Keep your till. Miali fills it: what Miali does for small salons

If you run a small salon, you probably already have a till. Maybe it's a POS app on a tablet, maybe it's your M-Pesa till and a notebook at the front desk. Either way, it does one job well: it records the money when a client pays.

But the till only sees the two minutes at the counter. It doesn't see the six weeks between visits, which is where a salon's income is really won or lost:

• the client who booked by DM and never turned up
• the regular who used to come every month and quietly stopped
• the stylist who left and took half their clients along, because those clients lived in the stylist's WhatsApp

Miali is built for those six weeks. You don't have to replace your till. Keep it. Miali fills it.

Before the visit: getting booked and getting them in the chair

One booking link for the whole salon. Put it in your Instagram bio and WhatsApp status. Clients see your services, prices and photos of your work, then pick a stylist or "Anyone available" and book a real free time. No account, no app to download. Each stylist has their own working hours, so clients only see times when that person is in.

Reminders that go out on their own. Every booking gets a WhatsApp reminder ahead of time (you choose how far ahead, from 1 to 72 hours) and another about 2 hours before. Reminders like these cut no-shows by up to 80%. Nobody at the front desk has to remember to send them.

Deposits for the long services. On a paid plan, ask for a deposit (a fixed amount or a percentage) on services where a no-show really hurts, like a four-hour braid or a full set. Clients pay straight to your M-Pesa Till, Paybill or number, enter the payment code, and you confirm it. Miali never holds your money. If nothing comes in within an hour, the slot is released for someone else.

Closed days, set once. Public holiday, family event, staff training? Close the whole salon for that day in one step, under Hours & booking. Nobody can book anyone that day, and Miali tells you how many bookings are already on it so you can message those clients.

On the day: run the floor from one phone

Most small salons run from one phone at the front desk, not a phone per stylist. Miali is built for that.

See the day by person. In the calendar, switch the day to By person. Each stylist gets their own list with a status line: "With a client until 2:30 PM", "Free until 3:00 PM", "Starts at 9:00 AM" or "Off today". When a walk-in arrives, whoever is at the front desk can see in a glance who can take them.

Walk-ins in seconds. Add them as they sit down. They go on the same calendar as online bookings, so every stylist knows what's coming.

When plans change, move the booking. A stylist is off sick? Open the booking and change who's doing it. Miali only lets it move to someone who works at that time and is free, so nobody gets double-booked.

After the visit: keep them coming back to your salon

This is where most of a salon's money is decided, and where a till is blind.

The client book belongs to the salon. Every client's visit history, notes, colour formulas and allergies live in Miali, not in one stylist's phone. When a regular's usual stylist is away, whoever covers can see exactly what that client had last time.

When a stylist leaves, the clients stay. Hide the stylist in Studio and Miali offers to move all their upcoming bookings to someone else on the team. It moves each one only if the new person works then and is free, and tells you how many stayed put. The clients, their history and their next appointments stay with your salon.

Know who's due back. Miali learns each client's usual gap between visits and lists who's due, with the WhatsApp message already written and a link that opens straight into booking their usual service. Punch cards, loyalty discounts and prepaid packages give regulars a reason to come back to your salon, not just to one person.

For the owner: see what your till can't

Whose clients come back. Your till can show what each stylist took in. Miali's team report shows that too, and also how each stylist's clients are coming back: how many have booked again, how many are due, and how many haven't been back in 60 days or more. That's the number that tells you who is building your salon's future and who needs support.

Commission worked out for you. Set a rate for each person and the report estimates their commission from completed visits. You still pay people your usual way. Our staff commissions guide has worked examples.

A monthly note on what Miali brought in. On the 1st of each month you get an email showing what came through Miali the month before: bookings through your link and what they're worth, which came from your rebook messages, posts and referrals, unfinished bookings that came back, and visits that went ahead after a WhatsApp reminder. Only what we can actually count, no guesses.

Where your till fits

Keep using it for what it's good at. In Miali, "Pay & complete" records how a client paid (cash, M-Pesa, card or bank) so your loyalty, packages and reports stay right. Miali doesn't track stock or replace your till, and it doesn't need to. You can download your clients, appointments and services at any time if your accountant or another system needs them.

A worked example

Say you run a salon in Nairobi with four stylists, an average visit of KES 2,500, and 10 no-shows a month between them.

• 10 no-shows × KES 2,500 = KES 25,000 a month in empty chair time.
• Over a year, that's KES 300,000.

Now say each stylist also has a few regulars who drift off every month without anyone noticing. Bring back just four of them a month and that's another KES 10,000 from people who already love your work.

The Business plan is $10 a month (billed in US dollars; your card is charged in KES at your bank's rate). If reminders and a rebook message save a single visit, it has paid for itself. Run your own numbers with the no-show cost calculator.

What the Business plan includes

• Up to 5 bookable people, each with their own hours
• Unlimited bookings, and WhatsApp reminders for 350 appointments a month
• Deposits, the full reports, and the team report with each person's client numbers
• Your own brand on your booking page and client emails, with no Miali promotion
• Done-for-you setup: we'll set up your services, team and hours with you
• Help from a real person on WhatsApp and email

See pricing for every plan.

Switching over in a week

You don't need to change everything at once.

1. Day 1: add your services with real durations and prices, and your opening hours.
2. Day 2: add each stylist with their working hours and commission rate.
3. Day 3: turn on reminders, and deposits for your longest services.
4. Day 4: share your link on Instagram and WhatsApp, and put the QR code from your share kit at the front desk.
5. Days 5 to 7: add your regulars as they come in, and record every walk-in, so your reports and commission numbers are right from the start.

Our salon owner's guide goes through each step in more detail.

FAQ

Do I have to stop using my POS or till? No. Keep it for taking payments. Miali handles bookings, reminders, rebooking and your client book, and records how each visit was paid so your reports stay right.

Do my stylists need their own logins or phones? No. Miali is built to run from the front desk phone. The owner, or whoever runs the front desk, manages everyone's bookings from one account.

What happens to a stylist's clients if the stylist leaves? They stay with your salon. Their history stays on file, and Miali offers to move that stylist's upcoming bookings to someone else on the team.

Can I close the salon for a holiday? Yes. Close the whole day once and no one can be booked for it. Miali tells you if any bookings are already on that day.

How many people can I add? The Business plan covers up to 5 bookable people for $10 a month.

Key takeaways

• Your till records the money. Miali brings the next visit, stops no-shows and keeps clients with your salon.
• Run the whole team from one front desk phone, with each stylist's status at a glance.
• When a stylist is off or leaves, move their bookings in one step. The clients stay yours.
• See whose clients come back, not just who took in the most, and get a monthly note on what Miali brought in.