about the safety of our studios because we took the time to educate the system on all of the new and necessary health guidelines, and they had adequate PPE to protect our guests and employees."
Relief Effort
On the business side, UKW launched a comprehensive plan to help offset the financial hardship franchisees were experiencing in their businesses. The company provided franchise owners with tenant representatives to help them negotiate rent relief agreements with landlords. The corporate team also coordinated systemwide webinars to educate franchisees on the ever-changing requirements and deadlines of the PPP program.
UKW corporate also suspended all monthly recurring charges while the studios were shut down and also negotiated with vendors on behalf of the franchisees and helped cover short-term fees.
"The road to recovery and normalcy is bound to take a few more twists and turns," says Daniel Franzblau. "But we at Uni K Wax Franchising have demonstrated that we are here to support our franchise owners in good economic times and bad."
The efforts of the Uni K Wax Franchising team have been rewarded with what may be considered the ultimate compliment — new investors. Despite the pandemic, the company signed three new franchise agreements. The growth demonstrates the trust entrepreneurs have in the corporate team and their approach to ensure UKW remains a stable, consistent, and profitable leader in the personal care industry.
About Uni K Wax Studio
Founder Noemi Grupenmager revolutionized the beauty industry, bringing hair removal services from afterthought to routine beauty practice. Underwhelmed by her experiences, Noemi made it her mission to create a waxing-only salon for both women and men that was hygienically pristine, completely approachable and a one-of-a-kind business. In 1993, she opened the first-ever unisex waxing studio in South Beach, and within six months, the studio was servicing 200 customers a day.
In 2007, Uni K Wax began franchising under its parent company, UKW Franchising Company, LLC. Based in Aventura, Florida, the brand currently has 33 units in operation throughout Florida, New Jersey, and New York.
Uni K Wax Studio is devoted to the art of natural and safe hair removal in a clean and comfortable environment. They manufacture and supply their own wax to Uni K Wax Studios nationwide and offer both walk-in and by appointment service to male and female customers. Uni K Wax offers customers over 160 waxing services centered around their all-natural, paraben and gluten-free elastic wax. The wax is applied at body temperature, which makes for a more comfortable waxing experience.
For more information about Uni K Wax, please visit http://www.unikwax.com.
For more information about Uni K Wax franchise opportunities, please visit https://unikwax.com/franchises/.
Media Contact
Holly Guarino, Uni K Wax, 919-924-0029, [email protected]
Ozzie Grupenmager, Uni K Wax, 305-949-9296, [email protected]
SOURCE Uni K Wax
Share this article