I was recommended by a customer of mine who loved their system. I called the number listed on the website 3 times with no answer and no answer machine facility. I then filled in a contact form and someone (Brian I think!) called me straight away and apologised for the phone technical issues, they explained everything really well to me and I felt that this was the right system for me and loved the philosophy of "Let's Grow." I booked an appointment to meet with a sales rep. When the rep came, I felt a little disappointed, he wasn't really that friendly and I felt like he sped through some of the features. A few of the questions I asked he answered with "the trainer will show you that on the day" which wasn't really what I wanted to hear when I was debating wether or not to spend a lot of money on a system. I asked if I could apply a 25% discount to group of customers that have used me for 10 years and I was told "No, you'll have to do that manually for each one, each visit" (the technician today laughed and told me of course I could :) ) When I saw my customer I told her about my bad experience and she convinced me to try again (so you need to thank her- (Tej & Co)) and said she'd had nothing but good experiences, so I decided to give it another go. The technician Dave who came out to me today was amazing, really friendly and so helpful, answered all my questions and went out of his way to give me contact details and then help me again at 7.30pm to set up my home computer. He is a real credit to your company! Everybody else that I've spoken to either over the phone or via email have been great, responding quickly to everything and again really friendly but professional. I haven't heard from the rep since the day I paid my deposit, and I feel like that says it all. I never write reviews (least of all bad ones!) but I truly believe that without that recommendation or your other staff I wouldn't have come on board with Phorest, and that would have been a massive shame- I've only had it 12 hours and I love it!

The automation and easy of management saved our business 10 to 30 hours a month, its an absolute dream but i just wish it could do more and be relevant in todays market

This software is absolutely great for any salon, we use it our self in our Worthing branch and it makes managing appointments extremely easy! No training is needed as its very easy to use, the drag and drop interface makes scheduling our employees great, and if theres ever an absence its able to give us a staff by staff feature of their day plan (if its all booked in with Phorest)

What we have done to give the client complete control is integrate this software into our website, this lets them see all of their available options and times for treatments. What i would like to see in the near future is staff, so someone can book a specific appointment with a member of our team! The system itself is closed to the outside world so its quiet hard to grow your company once your using this software, its limited by its own design and before you invest i would make sure you aren't looking for any additional features before committing.

As of 2019 my experience is horrific. There is nothing I like about this software anymore. I would rather go back to salon iris. I just wish they were cloud base.

Client management Client connect Email marketing

US customer support is awful! Absolutely terrible. When they were in Ireland it was amazing. I can’t wait to leave as I have tried to communicate with their teams for months but still nothing has gotten better. Software doesn’t have you tube tutorials to help problem solve many features are not easy to find or use. When a client is a no show and you collect the deposit it goes to your billing and not to your bank account. That’s just ridiculous.

Phorest was easy to deal with from the word go - down to earth, understanding, and trustworthy. I suffer from learning disabilities and Phorest staff are so patient with me and really help me to understand anything I need. They are right there for me even down to the stupid things like how do I open something. Or where to find something. This was a big step for me and Phorest made it so easy. It's so good I tell everyone about it. I love it and to know I have it makes me proud.

I like that the software is easy to use, nice and bright, colourful, and it changes all the time. I love how it saves looking at the same screen all the time, and Phorest listens to the client base and changes things when they need to which I think is just amazing.

I don't like the fact that there our little bits in each section so you have to really search for some things to find what you want. And I don't like that it doesn't come with a spell check as this would be so helpful.

Its been a fantastic transition from MINDBODY software to PHOREST . The Team at Phorest is nothing short of brilliant. I Just want to share Two things. 1 the software 2 The support. 1. I have been using Mindbody for over a year. I have a medium size staff of 6 stylist in total and depend on a full management software to manage my small salon. Honestly you cannot even compare the software, Phorest is way more complete, and is made for the hair industry. It works so well, No bugs. The software never crashes. It works smoothly. Its really simple and easy to navigate, book appointments , run reports. I wish I had found the software ages ago! My old software was crashing and full of bugs, constantly on the phone trying to fix an issue on the site that was the software. They have amazing social media integration. Marketing is all worked into the software, and very easy to use. They have great email campaigns all built in. Well I could write a full page here but will move quickly to point 2. 2 The service and support is amazing, we have had ongoing training for all our staff, If we are stuck on any difficulty amazing support is just a call away. I Am looking forward to making full use of this powerful tool in my Salon, and looking forward to growing my business with Phorest. Thanks to Daniel , Shane, Barbara, Martha Helen And all the guys at Phorest for all the help support and training. Looking forward to growing with Phorest. Matthew Jonathan

Easy to use. A complete system. Great support

None

I’ve had a ton of ups and downs from day one. Beware what the sales team promises because it’s not likely true. And good luck if you want to streamline marketing and your online store. The store will not sync with any social media or selling platforms, so it’s essentially useless. Marketing is decades behind anything else out there.

POS system is good. Easy product setup.

