By Grant Miller, Salon Consultant

By the time you are reading this, most salons around the country will begin heading into the peak time of the year. As we all know, 2014 was a lackluster year and I’m sure we’re all glad that it’s behind us. You should also know we were not the only industry that struggled last year.

Retail and the restaurant business in general were soft. Iconic retailers like Sears, Toys “R” Us, Staples, Abercrombie & Fitch, Aeropostale, Barnes & Noble, Radio Shack and many others closed hundreds of stores in 2014. Yes, some of that is due to shoppers buying more products online which is itself an important lesson.

But, here’s some good new which bodes well for our industry: Gas prices are at historic lows, which puts more discretionary spending money in our customers’ pockets. The Dow broke over 18,000 in late December, which makes those with stock investments wealthier and makes them feel more prosperous and more likely to spend.

With increased consumer optimism, I predict that 2015 could be a better year if you can capitalize on it. You need to be absolutely laser focused on maximizing every opportunity to grow your business right now. I too often hear, “I’m working on doing this,” “I’m going to start that,” “I need to finish up a project,” etc. This is no time to dilly dally.

Click here to read the entire article in Smart Tan Magazine online.