business model for beauty salon

The Beauty Salon Business Model: Types, Advantages and Disadvantages

For many people, a trip to a beauty salon is something to look forward to. Many people love the idea of going someplace to improve their looks, feel better about themselves, and socialize with others. Centuries ago, beauty stylists and barbers helped the rich and powerful with their grooming habits. Emperor Nero, the tyrant of Greece had barbers at his employ and a man named Champagne opened a hair salon in Pari s and styled wealthy Parisian women until his death in 1658.

Today, most people still go to some kind of beauty salon to improve their appearance. This presents a great opportunity for entrepreneurs who are interested in entering the beauty business as a barber, stylists, or makeup artists. In this article, we will take a deeper look at the beauty salon business model, the different types that exist, and some of the pros and cons of this model.

The Beauty Salon Model

The beauty salon industry operates on a dynamic and customer-focused business model, which is key to its success and sustainability. At its core, this model revolves around providing a wide range of personal care services such as hair styling, coloring, cuts, skincare, nail care, and makeup application. Many people think of hair salons or barbershops when the term “beauty salon” is used. However, there are many types of businesses that fall under this model. We will look at those later in the article.

This model falls under the retail business model . You can also assume that this would be a brick-and-mortar business as you need to be physically present to take advantage of the services offered, Salons often diversify their services to include treatments like massages and aromatherapy, catering to a broader clientele seeking holistic wellness experiences.

Central to the beauty salon business model is the emphasis on customer experience. Salons invest significantly in creating a welcoming and comfortable atmosphere, where clients can relax and enjoy their treatments. This is achieved through stylish interior design, comfortable seating, and a selection of complimentary amenities like beverages and magazines.

Also, skilled and trained professionals are the backbone of the industry. Their expertise not only in beauty treatments but also in understanding client needs and preferences is vital. Continuous training and staying abreast of the latest trends and techniques is a priority for these professionals. 

Now let’s take a look at the different types of beauty salons that fall under this business model .

Image by Freepik

Types of Beauty Salons

Before we get into the details of this model, let’s clarify the types of businesses that fall under this model. Here are some of the different types of salons that are in existence.

• Hair Salon: When people think of beauty salons they tend to focus on hair salons. These are places where customers go to get their hair cut, colored, and styled. 
• Nail Salon: This type of salon focuses primarily on nail care services. You’ll see them offer things like manicures, pedicures, nail extensions, and nail art. Some nail salons also offer additional services like foot massages and exfoliation.
• Day Spa: The day spa gives clients the option to enjoy facials, massages, body treatments, and sometimes hair and nail services. These salons focus on relaxation and rejuvenation.
• Barbershop: Barbershops are hair salons whose target audiences are mostly men and boys. The first known barbershops were in ancient Greece, where barbers were an esteemed group. Today, the barbershop is an important part of men’s grooming and also, often, male socializing.
• Tanning Salon: These types of salons specialize in services to tan the skin. They provide sunbeds and sometimes spray tanning. These salons may also offer complementary services like body exfoliation to prepare the skin for tanning.
• Makeup Studio: These studios are dedicated to makeup services for events, weddings, or everyday looks. Beyond that, these studios can sometimes offer makeup lessons and some sell makeup products.

Revenue Options for This Model

Direct service charges.

The most common revenue option for beauty salons is the direct charge option. This means that clients pay directly for the services charged. Hair salons, day spas, barbershops, and nail salons are the most common types of salons that use this option. 

The pricing for these services is usually based on the type of service. For example, a basic haircut may cost $25 at a chair barbershop. However, a hair salon studio may charge $70 for an expert cut. The price is also influenced by the materials and products used. Salons may offer a range of services from basic grooming to luxury treatments, each priced accordingly.

Product Sales

Many salons have the opportunity to upsell by offering products for sale. When a client purchases a service such as hair styling and facial treatment, they can purchase the products used during the service that they can take with them. This is an attractive option for the client. If the client likes the way they look and feel after their service at the salon, they can maintain that look and feel by purchasing the products used during their treatment. Product sales should be a primary goal of beauty salons .

 These products can include shampoos, conditioners, styling products, skincare items, and cosmetics. This is an opportunity the salons do not want to miss out on. That is because this revenue stream can be very lucrative. According to Salon Today, products in the salon are sold at a profit margin of 42 to 48% profit margin compared to 36-40% for services.

Also, with in-store products, the opportunity to convert sales is higher than in retail stores that are not within the salon itself. That is because customers often trust the recommendations of their stylists or beauticians. On top of that, they can see the results of the products right away after the service.  

Memberships

Offering memberships is a strategy to generate consistent revenue and build a loyal customer base. You’ll see tanning salons and day spas utilize this revenue option more than other salons. Although, it is important to note that every type of salon can utilize this option.

Salons can take advantage of the membership option by offering special benefits for members. These benefits can include discounted services, priority booking, and exclusive access to new services or products. Makeup studios can also offer things like special members-only events. Memberships encourage repeat visits and can increase customer loyalty. These members often feel as though they are getting more value for their money.

