Steve Hockett

Like any experienced golfer, Steve Hockett hopes to avoid driving his ball into the sand traps or the rough—but when he does, he knows how to get back on the fairway. Growing up in small town South Dakota, Hockett learned to play golf on some of the roughest terrain: sand.

While he cheerfully concedes he isn’t the world’s best golfer, Hockett, who played on his high school’s team, took what he learned about persistence and applied it to his career at Great Clips. In 1988, he opened a Great Clips store, but it failed. Hockett says that setback is still fresh in his mind and he thinks about it every day.

Instead of making excuses or passing the blame onto others, Hockett reviewed what happened and realized he had only himself to blame. He knew he would do things differently if he ever had the chance to rejoin Great Clips, something he wanted to do as quickly as possible.

“I loved the business, I loved the people, I loved the concept,” Hockett said about owning a Great Clips franchise. After his store went under, Hockett went back to Great Clips and told them he wanted to work with other franchise owners to avoid a similar outcome.

Steve spent several years working to rejoin Great Clips, and his persistence paid off when he received a call offering him a position in their marketing department. Since then, Steve has steadily climbed the ranks, playing a pivotal role in the company’s remarkable growth. Under his leadership, Great Clips has expanded from 2,700 to 4,400 salons across 190 markets in the U.S. and Canada.

In this episode you will learn:

• How the franchisor and franchisees can challenge one another to ensure continuous improvement.
• The significance of the three Ps: patience, performance, and presence.
• When it’s appropriate to compromise and adapt your plans for success.

Looking back at his store failing, Steve goes back to what he learned from all those bad shots on the sandy courses of South Dakota, including knowing who was to blame.

“You have to look in the mirror and understand that if you fail, it’s a lot on you. It can be on other things, but you got to own it,” he said.

Resources:

• Connect with Steve Hockett on LinkedIn.
• Find a Great Clips salon near you!