September might still feel like summer in Houston Texas, but behind the scenes at GloGirl Spray Tanning Boutique, we’re thinking about holiday appointments, retail gifts, and 2027.
For beauty business owners, this month deserves two priorities: preparing for the final quarter and deciding how you want to enter the next year. November promotions need September planning.
After more than two decades in spray tanning, I’ve learned that the calendar fills up much faster than the supply closet restocks itself. A little preparation now makes a real difference later.
Build the plan before announcing the promotion
Before creating that holiday graphic, decide what the offer should accomplish. More retail sales? Repeat appointments? Earlier cash flow? Each goal calls for a different approach.
Then check your inventory, staffing, appointment availability, and backbar supplies. Work out the costs, purchase deadlines, and redemption terms. Schedule your emails, social posts, and in-salon reminders.
For clients, that preparation means easier shopping and more time to book around parties, photos, and travel. For owners, it means knowing you can deliver what you’re promoting.
Use Friday Favorites to build holiday retail sales
At GloGirl, our new Friday Favorites series highlights the retail products customers are buying each week.
It keeps those products visible and gives us a chance to explain how they fit into a sunless tanning routine. By the time holiday shopping and Black Friday arrive, customers have already seen them, learned about them, and started deciding what they want.
Those favorites also help us plan useful holiday bundles. SLO GLO gradual tanning lotion paired with PUR GLO pH body wash, for example, could make an easy gift for someone who loves maintaining their glow.
A bundle doesn’t automatically need a discount. Thoughtful pairing, convenience, and gift-ready presentation add value. Price the complete bundle—including packaging—to protect your margin.
Help clients plan their holiday glow
At the beginning of October, we’ll spotlight GloGirl’s buy three spray tans, get one free packages. Packages expire three months from the purchase date.
They’re an option for clients who want savings without a membership commitment. Think fall photos, Thanksgiving gatherings, December parties, or simply keeping some color through sweater weather. Schedule visits within your individual expiration window.
For a spray tanning business, prepaid packages bring cash in earlier and encourage return visits. We also plan for the staff time and supplies those future appointments require.
Review your numbers before planning 2027
September is a good time to pull year-to-date reports, compare them with the same period last year, and identify what needs attention before December. Revisit the full-year picture once the year closes.
Which services generate the most revenue? Which retail products consistently sell? What brings clients back? Which expenses keep growing?
If you don’t have a CPA regularly walking you through your numbers, you can still start a practical business review. AI can help organize the information and surface questions worth investigating.
Upload redacted business bank statements or clear screenshots into a tool such as ChatGPT or Claude. Remove account numbers and personal or client information first. Complete exports are easier to check than cropped screenshots.
Ask it to summarize recurring expenses, compare monthly spending, and flag subscriptions or charges to review. Bank statements show money moving in and out; they generally don’t identify your best-selling services or products. Add itemized reports from your booking or point-of-sale system to see top sellers. Include costs and service time to evaluate profitability.
Try this prompt:
“Review these business statements and sales reports. Summarize monthly trends, flag recurring expenses to investigate, and rank services and products by sales revenue. Where costs are available, estimate margins and show your calculations. Identify missing information, separate transfers and loans from sales, and suggest three priorities to review before 2027. Don’t guess.”
Check the results against your records before making changes. AI can support a business review; it doesn’t replace your CPA’s accounting or tax advice.
Put AI to work beyond the numbers
AI can also help turn that review into action: organize a holiday content calendar, draft product education posts, or develop campaign ideas around consistent sellers.
That’s why I created a free online AI course for beauty professionals, with 15 actionable things you can do right now to help improve business performance and create better social media content.
The goal is practical: find opportunities to save time, manage spending, support sales, and market your business more effectively.
Start the free AI course for beauty professionals.
Make education part of your growth plan
Research emerging products and techniques, attend professional conferences, and choose education that addresses a real business need. Evaluate each opportunity against your clients, capacity, and goals.
We’re taking that same approach with GloPro™, our online spray tan certification and business development program, which offers three paths:
- SPRATAN Method: Learn our spray tanning method.
- Business Development: Get additional resources and support to strengthen an existing business.
- Full GloPro™ Program: Combine the method and business development with spray tan certification and an actual certificate upon completion.
We’re planning an October–November BOGO campaign for the SPRATAN Method and Business Development courses. The full certification program is excluded and remains full price. Exact offer details and dates will be announced with the campaign.
If you’re exploring how to start a spray tan business or strengthen one you already own, this is an opportunity to begin preparing for 2027.
September’s decisions shape how we finish the year. Pull the reports, plan the inventory, and give your next chapter a little room on the calendar.
Plan your glow: Book with GloGirl or shop our sunless tanning products. We’re in Houston’s Garden Oaks/Oak Forest community, serving the Heights, Memorial, and greater Houston.
Plan your growth: Explore GloPro™ and start with our FREE AI course for beauty professionals.