The membership option is based on the subscription business model. One advantage of the subscription business model is that it provides the business with a predictable, steady income stream. This can be really beneficial for budgeting and financial planning. Salons can offer different levels of memberships with varying benefits to cater to different customer needs and preferences.

Advantages of This Business Model

Creative expression and personal satisfaction.

 Owning a beauty salon offers a unique platform for creative expression. As an owner, you have the freedom to design the salon space, choose the services offered, and cultivate a distinctive atmosphere.

This creative control can be deeply satisfying, especially when you see your vision come to life and receive positive feedback from clients. Additionally, the beauty industry is dynamic and constantly evolving, which allows for continuous learning and adaptation of new trends and techniques, keeping the work exciting and fulfilling.

Growing Market and Demand

According to multiple reports, the global beauty salon market size was valued at $155.60 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 8.0% from 2023 to 2030 .

People consistently seek beauty services for various occasions. People often like to have a regular salon that they can visit once every few weeks to get their hair done or another type of beauty treatment. They also like to have a place they can go to prepare for special events. This steady demand can translate into a reliable customer base and potential for revenue growth.

As beauty trends evolve, there’s always an opportunity to expand services and cater to diverse client needs, further boosting business potential.

Relationship Building and Community Impact

A beauty salon is not just about providing services; it’s a place where relationships are built. Owners often develop strong bonds with their clients, understanding their preferences and personal stories. They also have the opportunity to create a community feel around their shop. This importance has been seen in media over the years,

Rapper Ice Cube produced and starred in a movie franchise called Barbershop. The movie showcased how the barbershop feeds into the aspect of community.

NBA superstar LeBron James also displayed how important barbershop conversations are to a community. In 2020, he starred in a television series called The Shop which premiered on HBO. The series featured James and businessman Maverick Carter having conversations and debates in a barbershop with guests who were mostly professional athletes. 

Salons of all kinds offer clients to get to know their stylist, other patrons, and the salon owners during their visits. This can help create a bond between them and enhance customer loyalty.

Disadvantages of the Business Model

High competition.

One of the major downsides to this model is the level of competition that already exists in this arena . According to IBIS World , here are the numbers of locations in the US for each type of beauty salon.

• Day spas-23,00
• Tanning Salons-57,283 
• Barbershop- 154,876
• Hair Salons-952,909
• Hair and Nail Salons-1,464,924 Hair & Nail Salons

Needless to say, there are no shortages of beauty salons out there. However, entrepreneurs entering this space should not be intimidated by the amount of competition. They should look to f ind the target market for the beauty salon within the space and focus on filling the needs not met by their competitors.

Time Commitment and Work Pressure

 Running a salon requires a significant time investment, often extending beyond regular business hours. Owners need to manage administrative tasks, staff, inventory, and customer service, which can lead to long and irregular working hours.

The pressure to stay competitive and keep up with industry trends can also be taxing, both mentally and physically.

Staff Management Challenges

 Managing a team of professionals with different personalities and work ethics can be challenging. Issues such as staff turnover, training, conflict resolution, and maintaining high service standards require strong leadership and management skills. Ensuring staff satisfaction while keeping up with salon standards and client expectations can be a delicate balance to maintain.

Dependence on Market Trends and Customer Preferences

 The beauty industry is heavily influenced by changing trends and client preferences. Salon owners must constantly adapt to these changes to stay relevant and competitive.

This can involve regular investment in training, new products, and equipment, as well as continuously updating service offerings. Failure to keep up with these trends can result in lost clientele and decreased revenue.

This model is more complex than some people may realize. However, it is an attainable business model for those who are interested in beauty as a business. With the right focus, application, and revenue options, entrepreneurs and business owners have the opportunity to turn their passion into a lucrative venture.

5 Long-Term Business Goals for a Salon or Beauty Business

Finding the Target Market for a Hair Salon

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Brick-and-Mortar Business Model

Like this article? Get updates by email and get our eBook for FREE

GET PREMIUM CONTENT AND UPDATES FOR FREE !

Ralph is the Managing Editor at StartUp Mindset. The StartUp Mindset team consists of dedicated individuals and is designed to help new, seasoned, and aspiring entrepreneurs succeed.

Recent Posts

5 Instagram Marketing Goals to Set for Your Business

How shortening links can benefit digital storytelling.

9 Sales Goals Examples for Entrepreneurs

10 Best Business Laptops with Numeric 10 Keypads for 2024

5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Being a Supervisor

Related posts, popular posts.

21 Different Types of Business Models With Examples

100 Best Business Ideas that You Can Start this Year

10 goals for office managers to set for themselves and their team, 6 target markets for makeup artists.

Comments are closed.

• Grow Your Business
• Leading Your Team
• Find Your Way
• Business Models
• Social Media
• Entrepreneurial Lifestyle
• Your Mindset
• Our Writing Team
• Get “The Fast Growing Startup” Ebook Free
• Advertise With StartUp Mindset
• The Part-Time Entrepreneur

Beauty Salon Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Beauty Salon Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your beauty salon business plan.

We have helped over 100,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their beauty salons.

