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Meet Francisco Rocha Silva and Jonathan Tunis of Guys & Dolls Hair Salon in Fort Lauderdale

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Francisco Rocha Silva, Jonathan Tunis.

Francisco, Jonathan, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Guys & Dolls Hair Salon entered the Fort Lauderdale hair scene in 1980. The original proprietors, Linda & Dana ensured that Guys & Dolls remained a highly regarded destination for hair. For the bulk of its existence, Guys & Dolls was located on Sunrise Blvd. & A1A. In 2004 the girls moved the shop to the Sands Harbor Hotel in Pompano Beach. It was not a good move (it was a horrible move) and business fell off. It was in April 2006 when the girls moved to Panama City and when the proverbial baton was handed to Francisco. The lease was up on June 30, so that spring Francisco & I spent every Sunday & Monday driving around Fort Lauderdale looking at new locations for Guys & Dolls re-incarnation. The weeks turned into months and things were not looking good. We were at the point where Francisco would be forced to rent a studio and say farewell to Guys & Dolls. Then, in the 11th hour, when all hope was faded, a mutual acquaintance introduced Francisco to Franky, the owner of Frankie & Company. Franky was looking to sell his shop and the location was ideal, in fact it was beyond perfect… just 12 seconds east of I95 on Cypress Creek Road. This location gave us a huge advantage – besides being the only salon in the entire intersection, we realized that if we chose Las Olas or East Oakland Park or Federal Hwy (where the majority of clients would come from a 2-mile radius) we’d be forced to compete with the other 200 high-end downtown hair salons. Instead, our clients come from the Ocean to the Everglades and from the Keys to Palm Beach. Our proximity to the interstate was priceless.

If the truth be told, the only things of any value handed down to Francisco were the phone number and the domain name. So, armed with only a website and a phone number, Guys & Dolls opened for business August 1, 2006. I was the business owner and Francisco was the managing owner. At the time, I was working in sales and my presence was not required every day, so Francisco was the face and voice of Guys & Dolls. And that was all the shop needed.

Francisco is a very special person. His outlook on life is not the same as yours or mine. He comes from a very small remote fishing village in northern Brazil. Saying his homes another world is a huge understatement. It’s a given that he grew up without electricity or running water and bathed in the river. He read his school books by candle light and used chalk to write on the blade of an old shovel. As deprived as you might think his upbringing was, that is judging from our standards, not his. He had a loving mother and 2 wonderful sisters who instilled into him a sense of confidence, trust, honesty, caring, self-worth and humility which made him unlike anyone I ever met before. Francisco arrived in the United States in 1991. I was extremely fortunate that only by sheer fate our paths crossed in the spring of 1992 and we have never been apart since then. There was a huge language barrier because Francisco did not speak a word of English and I did not speak Portuguese. While it is not my intention to tell the `story of a 3-decade romance – this is not the right forum for that, I will go so far as to say that you couldn’t help like, admire, want to be with Francisco after you have met him. It is the aura Francisco exudes that is the reason for the shop’s success.

We were living in Boca in 1994 when Francisco decided he wanted to go to beauty school. I had just taught him how to drive and we found an old Chevy Beretta for him… he used that car to work 2 jobs, go to the gym, and attend beauty school at night. He never once complained – he was naturally grateful with a positive attitude. He completed school and the owner of the school was so impressed with him that he was given a job at the owner’s salon. He has several jobs before Guys & Dolls where he honed his basic skills: hair drying & styling, barbering, and hair color. He was hired at Gus & Dolls in 1998 because the girls knew he was a diamond in the rough. They spent the next 7 years polishing him and he was ready to be the Owner in 2006. And to this day, his loyal clients from Sunrise Blvd still see him regularly since 2002.

