When Neal Courtney graduated from BYU Marriott’s MBA program in 2001, the last thing he envisioned was a career in children’s haircuts—yet that’s precisely what he’s doing.
Of course, Neal isn’t actually cutting hair. “When my wife, Alexis, first suggested we buy a Cookie Cutters Haircuts for Kids franchise, my first response was, ‘Are you crazy? There is no way that running a kids’ hair salon would be a good business decision.’ But now here I am,” he says, “running the fastest-growing kids’ hair-care franchise in the country.”
Neal and Alexis met while he was earning his undergrad from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. With Neal as CEO and Alexis as COO, they have built what started out as a single Cookie Cutters franchise location into more than fifty-eight locations nationally, with another forty slated to open in the next few months.
“The brand experienced 550 percent growth in 2017,” says Neal. “And we have more than 220 locations in the pipeline that will open over the next several years.” In 2017, Cookie Cutters was recognized on the Inc. 5000 list as one of the fastest-growing companies in America (No. 1,353), and the company was ranked No. 444 on Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 list.
Neal’s journey to Cookie Cutters CEO started at BYU Marriott. “I’ve been on a lot of boards, and I’m the CEO of a growing company at the age of thirty-six,” he notes, “and I have never been as stressed as I used to be walking into Hal Heaton’s class. The way he prepped students for the real world, the ability to think analytically on your feet, the ability to have confidence when you speak—that class prepared me for my career more than anything else.”
After graduation, Neal nabbed a job as a senior financial analyst at Kmart Corporation. He then moved to Frito-Lay and eventually landed as the CEO of Mrs. Fields Famous Brands before branching off into the Cookie Cutters world.
“I have been fortunate to be associated with some great companies and amazing people,” observes Neal. “And although I have made many mistakes, I have never let those mistakes impede me from continuing to take chances and to be aggressive. I’m constantly learning. In my opinion, the biggest education comes from experience.”
After opening their first Cookie Cutters location, the Courtneys opened six more before purchasing the entire company in 2014 and relocating the headquarters to Salt Lake City. Started in 1994 in Indianapolis, Cookie Cutters offers an interactive haircut experience for children. While waiting for their appointments, kids can play on the in-store playground, and each haircutting station is outfitted with a television and a fantasy chair—designed to look like a race car or fire truck or airplane. After the haircut, children receive a balloon and a lollipop. “It’s a one-of-a-kind experience,” Neal says.
And he would know. One of the reasons he and Alexis decided to focus on Cookie Cutters is that they saw how much their own three children (ages fourteen, eleven, and nine) enjoyed their time in the haircutting chair.
One of Neal’s favorite parts of being an entrepreneur is the flexibility it provides to make his family a top priority. “Cookie Cutters has been a winning formula all the way around,” he says. “And BYU Marriott prepared me so well for what I’m doing now.”