Below is a salon business plan example to help you create your own beauty salon business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon is a newly established hair and beauty bar located in Glendale, Arizona that is founded by Jenna Diaz, a local hair stylist and aesthetician that has worked in the industry for over 15 years. Jenna’s knowledge in hair, nail, and facial trends have made her a popular stylist in the community. As her client list continues to grow, Jenna realizes that it’s time for her to open up her own salon.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be located in Glendale’s upscale district in a 5,000 square foot retail space. The area is highly trafficked with middle to high income residents who spend on luxury items such as cars, clothes, jewelry.

The beauty salon will offer haircuts and treatments, facials, manicures, and pedicures. Major Lengths will also carry a large selection of hair and beauty products that will be available for purchase. Jenna will have a loyalty program where the top clients will receive discounts on their service as a thank you for remaining loyal and referring other potential clients to the salon.

Product Offering

The following are the services that Major Lengths Beauty Salon will provide:

• Color Treatment
• Healthy Hair Treatment
• Nail Services

Customer Focus

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will target the male and female adult population of Glendale, although the majority of clientele will be women. They will be middle to high income and working in a variety of industries, such as medical, legal, business, education, or other white collar professions. The salon will target stay at home mothers as well who enjoy a day of pampering.

Management Team

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be owned and operated by Jenna Diaz, a local Arizona hair stylist and aesthetician. Her years of experience and in the industry have allowed her to meet the following talented individuals.

Jenna has recruited a talented nail technician and aesthetician from her previous salon to join her at Major Lengths. Jenna regards them as the best in the industry and knows that their quality of work is up to her high standards. They also have a loyal and large list of clients that will likely follow them to the new salon.

While the three of them will be in charge of their respective department, Jenna will be the head manager to oversee the entire operation of the beauty salon.

Success Factors

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

• Latest hair and nail trends
• Modern and comfortable environment
• More selection of each service offered than any other salon in town
• Major Lengths Beauty Salon offers the best pricing in town

Financial Highlights

Major Lengths Beauty Salon is seeking $100,000 in debt financing to open the beauty salon. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the retail space and purchasing the salon furniture, equipment, decorations, opening inventory, and working capital. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Beauty salon build-out: $30,000
• Opening inventory, furniture, equipment, decorations:  $40,000
• Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, rent, utilities):  $15,000
• Marketing costs: $5,000
• Working capital:  $10,000

  The following graph below outlines the pro forma financial projections for Major Lengths Beauty Salon.

Company Overview

Who is major lengths beauty salon.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon is a newly established hair and beauty bar located in Glendale, Arizona. The company is founded by Jenna Diaz, a local hair stylist and aesthetician that has dedicated her career to making women look and feel their best. Throughout her years in the beauty industry, Jenna gained extensive knowledge in hair, nail, and facial trends as well as how to give exceptional customer service to all of her clients. Jenna realizes that men and women invest a lot of time and money into their appearance and she takes extra care to ensure her clients not only feel special, but walk away with their desired result.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be located in Glendale’s upscale district in a 5,000 square foot retail space. The area is highly trafficked with middle to high income residents who spend on luxury items such as cars, clothes, jewelry. Some of Arizona’s most expensive homes are within a 15-mile radius from the location. The salon will be decorated with a contemporary style, have modern furnishings, and include a welcoming waiting and reception area, large hair styling room, and separate areas for facials and nail services.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon History

Major Lengths is owned and operated by Jenna Diaz, a local hair stylist and aesthetician who has made her career working in the beauty industry for the past 15 years in Glendale. She has gained extensive knowledge through her continuing education and industry seminars. Jenna has a long list of loyal clientele who will follow her to her new salon. Aside from her beauty salon knowledge and expertise, Jenna has taken local business courses to learn salon management and leading a small team of stylists, manicurists, and aestheticians.

Since incorporation, Major Lengths Beauty Salon has achieved the following milestones:

• Registered Major Lengths Beauty Salon, LLC to transact business in the state of Arizona.
• Has obtained the necessary salon permits and licenses for the state of California.
• Has a lease contract in place for the 5,000 square foot beauty salon.
• Has developed the complete list of salon services and products.
• Has developed the beauty salon’s logo and branding image.
• Began recruiting a team of stylists, manicurists, and nail technicians.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon Products

The following will be the services Major Lengths Beauty Salon will provide:

Industry Analysis

The Beauty Salon industry is expected to increase in size by 2.5% over the next five years. Demand for industry services mirrors broader economic performance, as economic growth boosts consumer spending on personal care products and services. Specifically, new products and services have favorably contributed to industry revenue growth over the majority of the past five years.