The early years were lean, but somehow the shop grew and met its obligations. By 2010 Francisco had put together his dream team, who I like to refer to as the Founding Fathers of Guys & Dolls. The word was out and business grew exponentially. I was forced to leave my job in sales and join the team on a full time basis. This was our 1st business and as busy as we were, both Francisco & I still had a lot to learn about being small business owners. 2013 was a record year and after that things slowed down a bit for the next few years… looking back, it was primarily staffing issues that held us back. About 18 months ago we cleaned house and were very selective with who we brought on. We also did a major renovation in 2017 and it all paid off. We have the best staff we ever had, the shop looks awesome, and we are back to the top spot on google and business is strong.

I feel if we hadn’t gone through the rough patch that we would never have learned those crucial lessons to running a successful small business. As difficult as it was, Francisco’s positive attitude never waivered – he is respected by the staff and loved by the clients and he remains the driving force behind Guys & Dolls success.

One of his clients wrote this for Francisco, and it sums everything up:

Brazilian Man

Tell me where you’re from
You from the Amazon?
Beautiful Brazilian man, I can’t understand
All these strange words you’ve brung
Can’t speak your native tongue
Can’t sing the songs you’ve sung
You sailed the ship all night
You’re old home’s now out of sight
You left your family there
You know how much they really care?
How do I compare?
Your skin’s so smooth and soft,
Pure as the morning’s frost
I hope you don’t feel lost
Your eyes so dark and pure,
I hope you feel secure
Just want you to be sure
My beautiful Brazilian man
I wish that I could be
The one you long to see
For all eternity
You’re my security
Beautiful Brazilian man
You look so stunning – so exotic
With dark, bronzed skin, just too erotic
Now that you’ve learned our ways,
After many days
Many months and years
Since your mother’s ears
Heard your tender voice
Do you regret your choice?
I know things are not the same,
Maybe just your name
I wish life was a game –
Where we all score the same
But by now you’ve seen
All sorts of people – both kind and mean
Have you met those few?
Who care so much for you
They see your face, give you a warm embrace
Just share with them your gentle grace
They don’t ask where you’re from
They don’t care why you’ve come
Doesn’t matter what you bring
Don’t give them anything,
A deaf man hears a hug and smile
The blind man sees all things worthwhile
Be assured that God has put you here
To spread your love far and near, Beautiful Brazilian Man

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As with any small business, sure there have been some struggles. One of the conditions of taking over the salon from Franky was that he and his nail techs would stay on as renters. Things seemed to be going well and Francisco was hiring staff and watching the shop get busier & busier. For the first couple of years, Francisco would come in on Monday’s and clean the shop himself… this was before we could afford a cleaning service. I remember that day in October 2007 when Francisco called me up at noon on a Monday and told me “they’re gone – they’ve all moved out”. We were never given any notice and it was totally unexpected. What this was, plain & simple, was a case of professional jealousy. Francisco’s success was too much for Franky to take and on a Sunday night, hidden in the cloak of darkness, Franky & the girls moved out. They did pay their portion of the rent that month, which they considered a generous act. When I called Franky to find out why? he stated that the girls did not feel safe in the evening with the bar (Cheers) next door. It’s funny how that was never an issue for all the previous years. Anyhow, they moved to a shop on E. Commercial, in a safer location. Did I mention that Karma is a bitch? A few months after the move, Franky got mugged & robbed & beat up as he left the shop in the safer neighborhood. Karma rules.

The bulk of the struggles have primarily been related to staff: hiring staff, managing staff, having to let staff go. Everyone talks a good game when they want a job. We require them to do a model, and even when they do great work, the 1st 90-days are crucial. Usually the true colors appear before the 90th day. Francisco & I are pretty lenient employers – I mean that we do not micro-manage our staff. We hire them as seasoned professionals and expect them to act the part and produce awesome results. We don’t like firing staff, and when it gets to that point, I think they know it and leave before we take action. Even so, we have had to fire some stylists over the years and it is not easy, but once it gets to that point, I have to do what’s in the business’s best interest.

Overall, whatever the issues/struggles were, we dealt with it together. That is the key, the word TOGETHER. I feel that by having each other to bounce ideas off one another, we are always able to find the right solution. There have been times when I did not follow Francisco’s input, and I wish I had. Between Francisco & I, we have 4 shoulder to carry a burden, and that’s usually enough.

