Great Clips

Great Clips, Inc. is an American hair salon chain with over 4,530 locations across the United States and Canada. Its headquarters are located in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. In 2013, it had system-wide sales of $1.03 billion.[1]

History

The first Great Clips salon opened under the name Super Clips near the University of Minnesota campus on September 22, 1982.[2] Great Clips salons specialized in no-frills, low-priced[3] haircuts and found immediate success with their first three salons, which opened over a span of three months.[4]

In early 1983, founders Steve Lemmon and David Rubenzer sought out a third partner, Ray Barton, to lead Great Clips' expansion and franchising.[5]

Corporate overview

Facts and figures

Great Clips has over 4,100 salons in North America.[16]

In 2013, Great Clips reported an annual revenue of $1.03 billion.[1] Over 30,000 stylists are employed by Great Clips salons.[17]

Leadership (2025)

Source:[18]

Business model

The company is known for no-appointment, no-frills salons that provide customers with haircuts. The stripped-down salons are, as president Rob Goggins has said, "Not flashy or sexy, but a very solid business model."[19]

Lean investment and operating costs of franchises have enabled Great Clips to provide low-priced services and has led to 10-year growth for the company.[20]

Great Clips has marketed itself as a low-cost franchise with high growth potential. As noted by Kiplingers, "The company has seen steady business, even during the Great Recession, because consumers tend to spend on grooming in both good times and bad."[21]

Innovation

Online check-in

In 2011, Great Clips launched online check-in, the industry's first real-time check-in application, allowing customers to check wait times and add their names to the wait list before they visit the salon.[22] The app has been downloaded more than 5 million times and is used by about 20% of its customers.[23] During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, where usage of many online shopping, social media, and other services has increased dramatically, the engagement on the Great Clips App has tripled. This has resulted in higher online check-ins, as customers choose to wait in their vehicles or do shopping at surrounding stores as they wait. According to Great Clips franchisee polls, "It's around 70% in the majority of salons. Salons with working receptionists can see numbers as high as 85%."[24]

Clip Notes

In 2014, Great Clips introduced Clip Notes to track customer data and provide consistent customer service across salons. Information tracked includes frequency of visits, preferred salon, and haircut preference.

type	Private
foundation	September 22, 1982
founder	Steve Lemmon David Rubenzer
location	Bloomington, Minnesota
key people	Ray Barton (chairman of the board) Steve Hockett (CEO) Rob Goggins (president)
industry	Hair salon Franchising
revenue	$1.03 billion
homepage	www.greatclips.com

History

Corporate overview

Facts and figures

Leadership (2025)

Business model

Innovation

Online check-in

Clip Notes

Online check-in

Clip Notes

Charity

Sponsorships

External links

References