Run it with less chaos · Barbershops
The 6 Numbers to Check Every Week
You don't need a dashboard. Six numbers on a Monday morning tell you whether the shop is getting better, and which fix to try next.
Most barbers know exactly how a cut went and have only a rough idea how the week went. "Busy" and "slow" are feelings. They don't tell you what to change.
Six numbers do. Write them down every Monday, in the same place, and in a month you'll see patterns you can act on.
The six
- Cuts done. The total for the week. Your booking app or your register has it.
- Rebooking rate. Cuts that left with a next appointment, divided by total cuts. The best single sign of whether regulars are staying regular.
- Walk-outs. People who looked in and left. Use a tally sheet by the register.
- No-shows. Booked clients who didn't come.
- Average ticket. Total sales divided by clients. Goes up when add-ons and product go up.
- New clients, and where they came from. Ask every new face "How'd you find us?" and write it down.
A sample week
| Cuts done | 62 |
|---|---|
| Rebooking rate (22 ÷ 62) | 35% |
| Walk-outs | 7 |
| No-shows | 3 |
| Average ticket | $41 |
| New clients | 9 (5 Google Maps, 3 friend, 1 Instagram) |
Read it like a story. Seven walk-outs is a lot: the wait is the first fix. Most new clients came from Google Maps, so that profile deserves twenty minutes this week. The rebooking rate is the number to watch over the next month as you start asking at the mirror.
Keep it to ten minutes
Use a notebook, a note on your phone or a simple spreadsheet with one row per week. The format doesn't matter. Doing it every Monday does.
Then pick one number to improve this week and one fix to try. Next Monday, see if it moved.
Do this week
Questions barbers ask
What's a good rebooking rate? It depends on your mix of walk-ins and regulars. Compare yourself to last month, not to other shops.
I rent a chair. Which numbers are mine? All six work for one chair. If you run the shop, track walk-outs and new clients for the whole shop too. See Running a Shop With Chair Renters.