Online platforms such as Instagram and Facebook have provided a convenient and low-cost marketing strategy for many stylists and technicians to garner new clientele. Higher service prices and increased consumer spending on high-margin merchandise and services have also fueled revenue growth, as operators capitalize on rising per capita disposable income. Continued growth in household income over the outlook period is expected to drive consumer spending and boost demand for premium personal care services. Moreover, equipped with larger budgets, consumers will likely continue to favor professional salon products and services, such as hair coloring services, over less expensive alternatives sold at drugstores and supermarkets. Environmental sustainability concerns are expected to become more prevalent over the next five years, leading salons to offer a wider array of eco-friendly products that appeal to trending consumer preferences. Specifically, nontoxic products will likely benefit industry revenue, staff and patrons. This growing niche will likely drive hair salon revenue over the coming years.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

The precise demographics for Glendale, Arizona are:

Customer Segmentation

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will primarily target the following customer profiles:

• Stay at home mothers and fathers
• Working professionals
• College students
• Retired females
• Mothers with adult or teenage daughters

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Hair Xtreme

Hair Xtreme is located on the west side of Glendale and is owned by a local hair stylist with over 30 years of experience. Hair Xtreme specializes in haircuts and hair coloring services as well as hair color correction. The owner is also certified in Balayage highlighting by the prestigious L’oreal SOHO Academy. Hair Xtreme Beauty Salon was established to create a higher level of service in the Glendale community and has amassed a large clientele. The salon is regarded as the go-to salon for anyone looking for extreme color or haircut transformation. The pricing of services are on the higher end of the spectrum and caters to the community in the middle to higher income range.

Hair Xtreme Beauty Salon’s full list of services include haircuts, balayage, ombre, highlights, color retouch, hair treatments, and special occasion styles. The salon is open Tuesday through Saturday and is by appointment only.

The Complete Package

The Complete Package is not only a hair and nail salon in Glendale, but also provides massage treatment, eyelash extensions, and body treatments. The salon is moderately priced and leans to be more affordable to target the population who doesn’t spend lavishly on beauty services, but also occasionally like to get pampered. Owned and operated by a mother and daughter team of hair stylists, The Complete Package is located in a small retail shopping center in the middle of the city. The salon has been in operation for over 20 years and was founded by Kate Beneducci. She was able to bring The Complete Package into operation due to her experience and background in cosmetics, marketing, and management. Every single stylist is a certified cosmetologist and are all required to attend a mandatory training every year to learn the latest techniques.

The Complete Package’s full list of salon services include hair, makeup, eyelash extensions, and nails. The full list of spa services include waxing, facials, microdermabrasion, massage, and body treatments. The salon regularly posts promotions to increase customer loyalty. The Complete Package is open daily by appointment and is able to take walk-ins Friday through Sunday.

Fringe Beauty Salon and Spa

Fringe Beauty Salon and Spa is located on the west side of Glendale, Arizona and was established in 2013 as a premier beauty salon. Fringe caters to the higher income clientele and their pricing is the most expensive in town. The owner relocated to Glendale to start her own beauty salon after working in the beauty industry in New York and Los Angeles for many years. She did hair and salon services for many celebrities and has been known to be the stylist for awards shows such as the Emmys and Oscars.

As a Glendale native, she relocated to her hometown to provide a higher quality of salon services to the community. The full list of services for Fringe Beauty Salon include haircuts, hair treatments, hair color, balayage, ombre, special occasion, manicures, pedicures, massage, facials, eyelash extensions, waxing, and makeup.

With a luxury atmosphere and relaxing spa environment, Fringe Beauty Salon and Spa is frequently booked for those wanting a full day of pampering.

Competitive Advantage

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

• Friendly and knowledgeable staff who are all trained and experienced in the latest hair and beauty trends.
• Complete list of beauty salon services intended to provide a full day of pampering and relaxation.
• Casual and comfortable environment with a luxurious feel.
• Major Lengths Beauty Salon offers the best pricing in town for the high quality of services provided. Their pricing structure is the most cost effective compared to the competition.

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

• Complete list of beauty salon services all provided by trained and knowledgeable hair stylists, manicurists, and aestheticians.
• Pricing is affordable and moderate so customers perceive value when visiting the beauty salon.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Major Lengths Beauty Salon is as follows:

Website/SEO Marketing

Major Lengths Beauty Salon has hired an advertising firm to develop their branding image and logo. They will also develop the hair salon’s website. The website will include a full list of services, pricing, and pictures. The advertising company will also manage the company’s website presence with SEO marketing tactics so that anytime someone types in the Google or Bing search engine “Glendale beauty salon” or “beauty salon near me”, Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be listed at the top of the search results.

Word of Mouth/Referrals

Jenna Diaz has a long list of loyal clients that have been with her for decades. They will follow her to the new salon and will receive additional clients from their referrals.

Social Media

Once the branding and logo is finalized, Jenna will use social media to her advantage and create social media business pages on all of the popular social media platforms. She will commit to posting daily to increase the list of followers and use it to regularly engage with customers.

Print Advertising

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will invest in professionally designed print ads to display in local magazines and hand out flyers to local businesses.

The pricing of Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be moderate and on par with competitors so customers feel they receive value when purchasing their salon services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Major Lengths Beauty Salon.

Operation Functions:

• Jenna Diaz will be the Owner and Manager of the beauty salon. She will order salon inventory and products, oversee staff, payroll, and manage customer service.
• Melanie Brooks – Head nail technician that will oversee the nail department.
• Fiona Adams – Head aesthetician that will oversee the facial and massage departments.
• Jenna has hired third party companies to manage the bookkeeping, accounting, tax payments, insurance, and legal requirements.

Milestones:

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will have the following milestones complete in the next six months.

