As Sport Clips Haircuts enters its next phase of franchise growth, the nearly 1,800-unit brand isn't simply looking for empty spots on a map. Instead, leadership is taking a more targeted approach, identifying markets where customer behavior, demographics and existing store performance indicate there is room for more locations.
Sport Clips is approaching that growth with flexibility, evaluating each market based on the strength of the operator, local demand and the opportunity to build density without forcing expansion where it does not make sense.
"We don't want to rule out any market [if there is] a great Team Leader," said Brent Greenwood, vice president of franchise development. "We really have opportunity in just about every part of the country."
For Sport Clips, that means the next phase of growth could look different from one market to another. Some regions may support multi-unit development, while established markets could present opportunities for a single additional store or the acquisition of an existing business.
"Sometimes that might be just a single-store development, but there are acquisition opportunities in those markets as well," Greenwood said.
Sport Clips has spent more than 30 years building its presence across North America, but the system's size doesn't mean the map is full.
The Northeast, Upper Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and Southwest stand out as regions where the brand sees opportunities to strengthen its presence. But Greenwood says Sport Clips isn't approaching those markets with a predetermined store count or a mandate to grow simply for growth's sake.
Instead, development is driven by what is happening at the local level. "Where we grow is also heavily driven by demographics," Greenwood said. "We target areas that have a high density of our core customers."
That core customer base of men and boys has helped Sport Clips carve out a differentiated position in the broader hair care industry. Rather than competing as a discount haircut provider or a premium salon, the brand occupies what Greenwood calls the "mighty middle."
"It's more about the mighty middle than anything else and focusing on the niche of men and boys," Greenwood said. "Our direct competitors are often perceived as a cheap haircut, but you get what you pay for. Those consumers are really seeking a better quality service with a slightly higher price point."
As Sport Clips evaluates new markets, identifying areas with a strong concentration of those consumers gives the brand a clearer picture of where it can support additional stores.
Demographics are only one piece of the equation. Sport Clips also uses customer behavior within its existing system to determine where it may need additional capacity.
One particularly useful metric is wait times. "We are reevaluating where to grow in markets based on wait times in other markets," Greenwood said. "If we have consistent wait times beyond 25 minutes in a region, we know there is more demand for the brand and we can capture that demand by adding stores in nearby markets."
Because customers can check wait times through Sport Clips' proprietary digital platform before visiting a store, the brand can see where demand may be exceeding existing capacity.
Long waits may indicate a successful store, but they can also create friction for customers prioritizing convenience.
"It is certainly not a great way to build new client demand by having high wait times on the app," Greenwood said. "The brand must address this to capture new clients who increasingly make their decisions based on convenience."
For prospective Team Leaders, that creates a development strategy rooted in existing customer behavior. Rather than assuming a market will embrace the concept after a new store opens, Sport Clips can use data from surrounding locations to identify areas where customers may already be signaling that another location is needed.
Finding demand is only half of the equation. Sport Clips also wants to ensure that adding a location strengthens a market rather than simply shifting customers from one store to another.
"We also do cannibalization studies to ensure that when we open in a new area, it is not negatively impacting other Team Leaders in that area," Greenwood said. "There are many factors, but we are really targeting those core clients."
The company evaluates demographics, customer density, traffic patterns, wait times and existing store performance before determining where development makes sense.
That discipline is especially important for a system where multi-unit ownership is a major part of the model. Existing Team Leaders frequently expand within their markets, and some already hold development rights for additional stores as they wait for the right real estate to become available.
"We have some licenses that existing Team Leaders have purchased the rights to and have first right of refusal," Greenwood said. "It's just about finding the right sites to open those stores in. It's really a combination of new Team Leaders and existing Team Leaders expanding their portfolio."
Sport Clips' growth push also comes as the competitive and real estate landscape continues to evolve following the pandemic.
Hair care was among the industries most directly affected by COVID-19 because operators couldn't shift their core service online or off-premise. While Sport Clips kept most of its system intact, closures elsewhere in the industry have created new opportunities.
"There are now holes in the market due to competitors closing," Greenwood said. "What we have been able to do, in contrast to our direct competition, is keep closures at a minimum and take advantage of gaps as well. It opens up a lot of opportunities from a real estate standpoint in areas we never had access to before."
Those opportunities aren't limited to completely new markets. Strategic closures, changing lease economics and competitor exits can create new sites within established Sport Clips trade areas as well.
"It reset the real estate market in our industry," Greenwood said. "The strongest players end up capitalizing on these opportunities, and that is where we are today. We have an optimization plan that gives us a runway for growth over the next 15 to 20 years."
The expansion push follows several years of heavy investment in strengthening its franchise support infrastructure.
"We're in a place now where we are ready to really accelerate our franchise expansion, focusing on net positive growth with our store counts after slowing down for the past few years following the pandemic," Greenwood said.
Today, the brand has a field coach for approximately every 25 stores and has increased in-person training. Sport Clips also owns its mobile app and has an internal technology team dedicated to improving the customer experience.
"Our model is designed to allow investors to keep their full-time careers as they grow," Greenwood said. "It's about leading managers, building culture and driving performance."
As Sport Clips re-accelerates growth, the goal isn't simply to put more stores on the map. It's to identify the places where customer demand, demographic strength, available real estate and Team Leader support all line up.
That could mean a new store in the Northeast, additional density in the Upper Midwest, expansion throughout the Pacific Northwest and Southwest or a single strategic opening in an otherwise mature market.
"We really have opportunity in just about every part of the country," Greenwood said.
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/sport-clips.
