Great Clips Opens New Store in Chester

Great Clips has risen to the challenges of 2019, recently opening a new salon in Chester Township and providing its customers with as much comfort as possible, said owner Mark Wardeiner.

"With COVID-19, we have had the increased challenge of having customers trust in us that we have gone beyond the recommendations for reducing the risk of COVID-19 exposure," Wardeiner said. "We clean the chairs and disinfect the stations between each customer. Each customer receives a freshly-washed cape, as well. This is all in addition to what the state cosmetology and barber board mandates."

Great Clips, 12662 West Geauga Plaza, opened for business in October and is excited to be a part of the Chester community, Wardeiner said.

"Chester Township has that rural feel with good family values and residents that are extremely loyal to local businesses," he said. "Although Great Clips is a corporation, they are still individually run by local business people."

Wardeiner said all the "fantastic business owners" in the West Geauga Plaza made it an easy decision to set up shop there.

"I was able to meet with the owner of Palma's Hair Salon and develop strategies to allow our businesses to complement each other," he said. "The owners of Prestige Jewels, Turney's Hardware and the Silver Skillet have also been extremely helpful with advice and willingness to cross promote our business. And, most importantly, the landlords, Tom and Ron Basista, have gone above and beyond to help us get off to the best start possible."

Great Clips offers shampoos, styles, conditioning treatment, as well as neck, bang and beard trims (though Wardeiner said they have temporarily stopped doing beard trims due to COVID-19 precautions).

Wardeiner lives nearby in Mentor — where he was an elementary teacher for 31 years — with his wife and co-owner, Nada; four children, Danielle, Alan, Andrea and Danny; and their dog, Mars.

When asked what sets Great Clips aside from other franchises, Wardeiner said consistency has been key.

"Great Clips does a fantastic job of being a consistent franchise where a customer is able to receive their favorite haircut at any Great Clips across the country due to the utilization of Clip Notes, which was developed by Great Clips Corporation," he added. "Clip Notes are a record of the haircut each customer received and their preferences. Another incredible fact is that Great Clips stylists are very experienced at what they do. A full-time stylist at a busy salon may complete over 3,000 haircuts in one year."

Wardeiner said he hopes their salon becomes a fixture in the community and that they develop great relationships with their customers, emulating what other local business have done.

"Once we get our feet on the ground, we would like to become involved in community events and fundraisers," he said.

Currently, the salon has 10 stylists, but they only have a maximum of six working at any one time.

"We are super excited about our grand opening and will be having some fantastic savings on haircuts from now until mid-December," Wardeiner said. "We will be mailing out many coupons to Chester Township residents over the next several months