The worst customer care I have dealt with in a very long time. The online store is very sub-par. Marketing looks horrible. System and app do not work well together. Way to expensive for the service you receive.

easy to use , one of the best software in the market , support team is great , cost effective , upgrade with new feature and improvement is always a plus .

few general things are missing , it is always good to wok on big improvements but its also important to work on few general things too for example Paymentmate software from phorest needs to be released Please bring reprint receipt option on appointment page Please add currency calculater on cash up user voice needs to be redesign

When choosing to go into business it was important for me to do research on salon software systems. I looked into the pros and cons of a few different companies. A couple of the things I took into consideration were the start up costs and how the company can help us grow. Phorest came out out on top by a mile. The start up cost where competitive and came with benefits that other companies where not offering (at the time) A few of the key things that where important for the business in my point of view are our online presence. Phorest a comany in my opinion are forward thinking they provided us with the means to book online directly too our appointment page, a salon branded app along side the option to post our feed back directly to facebook, Twitter and Pintrest. This has served endless benefits for us. It's provided us with new clients who have found us directly from Google based on our facebook reviews. Not to mention the benefits of having those reviews In the first place good or bad. The level of customer service received every time we have contact has been inpecible to say the least. Always greeted with a friendly voice at the other end of the phone and any and all issues are resolved promptly. There level of comunication is high and you are never left wondering what's happened when in the unfortunate instance of a glitch in the system. It is very clear they are a company who care about its clients and are always on had with great new marketing ideas and promotions! I genuinely feel our growth as a business is just as important as there own. Which in comparison to other conpanies I looked into this stood out a mile. I am very happy for choosing Phorest and I have recommend them to my salon owner friends near and far and will continue to do so.

Phorest had been absolutely amazing from day one. Unlike other companies that once they have sold you the software, you never hear from anyone again. Phorest really care about their clients. The continued support, blogs and customer service are incomparable. Not forgetting the software itself is fantastic. Everything we asked for and more so much, in fact, I probably don't use ALL the features available due to having to sit down and read through all the manual - Highly recommend this. Today was the first time we had to phone forest 're a support matter in 18months and it was resolved promptly not affecting business because the IPads and Phones were still working. Thanks a million guys

Online bookings, Reports, photos & marketing

Unable to upload your own consultation forms from other companies

I just wanted to say how amazing the phorest software and the people who work for this company are! I have been approached quite a few times by their competitors and have always stuck with this company for both our clinics as they are always trying to push things forward and have always come up with great ideas to increase Revenue. This coupled with the amazing customer service gives me no reason to ever leave :-) Up the great work xxxx

The layout and ease of use

The layout and ease of use

Please add a function where multiple client payments can be taken, as a partner/couple or a friend may be paying for treatments for 2 people even 3 at times, this would be a fantastic function and make the system less cumbersome and time-consuming when taking group payments. Also, add a basic invoice log: date, type of invoice (stock, utilities), Company, ref number, amount, Paid/unpaid, this will enable to look at business cash flow and will turn the system into a true salon management system. Set 2 stock levels - 1) store room stock 2) treatment room stock, will aid in easier stock taking, tracking of stock etc.... RETURNS: when an item is returned system automatically returns item to stock, should be 2 options 1) return to stock 2) return to supplier (returned to supplier, refund client, and value deducted from professional sales purchases Loyalty points: on pos ask if products to be redeemed on points, able to set independent amount of points will aid marketing, and request loyalty card no Loyalty card no points, there is no point in salons investing in loyalty cards if these are not going to be produced, and salons will not see the need for investing in these as the loyalty points are automatically applied, with the no card no points system, salons will benefit if clients do not produce card, also clients will Add to subconsciously keep the card with them and hopefully promote benefits to friends and family

they were ok. we just didnt have a better option at the time . we now use boulevard

the reports mainly. was great at showing retention, new clients and sales

hard to train, online booking was messy for clients and always felt bets

Luke was the only one who actually helped with the nightmare that is your company. I realize new software takes time and a learning curve but this experiance has been a nightmare. What was supposed to be my go live date came and went we are not live as you said but you had the audacity to charge me none the less. When I called to see what was going on the phone numbers for technical support were disconnected, leaving me to scramble and email everyone who has ever emailed me of the 7 emails only one man got back to me and only after 2 hrs. When I paid for set up fee I expected my system set up especially after I answered the long detailed questionnaire you had me fill out. Problems are still not fixed and no end in sight.

Marketing is the only strong point

When you make an appointment and then change the timing of the first service any services after don't update thier time so you have to delete the services and then add them back in this is a problem in witch a few lines of code in your software could fix this. This would be a better use of an update then more marketing especially if you want to be compared to stx, millennium and salon iris.

The fact they never return a phone call

It was suppose to be a free trial and now they are charging me. The software looks like it’s from 1980 and isn’t compatible nor does it do what they say. I have to cancel my card because they said I’m in a contract which was not how it was sold to me. Try vagaro pro it’s much better and more professional

I'm really hoping it is going to help me boost by business reputation online and bring in new business and help with retaining existing clients and turn them into loyal regular clients.

Its really user friendly. The staff have been amazing and genuinely want to help me grow my business and do well. Love that you can link all your reviews in one place and monitor them. so much easier. Also love all stock is easily managed and the Treatcards are a great idea that my clients are really excited to get involved in. Also cannot wait to be able to use my salon app.