Please tell us about Guys & Dolls Hair Salon.
With an eclectic Greenwich Village vibe, Guys & Dolls Hair Salon is Fort Lauderdale’s top-rated hair salon with over 1800 5-star reviews. Our talented hair stylists (all Master Colorists) are unique and very special. It is for this reason that Guys & Dolls Hair Salon does not fit into a typical hair salon category… I guess you could say that we are atypical. From the outside, the salon looks quite un-assuming; however, as soon as you walk through the door, in addition to being greeted by Dexter, you experience sensory overload and feel the positive energy that permeates through the entire salon.

Guys & Dolls Hair Salon specializes in, and is known for our incredible Hair Color. We do over 100 colors each week (and over 100 keratin treatments each month). Our primary color line, BES, comes from Milan Italy. In addition to its vibrancy and excellent gray coverage, it is made from natural ingredients including vegetable liposomes, minerals, and natural pigments. We also carry an ammonia-free and PPD-free line, Regal Zero. And for those of you who are kitchen magicians doing your own color at home, we are the top-rated salon for Expert Color Correction when you experience a snafu at home and need it fixed right the 1st time.

In addition to color, our keratin treatments are second to none, and we are the only salon in town to feature the Aerovex Healthy Air System to keep the air clean and safe when doping a keratin treatment. We feature Natura Keratin, made from organic ingredients because the Natura line contains 4 types of keratin to ensure we match your hair with the correct product, thus ensuring long-lasting, frizz-free, beautiful smooth hair.

Even our blow dries are amazing… some of our clients refuse to go elsewhere because they say that the blow dries they get at Guys & Dolls last all week long (I guess you have to be a lady to understand that). All I know is that when a client comes for a blow dry they should get something way better than they could do themselves at home.

We are in our 12th year and both Francisco & I are extremely proud of what we have done so far. When I look outside the window on a Thursday evening and see the parking lot full, knowing that we are the only business in the plaza open, it is a great feeling to know we have created a thriving salon and support our 10 employees and their families.

What sets us apart from the rest is our commitment to the business, to our staff, and to our clients. Francisco & I are always present all day, every day and that speaks volumes. I don’t know if you remember that TV show Tabatha’s Salon Takeover… Tabatha is a platinum blonde stylist from Australia – I would compare her to Chef Gordon Ramsey the way he runs his kitchens. When a salon was in trouble, Tabatha would come in, take the keys from the owner and then clean house (literally & figuratively). She would appear after conducting video surveillance for a few weeks and then the staff that could not cut it was let go. In addition to taking over, she also remodeled the salon. The point I want to make is this: There is a common denominator why these featured salons are in trouble… it is because the owner(s) are not present, either physically or mentally or both. You have no idea how our presence here everyday makes a difference, it does…. big time.

Our business has 3 pillars on which everything rests: 1) We care about our clients; 2) we are honest, and 3) we are very good at what we do. Clients get it… it starts with the initial phone call… I cannot say how many times a new client comes in and on their way out they tell me “the only reason I came here was because you were so nice (and patient) on the phone. This is what sets us apart. Also, I have to mention one other item that sets us apart… he is like a secret weapon that wins over the hearts of everyone who enters (not Francisco). He is our greeter, Dexter, who greets anyone who walks through the front door. Dexter has not missed a day of work in over 6 years… one thing about Dexter, he literally has 4 legs.

Pricing:

  • Ladies Cuts: 35 short hair; 50 long hair. Blow Dry: 35 Men’s cuts 30
  • Color touch-up: 55 (ammonia free 65) add 15 for pulling through All over color starting at 65.
  • Keratin Treatment: starting at 99 (organic, formaldehyde-free +25)
  • Highlights: partial 85 & full head 150 Ombre: 100 Balayage: 150
  • Bleach Touch-up: 65 Toner: 35

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