Sport Clips Franchise Review: Meet Melissa Strick

How one woman entrepreneur became a top-performer with the iconic men’s haircut franchise

If you wanted to find out how to become a top-performing franchise owner with Sport Clips, asking Team Lead Melissa Strick would be an excellent place to start.

After opening her first location in Hagerstown, Maryland in January 2021, Melissa is already looking for her second location. She shows how our business model is built for growth, and that the significant training and ongoing support can help a first-time business owner exceed their goals.

“This experience of owning a Sport Clips has been incredibly rewarding,” Melissa says. “I knew before we opened that Sport Clips had a great reputation, but they’ve gone above and beyond. Ever since we opened our doors, support has been pouring in every day.”

In many ways, Melissa had the inside scoop on Sport Clips long before she became a Team Lead. Her sister works in the hair salon industry, and had not only managed a Sport Clips location, but she had also worked for Great Clips and Super Cuts, and Sport Clips was by far her favorite.

“When my husband and I were fortunate enough to explore business ownership, we looked at a lot of different brands,” Melissa says. “We looked at Massage Envy, we looked at lash bars, and family entertainment franchises. When we came upon Sport Clips, I knew it was the right choice. It was a manager-based business model, which was my wheelhouse, and my sister was a manager of a few different hair salon brands, and Sport Clips was such a positive experience.”

Even during their process researching franchise opportunities, the couple found that the way Sport Clips treated them was far different than the other franchise concepts they were exploring at the same time.

“The other franchise opportunities made us feel like they were only interested in us for our money,” Melissa says. “With Sport Clips, it felt like they were trying to get to know us as people. They wanted to know about our family, our goals, and our values – and that’s exactly what we cared about. We wanted a brand with a strong culture, strong values, and proven track record.”

Melissa found that Sport Clips made good on their culture of support and Heart of a Champion ethos right away when she went to her initial training session.

“When I first came to the Team Lead training, I was drinking little sips of the Sport Clips Kool-Aid, but by the time I’d graduated, I was drinking whole gulps,” she says, with a laugh. “The level of support at every level of the business model has been phenomenal.”

Melissa is focused on creating a culture of care and support in her store. This means visiting her store frequently, and making her stylists feel like valued members of her own family.

“It’s so important to make sure that my stylists feel important, because they truly are,” Melissa says. “I’m in my store often, and I like to make sure they feel appreciated. I give out gift certificates for hitting their goals or doing a great job, I bring coffee, and I listen to what they need. You have to create a culture of support with your stylists to retain them, and making them feel valued goes a long way.”

A little over one year into her new business, Melissa is ready to grow. Her experience in the business has given her confidence to expand into multi-unit ownership – and she’s already looking for a second location.

“I believe in Sport Clips so much that I told my Area Developer that I want all of the available territory,” Melissa says. “I’m very excited about the future, and can’t wait to keep growing.”

Ready to start your next chapter as a Sport Clips Team Leader?

If you’re interested in learning more about the Sport Clips franchise opportunity, simply fill out an inquiry form on this website and a member of our team will be in touch with you shortly. We can’t wait to learn more about you!