8/1/202X – Finalize retail space for beauty salon

8/15/202X – Begin build-out of beauty salon to include stylist stations, facial and massage rooms, and nail service area

9/1/202X – Order opening inventory

9/15/202X – Begin marketing campaign

9/22/202X – Hire staff of hair stylists, nail technicians, massage therapists, and aestheticians

10/1/202X – Major Lengths Beauty Salon Grand Opening Event

Major Lengths Beauty Salon will be owned and operated by Jenna Diaz, a local Arizona hair stylist and aesthetician. Jenna has made an impressive career helping women achieve their desired look and feel. As an Arizona native, Jenna has attended the local beauty college and attends industry trade shows and training seminars annually. She has amassed a large and loyal clientele and has even done hair treatments, cuts, and facials for local celebrities and sports personalities. Jenna is committed to establishing a beauty salon in her hometown of Glendale and making it a place where the women and men flock to when they want the latest hairstyle, manicure, or facial.

While the three of them will be in charge of their respective department, Jenna will be the head manager to oversee the entire operation of the beauty salon. She will also outsource a third party insurance company, CPA, and attorney to take care of her insurance, legal obligations, and tax filings. Jenna will also employ a part time bookkeeper to handle her day to day accounting and payroll of staff.

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for Major Lengths Beauty Salon are the sales from hair services, nail services, massages and facials.

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required to staff the beauty salon. The expenses will be the payroll cost, rent, utilities, salon inventory, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Major Lengths Beauty Salon is seeking $100,000 in debt financing to open the beauty salon. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the retail space and purchasing the salon furniture, equipment, decorations, opening inventory, and working capital. Jenna will need to allocate funds for the first three months of payroll and operating expenses as well as spend approximately on branding and marketing. The breakout of the funding is below:

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

• Number of Beauty Salon Services Sold Per Month: 300
• Average Revenue per Month: $20,000
• Beauty Salon Lease per Year: $110,000

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, beauty salon business plan template faqs, what is a beauty salon business plan.

A beauty salon business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your beauty salon. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can  easily complete your beauty salon business plan using our Beauty Salon Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Beauty Salons?

There are a number of different kinds of beauty salons, some examples include: Beauty salon focusing strictly on hair styling, beauty salon offering hair removal services, skin care services, nail services, tanning services, or massage services, and beauty salon offering products.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Beauty Salon Business Plan?

Beauty salons are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding. This is true for a business plan for a beauty salon or a hair salon business plan.

Why do You Need a Business Plan Template?

If you’re looking to start a beauty salon business  or grow your existing salon business, you need a business plan. A hair salon business plan template will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your beauty salon in order to improve your chances of success. Your salon business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Where Can I Get a Beauty Salon Business Plan PDF?

You can download our free beauty salon business plan template PDF here . This is a sample beauty salon business plan template you can use in PDF format.

The Salon Revenue Model: 8 New Ways to More Profit

Our world is changing. And are you ready to adapt your salon business model to this new world?

Traditional businesses get obsolete faster than ever before. Taxis are being replaced by Uber. Cinemas are being replaced by Netflix.

Thank god the salon revenue model will stay the same. Or will it?

What all new industry disruptions have in common is that they come with a new revenue model that replaces the traditional one. And I’m sure you’ve already started to see new revenue models arise also in the salon industry. 

To build your salon for the future, it’s more important than ever that you understand your salon’s revenue model. Only then can you start to innovate and identify ways of changing how you operate to improve your salon business.

This is why I in this article want to take you through the details of the hair salon revenue model today. What it looks like for the average hair salon today and what might change in the future. 

I’ll use the average hair salon revenue model as an example but the same applies to the nail salon revenue model or SPA. 

Before we dive into the details, I’ve created a simple infographic for you that captures the essence of what the hair salon revenue model looks like today for the average U.S. hair salon.

It also includes the average hair salon cost split which takes the average hair salon to a profit margin of 8.2% .

But we’ll come back to that. Let’s start with some basics.

Based on data extrapolated from the IBISWorld Industry Report

What is a Salon Revenue Model?

A salon revenue model is a framework for how a salon generates revenue. It includes the different sources of revenue that a salon has (e.g. services and retail sales), what value the salon delivers (e.g. hair coloring service), how they price that value (e.g. your color service price), and who in the end pays for it (e.g. the intended salon client target group). It’s a key part of the hair salon’s business model.

Understanding your salon’s revenue model is vital for you to be successful with your salon business and ultimately prepare your salon business for the future.

How do Hair Salons Make Money?

Hair salons’ primary income stream is service revenue. For the average US hair salon, this accounts for about 92% of the income generated.  On top of that, a small portion of income is generated from retail sales (8%).

This is the average picture. When you look at the most successful salons they typically have a higher share of retail sales 14-18% as they’ve figured out that this is a profitable addition to the core service salon offer.

However, the salon revenue model remains similar to most hair & nail salon.

The More Salon Income Streams, The Better

Locking yourself into the traditional salon revenue model outlined above will limit the potential of your salon. If done right, you can earn good money from the transactional income from services and selling retail, but why stop there?

