When Michael Herde started his hairdressing training at his dad’s business as a 15-year-old, little did he realise almost 55 years later he would have helped train 86 apprentices.  
Together with business partner Beverly Iterrott, the career hairdressers have committed to contributing to the skills pipeline of an industry constantly seeking new talent.
Now with retirement beckoning, the duo is selling their Price Attack salon in Mount Gambier and hopes to pass the baton to someone with a real passion for the haircare sector. 
“Bev and I actually trained together with my dad,” Mr Herde said. 
“We have loved everything about this industry but as we are getting older, it’s time to wind down and enjoy retirement. 
“We are both so invested in the business that even if we left it running in the hands of a manager, we would still try to micro-manage it, so we have made the difficult decision to sell.”
With the COVID pandemic creating the biggest motivation for people seeking sea and tree changes, Mount Gambier continues to lure Adelaide residents seeking a change of pace. 
“Mount Gambier is a great place to live, everything is here so it’s a great opportunity for somebody to buy themselves a job and be their own boss,” Mr Herde said. 
“There’s no hard sell, because the great thing about this business is it’s a clean business: you open the door in the morning, you leave at night and you don’t have to do anything else. You don’t have to take work home. 
“We are the only Price Attack in the region, so you are drawing clientele from the surrounding districts and even from across the Victorian border.”  
With an equally long hairdressing career herself, Mrs Iterrott confesses she will miss it, but said the duo were long past retirement age.  
“I have been wanting to retire for two years now, but I knew I would miss it like crazy so kept moving the goal posts,” she said. 
“But it’s time to spend more time with my grandchildren. The business has been wonderful for us. It has been running in Mount Gambier for 25 years and has supported two families, which speaks to the strength of the industry.”
Mr Herde was quick to agree.
“The proof is in the fact that we’ve been here for that long. Obviously you don’t stay if you’re not doing well at it and we have loved it,” he said. 
“The business is both retail and hair salon – two streams of revenue which stood the test of operating through a pandemic landscape.
“Our accountant said, ‘I don’t know how you guys do it, your figures progressively go up all the time’ and I think because people are not travelling as much, they are treating themselves more. 
“I think that will be in place for a long time. Not to mention all the online meetings where people have seen themselves differently on Zoom so have looked at a makeover.
“As we are both hairdressers, we still work on the floor so it would be a great business for a younger aspiring hairdresser, but, the other side is, you don’t have to be a hairdresser because there is so much happening on the retail front.
“The beauty of buying a franchise is you’ve got support and back up of a team of professionals from product managers to a marketing team working on your business for you, unlike if you open a business on your own.
“The training is in place for anybody coming along. I’d love to see a younger person here who’s going to make some longevity and keep going. You have all of that while being very much a local business.”