Franchisee Stories
After seeing many clients succeed in the salon suites space, Tim and Lisa Mulks found the perfect fit in IMAGE Studios, combining low-risk ownership with a high-touch, people-first approach.
For 14 years, Tim and Lisa Mulks were franchise brokers, helping entrepreneurs find their way in their own small businesses. While they worked with brands across many industries, they consistently saw their clients excel in the salon suites sector.
“This was an industry that everyone would come back to us and say, ‘Wow! It’s been an amazing investment. It’s a great lifestyle business. The returns are awesome,’” Tim said. “We started saying, ‘Well, gosh, maybe we should really start looking at this for ourselves.’ After looking at so many industries, brands and business models, [the salon suites space] just kept resonating.”
The Mulkses had observed the “reasonable returns” and “low failure rates” of salon suite businesses from the sidelines, and the simplicity of the model also appealed to them. The more due diligence they did, the more differentiators they identified. The salon suites space checked all the boxed.
"No employees, no inventory, no manufacturing of products, no handling of cash,” Tim said. “We were looking at the business model being as simple to operate as possible with reasonable returns and low failure rates. And as we kept digging deeper and deeper, we were finding literally no failures within the different franchise companies.”
This sealed the deal for the industry, and the Mulkses then had to narrow down their brand selection. Even though they already had a strong understanding of the industry, they still completed thorough due diligence, vetting all the major salon suite brands they had previously worked with. IMAGE Studios, the luxury salon suite franchise, consistently stood out.
"The minute we started engaging with IMAGE Studios, we thought, ‘Wow, these guys are cutting edge.’ They have foresight in the industry that we hadn't seen before,” Lisa said. “How they were going to grow to become bigger was just so thought out; you didn’t see that a lot. After Discovery Day, there was no question that this was the brand we wanted to be a part of."
While the strategic and analytical aspects of the due diligence process were certainly important, the Mulkses said the decision was also largely driven by feeling. There was a “wow factor” and “superior vibe” inside IMAGE Studios locations that would be key to attracting and retaining the best beauty professionals in the market — not just serving as a stepping stone for those on their way to a bigger, more beautiful suite.
After deciding on IMAGE Studios, the pair began navigating business ownership as a pair. In any business, teamwork and a clear division of responsibilities are key, but in a low-labor model like IMAGE, they’re even more important.
By identifying complementary skills, rather than identical interests, the Mulkses have been able to both contribute to the business without stepping on each other’s toes.
“If everybody wants to be in the salon and nobody’s doing the finances, that’s not good,” Tim said. “You have to have a division of labor where you can both be happy and succeed in, and we definitely have that."
“Not that we don’t talk about each other’s jobs!” Lisa added. “We help each other with thought processes and stuff like that regularly. But you have to divide up the labor duties and be reasonable with each person to make sure they’re contributing.”
This focused model allows them to run their two locations in Reno and Sparks efficiently while remaining successful as both life and business partners.
This family-owned approach also plays a key role in defining their operations. Tim and Lisa are deeply invested in their community's culture, and this starts with being selective about who joins.
"Community is a big deal,” Lisa said. “And any kind of thorn — one, two people — can change that vibe and that mentorship and energy that exists there. So, we're very selective."
This personal investment extends to the pros in their studios.
The Mulkses shared an example of a pro they had welcomed into their studios who had previously had negative experiences in the salon space. She was hesitant to take the leap into the salon suites space, but once she did, she told them it was even better than she expected, even describing the experience as “magical.” By remaining deeply committed to the culture and “family” aspect of the unit, the Mulkses have built spaces that empower entrepreneurs to operate their businesses on their own terms, finding more happiness, fulfillment and balance in their careers than they previously could.
The venture has been financially rewarding, exceeding their expectations for revenue generation and providing the Mulkses more flexibility and free time to spend together and travel.
But the true reward is the legacy of freedom — for themselves and their professionals. The business has afforded them an "amazing lifestyle" while allowing them to fulfill their original passion as brokers: "helping people have their own business."
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