In general, the more income streams you can add to your business, the better. Having different types of income, generated by creating value in different ways, for different consumers will not only improve your salon income. It will also limit your salon business risk.  If one source of revenue is slow, another can compensate. And so on..

In the future we can expect that salons will move from having 8% of revenue outside services to 30-40%. TheSalonBusiness.com

But what can be new income streams for your salon business? Let’s learn how this is done in other industries.

8 Salon Revenue Models Your Salon Should Explore

There are many different types of revenue models and income streams that are commonly adopted in other industries. Not all are relevant for salon businesses but I have summarized the ones most applicable below.

1. The Fee-For-Service Salon Revenue Model

The first model is a model that you as a salon owner should be most familiar with as this is the one where the business charges for the service they provide. Which, as we have learned, is what the traditional salon revenue model is based on.

However, you also know by now that a revenue model consists of more than just the value you create but also to whom you provide the value. You should therefore not discount this as not a way for you to innovate with your revenue model. You should ask yourself: Can I provide a service to someone else but your traditional salon client? This might open up new options for income streams for you.

For example, let’s say you run a hairdressing business. Can you provide a service to other hairdressers by for example providing hairdresser education? Or could you offer styling services to other businesses that need that service? Like a film production studio or a beauty retailer.

2. The Salon Subscription Model

This is when you charge a pre-determined fee for a contracted period rather than per transaction. This is a model that is used by newspapers and for cellular service. But it can also be done for salons. 

Take the Rouge Make Up Salon for example. They offer their client’s a $250/month subscription service which entitles their clients to drop in at any time for a makeup or waxing service.

Models that provide recurring income like this are good as they ensure you have a stable income even in periods that are typically slower in the traditional, transaction-based, salon. 

Mangomint can help salons make more money by selling memberships through its intelligently designed membership feature.

This feature allows salons to create and manage a variety of custom plans and automatically charge clients on a monthly or annual basis.

This helps to build reliable cash flow and boost client retention, which can lead to increased profits for the salon.

Additionally, Mangomint supports both automatic and manual payments of membership fees.

Salons can enable automatic billing to charge client cards-on-file at the beginning of each billing period or opt for manual payments to have the system generate a new sale that can be handled manually when payment is due.

3. Selling Salon Gift Cards

You can use gift cards as an additional revenue model by selling branded gift cards with custom amounts directly on your website and online booking system.

With Mangomint you can offer a digital gift card feature that allows you to track gift card sales and usage within the software to keep all gift card data in one place.

Your clients’ gift cards can be viewed within the checkout process and can even be used without the physical gift card present. The available gift card balance can be accessed straight from the payments screen and applied to the ticket total.

You can also create gift card promotions that can be purchased online to maximize gift card sales during the busiest shopping seasons of the year. The dollar value, sale price, and start and end dates for the promotion can be selected. Successful promotions can be reactivated in the future and run again at any time.

To create new gift cards and view existing card balances and additional details, you can use the Mangomint gift cards dashboard. Purchasing clients and owners can be assigned, amounts can be edited, and usage history by date can be viewed.

When a new gift card is created or sold, it gets automatically synced to the associated client’s profile under their credit/gift cards tab. Purchasers and owners can be assigned to each gift card to ensure that the balance is synced to the correct client account for later use.

4. The Salon Retail Model

Retail in salons is a popular revenue model. It allows you to reach your clients directly, while also offering them a way to get their products quickly and easily.

When creating a retail space in your salon, be sure to choose an area that has high traffic flow and dedicated space for selling products.

Use attractive displays and signage to promote certain products and offer special discounts on in-store items during certain times of the day.

Training your staff on retail is also important. Develop a retail training program that teaches staff about product knowledge and sales techniques.

And finally, measuring your retail performance is critical to understanding whether or not your efforts are paying off. Analyze your sales data, evaluate customer feedback, and track ROI to determine the success of your retail efforts.

If you’re interested in implementing online retail in your salon, consider using an e-commerce platform like Shopify and the salon software Mangomint .

The integration between these two platforms makes it easy to manage inventory and sales data in one place, which can help streamline the process of selling products to your customers.

5. The Salon Advertising Revenue Model

The advertising model is often used by media companies who charge other businesses for advertising space in their media channels. 

Brands and manufacturers are increasingly looking for experts who can endorse their brands. They also look for the right physical locations to promote rich brand experiences. As a salon owner, you can offer both. If you also have a good online presence you can also “sell” advertising space in these channels. In particular, if you or your salon has a strong social media following. 

6. The Production Revenue Model

The production model is an old model that has been around for centuries. This is when a business creates value by manufacturing and selling finished goods.

The model is already commonly adopted by salons that managed to build a known brand with their salon to later launch their own line of products. This has been considered a higher-risk revenue model in the past as you’ve had to invest in R&D to develop your own line of products. Today this is much easier with many 3rd party manufacturers available to offer white-label, ready-made products, and hence more salons are entering this space. 

Going with a production model doesn’t necessarily have to mean launching physical products. You can also launch digital products – like online training or eBooks. The possibilities are endless.  

7. The Salon Markup Revenue Model

The markup model is when you buy products from a manufacturer, add your markup to them, and sell them to the consumer. Also, this is a model you’re probably familiar with and most likely something you’re already doing in a salon.

