No sooner do you sport overgrown hair or a scruffy beard, a reminder message lands on your phone from the neighbourhood barber shop. A new mobile app, likely to be launched in a month by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), may get clients and their barbers closer.
The yet-to-be-named app is being developed for the Android and iOS platforms and will be available for download for free.
One of the features of the app, which is being developed exclusively for barbers, is scheduling future visits of clients based on the time and type of the last service utilised at the salon. This apart, it can also store the history of the clients and manage the database according to various categories. The app will also help barbers price their services and related calculations.
The details of the the new project was shared by K.K. Jalan, Secretary, Ministry of MSME, at the launch of a one-day workshop on beauty and wellness at the National Institute for MSME on Tuesday.
Mr. Jalan said the app is for smaller saloons and the intention is to improve the revenues of the skilled workers of this sector. Since there are more than 10 lakh hairdressers in the country, the MSME industry wanted to organise workshops that can help them in various aspects of business — from choosing the right products and interiors to doling out offers and services — that can attract more clients.
At the workshop, popular hairstylist Jawed Habib interacted with local hairstylists and barbers and shared his ideas and experiences with them. Hyderabad became the first venue of the first-of-its-kind workshop and the officials plan to organise similar ones across the country in the near future.
