Is Phorest suitable for a larger barbershop? My honest experience
Alec Phillips
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👑 VIP
PMU Artist · Chelmsford · 5mo ago
Right so I've been meaning to write this up for ages. I'm a PMU studio owner based in London and I spent way too long using WhatsApp as my main booking tool. I know a lot of you are still doing this and I get it — it feels personal, it's easy, your clients know how to use it. But here's what it was actually costing me.
Every Sunday night I'd spend two hours going through messages, confirming appointments, sending manual reminders, chasing people who'd said 'yes I'll be there' three days ago and then gone quiet. Two hours every single Sunday. When I eventually calculated that out over a year it was over 100 hours of unpaid admin.
I moved to Fresha two years ago. Setup took about three hours including customising my services and pricing. Within the first month I got two years's worth of time back. The automated reminders alone have saved me from eight no-shows that would definitely have happened.
The bit I was most nervous about — telling my existing clients — was a complete non-event. I sent a single message saying I'd moved to online booking and included the link. About 80% booked straight away. The other 20% needed a gentle nudge but they got there.
Every Sunday night I'd spend two hours going through messages, confirming appointments, sending manual reminders, chasing people who'd said 'yes I'll be there' three days ago and then gone quiet. Two hours every single Sunday. When I eventually calculated that out over a year it was over 100 hours of unpaid admin.
I moved to Fresha two years ago. Setup took about three hours including customising my services and pricing. Within the first month I got two years's worth of time back. The automated reminders alone have saved me from eight no-shows that would definitely have happened.
The bit I was most nervous about — telling my existing clients — was a complete non-event. I sent a single message saying I'd moved to online booking and included the link. About 80% booked straight away. The other 20% needed a gentle nudge but they got there.
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The deposit psychology point is spot on. I've said this for years — a £50 deposit doesn't stop genuine clients, it stops time-wasters. Anyone who values the appointment enough to actually show up doesn't think twice about a deposit.
#1
The point about analytics is underrated. I had no idea which of my services was actually the most profitable until Shedul showed me the data. It completely changed how I structured my pricing and my service menu.
#2
Really useful breakdown — thank you. I've been sitting on the fence about Setmore for months and this has pushed me to just go and do the free trial. Will report back.
#3