I’m still sure there’s room for you to create more value for your salon here. You can choose to retail additional brands that are complementary to what you already have or you can start selling the brands in a new channel. 

8. The Salon E-Commerce Revenue Model

Talking about new channels… The fastest-growing channel right now is e-commerce. You can either see this as a threat taking away retail sales from you. Or you see it as an opportunity for you to grow your salon.

The e-commerce revenue model encompasses all of the other revenue models. You’re probably first thinking of using e-commerce with the mark-up model and selling brands online. But there’s much more you can do. With the right salon software you can for example also sell your services online.

Moving from Salon Commodities to Full Salon Service to Salon Experience

We’ve now covered a long list of additional revenue models that are relevant to your salon. But on top of this, you can also revisit what you offer in the salon. 

As we look to the future, it’s no longer enough to “just” offer a haircut or a pedicure. These services are increasingly being seen as a commodity and if you go down this path you’ll just enter into a place where all that matters is price.

You need to move from selling a commodity to offering a complete service that delivers the end value your clients want. Further, you should look at the complete client experience your salon deliver. All the way from their first experience with you when booking online ( see best salon appointment software here ) to the experience during their appointment.  

This goes beyond the service you deliver to the ambiance of the salon as well as complementary offerings that increase the value of their appointment. Could your salon be combined with a wine bar? Or could you offer snacks, a meditation experience, or other services as part of the salon visit?

When you start looking at what you offer your clients as a complete experience vs. just shorter hair you’re opening up yet another avenue of new potential salon income streams. 

How Can I Practically Use This to Grow My Salon Business?

I am glad to see you’ve invested the time to read through this full article. I hope you now feel equipped with the theory behind salon revenue models and that the examples from other industries have already sparked some ideas for how you can find new revenue streams to grow your salon business. 

I believe it’s clear that the traditional salon revenue model is about to change. The question is just if you’re ready to take advantage of the new opportunities that come with it. 

Talking about income, as you’ve noticed, these (and all) articles here are available for free. I write to help salon owners like you grow your business. Thus, if you found the article helpful, it would mean the world to me if you wanted to share it with your like-minded friends using the social buttons available on the page.  

When you’ve done that, you can also check out another free resource with concrete examples of how you can find passive income streams in my article 5 Salon Business Ideas That Earn You Income While You Sleep . 

Did you find this post helpful? Share it with your friends!

Related Posts

• Is Owning a Hair Salon Profitable? (Revenue & Margin)
• How Much Do Salon Owners Make? Salary, Income & Profit
• 5 Passive Salon Business Ideas: Earn While You Sleep!

John Hallberg

Beauty marketing expert and content creator at The Salon Business and Mangomint

Search Product category Any value Sample Label 1 Sample Label 2 Sample Label 3

How to Write a Beauty Salon Business Plan: Complete Guide

• December 29, 2023
• Beauty & Wellness

Whether you’re looking to raise funding from private investors or to get a loan from a bank (like a SBA loan) for your beauty salon, you will need to prepare a solid business plan.

In this article we go through, step-by-step, all the different sections you need in your business plan for a beauty salon . Use this template to create a complete, clear and solid business plan that get you funded.

1. Executive Summary

The executive summary of a business plan gives a sneak peek of the information about your business plan to lenders and/or investors.

If the information you provide here is not concise, informative, and scannable, potential lenders and investors will lose interest.

Though the executive summary is the first and the most important section, it should normally be the last section you write because it will have the summary of different sections included in the entire plan.

Why do you need a business plan for your beauty salon?

The purpose of a business plan is to secure funding through one of the following channels:

• Obtain bank financing or secure a loan from other lenders (such as a SBA loan )
• Obtain private investments from investment funds, angel investors, etc.
• Obtain a public or a private grant

How to write your beauty salon’s executive summary?

This section should not exceed 1 to 2 pages and provide a brief outline of the objectives and purpose of your business, market analysis & marketing strategies, company structure & key people, financial plan, and financial ask.

Here is an overview of the different points you must address in your executive summary:

Business Overview

Introduce your company and briefly describe your business model. For example, you may provide specialized beauty services only (such as skin care only, or manicure & pedicure only, etc.) or a full-service beauty salon (where you provide all types of possible services related to overall beauty including hair care, facial, skin care, manicure & pedicure, nail care & nail art, etc.).

Again, if you are offering a full-service beauty salon with a specific focus on something like skin care while the remaining services are auxiliary services, mention that, too. Also, provide a brief idea of what problem you are trying to solve.

Market Analysis

Provide a deep market analysis that backs your decision to open a beauty salon. The market analysis will include information like who your competitors are, your strengths and weaknesses, your target audience and their beauty needs, etc.

People & Management

Mention your key partners and why you have selected them along with their relevant industry experience. Also, speak about your staff requirements and the management hierarchy.

Financial Plan

How much profit and revenue do you expect in the next 5 years? When will you reach the break-even point and start making profits? It is ideal to include a chart depicting your key financials such as revenue, gross profits, and net profit

Funding Ask

What loan/investment/grant are you seeking? How much do you need? How long will this last?

