Rhoda Olsen

A seasoned business leader, Olsen began consulting with Great Clips, Inc. in 1984. These were the early days for this Minnesota-based brand, which opened its first location in 1982 and the first franchised Great Clips salon in 1983. During her time as a consultant, Olsen helped develop and deliver the brand’s inaugural franchisee orientation program and an operations manual.

Olsen joined the corporate team as vice president human resources and training in 1987, at which time she also became an owner. Over the years, she assumed additional responsibility for several other functional areas including marketing, communications, operations, and facilities and purchasing. She was named president in 1998 and transitioned to CEO in 2011.

In these roles, Olsen has grown Great Clips from 1,000 salons in 1998 to more than 4,100 salons across the United States and Canada in 2016. During that time, Great Clips also grew system revenues four-fold increasing from $200 million to well over a billion dollars. Today, Great Clips is the world’s largest salon brand with locations in more than 180 markets across North America. Great Clips, Inc. employees 250 corporate staff.

Olsen used her business acumen and passion to set Great Clips on the road to success evidenced by more than 49 straight quarters of growth. She is known for her analytical skills and her keen sense of what people need to be successful.