Snip-snip...snip. A clump of clean wet hair rolls down the side of Gail’s shiny black apron and onto the white linoleum floor. Between sage green walls, her blades are hard at work.
The Salon at SRI is a one-woman operation. Gail Coffaro, 49, is an on-site hairstylist at SRI International (formerly known as Stanford Research Institute), in
She pays no rent for her use of the salon, and passes the savings down to SRI’s workforce, her only clients. This unique situation is part of a growing trend that’s bringing service-related businesses on-site at many major workplaces. At a time when good benefits are becoming harder to provide, these services are very appealing to many Bay Area employers, and it costs them very little.
Industrial campuses are not usually situated very close to many commercial establishments. And local traffic, particularly in the Bay Area, can make leaving work to run errands very frustrating, especially for employers. On-site commercial services allow for more consistent productivity at the workplace, and help to create an interactive culture on-campus.
At SRI, there is a dentist that shows up and works out of his van every other week. A dry cleaning pick-up and delivery service comes twice a week, and their on-site masseuse is there Monday through Friday. Gail opens the salon on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
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Most appointments are scheduled well in advance. SRI employees call Gail directly on her cell phone, and some book several visits. Drop-ins are rare because her schedule is usually full, and her clientele doesn’t have time to wait around.
“It’s very important that I stay on schedule,” she says. "My customers are on their lunch-break, or taking time away from their business day to come see me.”
“I have to be totally on.”
Gail sees about the same number of women as men, but makes a lot more money doing color than cuts. On the high end, women get base color, highlights and cut for $140. Men get a cut for as low as $25; somewhere in between, Gail makes her living.
“It’s easy money,” she says. “But only because I love what I do.”
With 30 years of experience, Gail stays up on the latest trends by going to hair shows, looking at magazines and just paying attention to people. In 2004, she apprenticed with an Italian hairstylist who specializes in color chemistry and treatment.
Employee turnover makes keeping customers one of Gail’s biggest challenges. SRI's campus is completely private, so only current employees are allowed in the salon. Still, there are usually around 1500 heads on campus while Gail is there.
“People change jobs and there’s a lot of visiting researchers, but many of them still call me after they leave SRI,” she says. “I just do their hair in my salon at home; most of my people are very loyal to me.”
One time, a former SRI employee brought her senile mother in-law to see Gail at her home-salon in
“Eventually we had to give up.”
Gail buys all of her own supplies. She also spends $35 a month on a million-dollar liability insurance policy. And fortunately, she has never had to use it.
Marketing is also tricky. One day Gail handed-out business cards in the cafeteria and got a huge reaction, but the “higher-ups” told her not to self-advertise at lunch. Since then, she’s been restricted to flyers on the bulletin board.
“Word-of-mouth is my best advertising,” she says.
Recently, Gail has been talking with Genentech and Lockheed Martin, who have expressed interest in her services. She has no intention of leaving the Salon at SRI, but is considering territorial expansion.
“I need another set of hands,” Gail says, showing off her color stained appendages. “I just don’t have time to train them as well as these.”
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