Bluesky Local Archive

For the last six months, I seem to always head to the barbershop on days when it is raining. Normally there is a wait at the barbershop (15 minutes or so) but it always seems like the days when it rains there is no wait. I asked the barber if the weather and the wait was related and he said yes. He went on to say that “bad weather” days were very slow for the shop and sometimes he has to send one of the barbers home. Luckily my haircut has no issues with rain.

A new Washington, D.C. startup is trying to help fill those barber chairs on the “bad weather” days. Bluesky Local’s tagline explains what the service aims to offer, “we improve slow day sales”.  As you can see in the screenshot below, each business can setup offers based on a variety of weather conditions, time of day, month, etc. Using my barber as an example, he could setup campaigns that offer a $2 discount or a free shave on rainy or snowy days.

In an interview with Emily Mayock of Nightclub&Bar, CEO and Co-Founder Matt Ackerson noted where he came up with the idea for Bluesky Local.” Ackerson says. “…I noticed this because whenever business was slow the waiters and I would sit around, play cards and complain and joke about how little in tips we would make for that night.” Ackerson tells me that their current customers are all based in the NYC area.

The concept seems very interesting as it could fill open capacity for a merchant or casual dining location. What would it be worth to the bottom line if BlueSky Local could fill several extra tables each day?

The service ranges in price from $99 – $299/month depending on the size of the list. Having run thousands of coupon campaigns, I think the pricing seems a bit on the high side. I’m also not sold that size of list is the right metric to price the service from. The service also requires that you have a list — I’d look at a GPS mobile option as well.

Could Bluesky Local help my barber fill his chairs on the bad weather days?