fresh

Paule Attar Cuts Hair, Not Corners

February 18, 1999

Puget Sound Business Journal, February 1999, by John Smith

Heinz Mikulka will be the first to tell you he doesn’t know how to cut hair or give a facial.

What he does understand is the business of managing a hair salon and spa. With his buiness and life partner, Paule Attar, Mikulka has steered Paule Attar Inc. to new heights.

The 10-year old Bellevue company grew revenues 120 percent the past three years; last year, the full-service salon and spa did slightly more than $1 million in business. Mikulka vos not to stop until he hits the $2 million mark.

“Growth will obviously slow a little bit, but we’ll grow 20 percent a year for the next three or four years until we get to $2 million,” he said. “If the economoic situation is correct, we will most probably open another spa and salon somewhere in Seattle, but, of course, there are a lot of variables to that.”

Mikulka, the CEO, met Attar - the president - in Beverly Hills in 1981. Attar had been running two salons there since 1974. Prior to that, she had worked as a senior stylist at the renowned Alexander’s in Paris.

Mikulka was general manager of a Beverly Hills Porsche dealership until he found himself jobless after a change of ownership in 1986. The couple decided to move to the Northwest after falling in love with Seattle during a vacation. In 1988, they opened Paule Attar Inc. in a small Bellevue office.

“Paule was a bit tired of Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, the rat race, everything.” Mikulka said. “When we moved here, she cut hair, I stood behind the reception desk and we made a little money. all of a sudden, it just grew.”

Business really took off in March 1997, when Mikulka and Attar moved into spacious, 3,800-square-foot headquarters on Northeast 10th Street. The extra space - almost four times what they previously had - allowed them for the first time to offer spa services such as facials, massages, body treatments and pedicures. The business has 36 employees.

In the 10-plus years the salon has been here, Mikulka estimates it has served more than 18,000 clients. About 180 to 200 new customers wander in every month. Mikulka doesn’t know why.

“Absolutely, (the new space) was the key to our growth, but the increase in business was something I didn’t expect,” he said.

The salon accounts for about 70 percent of Paule Attar’s business; the spa, 30 percent. The clientele is 82 percent female, almost exclusively between the ages of 25 and 55. Most are either homemakers or executive women who have freedom over their daily schedules.

Much of the salon and spa’s competition comes from Gene Juarez Spa and Salons, which Mikulka said is an “outstanding operation.” He calls the future bright for full-service salons, but believes smaller, mom-and-pop operations will increasingly struggle to make ends meet.

In fact, Mikulka’s business model emulates that of larger companies such as Microsoft Corp. and Paccar Inc.

“I do everything just like a big business does. Our computer system is the same as any other big business and we take e-mails for appointments. It’s a disciplined approach to running a hair salon, and customers like that.” he said. “Full-service salons are a trend all over the United States, but you can’t be behind the chair and run the business. It just doesn’t work.”

Mikulka is wary of outgrowing the current site and opening a second salon because he fears a loss of customer intimacy. Both he and Attar have personally gotten to know much of their clientele.

“With two salons, you don’t know where you want to be. Paule’s here and I’m here, and if there’s a problem, we can take care of it right away.”

“Now, we can deal with and treat the client like family and have a lot of fun. With more than one shop, that’s a little more difficult to do.”