That its web based... I think its a real downside. But so far its only downside. Possibly would be good to be able to do more on Phorest Go! I do alot from home on my day off and it would be great to be able to see a little more on my phone/tablet rather than having to purchase another computer for home or bring my work computer home.

A basic ability to manage my clients and have good records for historical that is easily accessible.

Simple and easy to use. A good way to monitor what is going on. It is easy to manage appointments. The support team is always on hand to support and advise with any potential issues that may arise.

Tricky having the initial training before the software was installed in the Salon. So some of the functionality that exists around permissions and betters ways of using the system was hard to take in at the time.

Wonderful if you have multiple locations. Constantly getting updated, and can be used on multiple platforms!

The marketing is inferior, difficult to share reviews, difficult to modify existing prices and services

This software has given me control of my salon as I don't work in the salon, I know what is going on and able to keep on top of my business.

Easy to use and navigate around, the various colours kinda personalise the calendar but still makes it very user friendly. I did not margin for the ongoing training offered by Phorest at my convenience , I expected to be able to get hold of someone when I want for any issues that I come across and I have not been disappointed thus far. I was a little dubious about the monthly price of the software package but now I am seeing that its good value for my hard earn cash. I hope this continue but so far I have no reason to think otherwise. I am looking forward to a long and prosperous working relationship with Phorest. Phorest you rock.

Overall Impression: I have been a customer of Phorest for the past 4 years, over that time I've seen the software improve and evolve with the needs of busy salon owners. The owners of the company and all of the staff have a real passion for the product, and invest heavily in their time and expertise with any issue Salon Owners have. For the Salon Owners who really want to take control of the day to day running of the salon and have ambitious plans to grow then Phorest is a worth while investment. Also know that Ronan and his team are not sitting at home enjoying there product, they are innovating and improving on a regular basis. Pros - Cloud Based, Support is excellent, they offer outstanding training and customer service, they listen to their customers with User Voice, and they genuinely care about your business. Business Blogs with Guest speakers is great. Cons - It's hard to find a con, I look at the software with 2 eyes, from a Salon owner who uses it and a Salon Owner Accountant who recommends it. If I have a con I know I can send an Email to Ronan, and we will discuss it, usually find a solution within the software it's self or we'll start to work on it implementing improvements.

I can see straight away there is so many easy to use extra's from what we have previously used. I will get my head around these over the next few days nd revert back with more positive comments. Your team have also been on point and very good, especially Faelan & Justin. Negatives I want to share: - Online bookings deducting £1.50 per appointment!! If 100 bookings a month it is £150 a month which is a huge hit to my bottom line. Based on my previous software company there was no charge and most of my booking made over night too, so in my eyes I am concerned about this. almost £2000 a year! - Bookouts drop down menu- These are far more complex and long winded than the previous system i used, I showed Faelan how easy it was on my previous software and even though they are far behind you guys, there was a few things like this that were far easier. - Visual and easy on the eye. Again you can't see the whole name of the client so when they enter the salon you need to hover over each client to find out who they are. Also the flag icon and additional icons cover the name which i think could be a lot cleaner. Again i showed this to Faelan.

The clients scheduling is awesome. It's very easy to use and manage. Client cards is a great option. We like the fact we can see notes on our calendar screen

The thing we like the least is the way confirmations are Handled with the client. We would like a daily report of the clients who've confirmed for their appt and a list of clients to call and confirm for the day. It also would be nice to have a call report the day after appts so we can call each client and see how their Appt was. At this point, we are only calling clients who haven't submitted a review. We believe if they've submitted a 5 Star review they are very happy and no need to call.

Every point of contact with the Phorest team is done with ease and professionalism. I am delighted with the software and impressed with the customer care.

It is so easy to use and makes the the most tedious reports easier to understand and control. Make my job as Manager easier.

Haven't found a flaw yet!!

Have been using Phorest for the past couple of months now and I must say, it's definitely the best salon software we've used to date, we've had to kiss a few frogs before we found our prince but Phorest is definitely worth the investment and it's been onwards and upwards since we started using it with the help of their excellent support team.

Ease of use, friendly navigation, great customer support. It's like having an in-house marketing team it's so simple to activate the in-built marketing functions.

The price is a little punchy when comparing the market, but once you've spent some time using it and the team become adept at unleashing its full potential, the value is evident.

Phorest is great in may ways but there still some functionality that needs more work. Like able to print out GC template on site or email one to client.

Love the marketing tools. Email function.

No GC sale template. Refund function.. Can't add tip after sale transaction.

Only stalled today, but we can already see the appointments alot clearer to see and organise the rooms far quicker. Loving the none- paper form of record cards! Its super handy for checking our staff columns and appointments online from home! Great for recording stock take and staff hours.

It reduces the amount of 'no shows' and targets clients who may forget to re-book. We also love how it manages her stock take, all record cards and we have amazing access to it from home and online anywhere! The team at Phorest are super helpful and great to work with. The software is everything a good salon needs!