Sport Clips
SPONSORED
As Sport Clips accelerates unit growth, Vice President of Franchise Development Brent Greenwood identifies the markets primed for development and the consumer demand fueling expansion.
As Sport Clips Haircuts enters its next phase of franchise growth, the nearly 1,800-unit brand isn't simply looking for empty spots on a map. Instead, leadership is taking a more targeted approach, identifying markets where customer behavior, demographics and existing store performance indicate there is room for more locations.
Sport Clips is approaching that growth with flexibility, evaluating each market based on the strength of the operator, local demand and the opportunity to build density without forcing expansion where it does not make sense.
"We don't want to rule out any market [if there is] a great Team Leader," said Brent Greenwood, vice president of franchise development. "We really have opportunity in just about every part of the country."
For Sport Clips, that means the next phase of growth could look different from one market to another. Some regions may support multi-unit development, while established markets could present opportunities for a single additional store or the acquisition of an existing business.
"Sometimes that might be just a single-store development, but there are acquisition opportunities in those markets as well," Greenwood said.
Sport Clips has spent more than 30 years building its presence across North America, but the system's size doesn't mean the map is full.
The Northeast, Upper Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and Southwest stand out as regions where the brand sees opportunities to strengthen its presence. But Greenwood says Sport Clips isn't approaching those markets with a predetermined store count or a mandate to grow simply for growth's sake.
Instead, development is driven by what is happening at the local level. "Where we grow is also heavily driven by demographics," Greenwood said. "We target areas that have a high density of our core customers."
That core customer base of men and boys has helped Sport Clips carve out a differentiated position in the broader hair care industry. Rather than competing as a discount haircut provider or a premium salon, the brand occupies what Greenwood calls the "mighty middle."
"It's more about the mighty middle than anything else and focusing on the niche of men and boys," Greenwood said. "Our direct competitors are often perceived as a cheap haircut, but you get what you pay for. Those consumers are really seeking a better quality service with a slightly higher price point."
As Sport Clips evaluates new markets, identifying areas with a strong concentration of those consumers gives the brand a clearer picture of where it can support additional stores.
Demographics are only one piece of the equation. Sport Clips also uses customer behavior within its existing system to determine where it may need additional capacity.
One particularly useful metric is wait times. "We are reevaluating where to grow in markets based on wait times in other markets," Greenwood said. "If we have consistent wait times beyond 25 minutes in a region, we know there is more demand for the brand and we can capture that demand by adding stores in nearby markets."
Because customers can check wait times through Sport Clips' proprietary digital platform before visiting a store, the brand can see where demand may be exceeding existing capacity.
Long waits may indicate a successful store, but they can also create friction for customers prioritizing convenience.
"It is certainly not a great way to build new client demand by having high wait times on the app," Greenwood said. "The brand must address this to capture new clients who increasingly make their decisions based on convenience."
For prospective Team Leaders, that creates a development strategy rooted in existing customer behavior. Rather than assuming a market will embrace the concept after a new store opens, Sport Clips can use data from surrounding locations to identify areas where customers may already be signaling that another location is needed.
Finding demand is only half of the equation. Sport Clips also wants to ensure that adding a location strengthens a market rather than simply shifting customers from one store to another.
"We also do cannibalization studies to ensure that when we open in a new area, it is not negatively impacting other Team Leaders in that area," Greenwood said. "There are many factors, but we are really targeting those core clients."
The company evaluates demographics, customer density, traffic patterns, wait times and existing store performance before determining where development makes sense.
That discipline is especially important for a system where multi-unit ownership is a major part of the model. Existing Team Leaders frequently expand within their markets, and some already hold development rights for additional stores as they wait for the right real estate to become available.
"We have some licenses that existing Team Leaders have purchased the rights to and have first right of refusal," Greenwood said. "It's just about finding the right sites to open those stores in. It's really a combination of new Team Leaders and existing Team Leaders expanding their portfolio."
Sport Clips' growth push also comes as the competitive and real estate landscape continues to evolve following the pandemic.
Hair care was among the industries most directly affected by COVID-19 because operators couldn't shift their core service online or off-premise. While Sport Clips kept most of its system intact, closures elsewhere in the industry have created new opportunities.
"There are now holes in the market due to competitors closing," Greenwood said. "What we have been able to do, in contrast to our direct competition, is keep closures at a minimum and take advantage of gaps as well. It opens up a lot of opportunities from a real estate standpoint in areas we never had access to before."
Those opportunities aren't limited to completely new markets. Strategic closures, changing lease economics and competitor exits can create new sites within established Sport Clips trade areas as well.
"It reset the real estate market in our industry," Greenwood said. "The strongest players end up capitalizing on these opportunities, and that is where we are today. We have an optimization plan that gives us a runway for growth over the next 15 to 20 years."
The expansion push follows several years of heavy investment in strengthening its franchise support infrastructure.
"We're in a place now where we are ready to really accelerate our franchise expansion, focusing on net positive growth with our store counts after slowing down for the past few years following the pandemic," Greenwood said.
Today, the brand has a field coach for approximately every 25 stores and has increased in-person training. Sport Clips also owns its mobile app and has an internal technology team dedicated to improving the customer experience.
"Our model is designed to allow investors to keep their full-time careers as they grow," Greenwood said. "It's about leading managers, building culture and driving performance."
As Sport Clips re-accelerates growth, the goal isn't simply to put more stores on the map. It's to identify the places where customer demand, demographic strength, available real estate and Team Leader support all line up.
That could mean a new store in the Northeast, additional density in the Upper Midwest, expansion throughout the Pacific Northwest and Southwest or a single strategic opening in an otherwise mature market.
"We really have opportunity in just about every part of the country," Greenwood said.
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/sport-clips.
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