2. Beauty Salon Business Overview

This is the section where you will describe your beauty salon business in detail. Try to answer the following questions concisely:

• Why do you want to open a beauty salon and what problem will your beauty salon solve?
• How big will be the facility and how many appointments will you serve daily (approximate value)?
• Will you have standard operating hours or extended business hours?
• Where is the location and why did you select that location?
• Will you provide only services, or will you sell products, too?

Include as many questions as possible to create a convincing overview to keep your potential investors and lenders hooked.

Let’s now look at the different sub-sections that you must include:

a) History of the Project

If you are yet to open your first beauty salon business, you may not have a business history to share. However, you can share your training and past industry experiences. You can even demonstrate your passion and interest for the beauty or wellness industry.

This is also where you should explain why you decided to create this business today. Did you find a gap in the market? Is there a lot of demand for manicure and pedicure treatments but few salons to accommodate customers?

Or are you trying to open a new format of beauty salon, offering a unique experience and treatments to your customers, effectively differentiating yourself from your competitors in your area?

b) Beauty Salon Business Model

This section must include the following information:

• Are you building your beauty salon from the ground up or are you purchasing an existing one?
• Will you allow advanced bookings through channels like a website or a mobile app, or will you allow walk-in customers or both?
• Will you focus only on services, or will you sell beauty products, too? 
• If you want to sell products, too, how do you intend to upsell them?
• Will you offer home visits, and if so, what will be the area of operation for that?
• Do you intend to extend your services into spa, bridal & wedding makeups, full body massage, etc?

Provide a thorough description of your business model so that the potential lenders and investors can make financial assessments and projections.

c) Target Audience

Give here an overview of your target audience. For example, answer the following questions:

• Will it be a unisex beauty salon or a gender-specific beauty salon?
• Is there a specific age group that you are targeting?
• What is the average disposable income of your target audience?
• How frequently do your target audience visit beauty salons?
• How much do they spend per month / per year in beauty treatments on average?

d) Beauty Salon Products & Services

Your beauty salon will primarily be a service-oriented business. However, that doesn’t mean you will not (or you cannot) sell related products. Outline your products and services in this section. Something like this will suffice:

e) Legal structure

Finally, your business overview section should specify what type of business structure you want. Is this a corporation or a partnership (LLC)? Who are the investors? How much equity percentage do they own? Is there a Board of Directors? If so, whom? Do they have experience in the industry?

Beauty Salon Financial Model

Download an expert-built 5-year Excel financial model for your business plan

3. Beauty Salon Market Analysis

It is vital that you demonstrate a deep market knowledge to your potential investors and lenders. For example, if you are offering expensive haircare or skincare procedures in a low-income or middle-class area, you may run into losses.

Similarly, if you are not following the latest hairstyles and trends, or if you don’t offer a wide range of facials, skincare services, you may find it difficult to attract customers.

a) Market Trends

If you are offering haircuts and hair makeup, you must be aware of the latest trends. Similarly, there may be new types of facials and acne treatments available that people may be looking for. Fashion is always a time-bound thing, and so is hairstyle.

For example, if you are offering skin care services like facials, you may want to offer services like :

• LED light therapy (to deal with bruising & acne)
• Intense pulsed light treatment (deal with facial pigmentation)
• Hollywood lift (a non-surgical skin-tightening for sagging skin), etc.

b) Competitor Analysis

The objective of the competitive analysis of your business plan should establish that starting a beauty salon in your area makes sense.

For example, there might be few competitors despite a lot of demand. Or, for example, existing competitors might not be adapted to the latest customer trends, effectively losing business to newcomers.

In your competitive analysis, try to include the following information:

• Number of competing beauty salons or full-service beauty salons in your area
• Their target audience
• The list of products and services they are offering
• The number of stations each salon has
• Their marketing strategy
• Their strengths and weaknesses
• Their reputation as a brand

Beauty Salon SWOT Analysis

Along with the competitive analysis, you must also perform a SWOT analysis . SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

Here you must provide the following information:

• Strengths : Examples – you may have years of industry experience, or you may be a celebrity hairstylist or aesthetician, or you may be offering unique services that no other competing beauty salon is offering
• Weaknesses : Examples – you may not have enough experience with Millennials, or you may not have enough funds for sufficient inventory, etc.
• Opportunities : Examples – unlike your competitors, you may be offering a full-service beauty salon experience with all services related to hair, skin, nails, and face under a single roof
• Threats : Examples – the emergence of new beauty salons that can possibly take a slice of your potential customer base or existing beauty salons reducing their prices to counter your presence

Both competitive analysis and SWOT analysis can help you to come up with innovative marketing strategies that you can use to gain new customers and even chip off your competitor’s customer base.

d) Customers

This is the segment where you provide a detailed analysis of your target audience. The analysis must include things like:

• Demographic distribution of your target customers (you can find data at census.gov )
• Average monthly family income (this will give you an idea of the spending capacity)
• The frequency of beauty salon visits (this will give you a fair idea of the number of customers you can expect in a month)
• Current hair, nail, & beauty trends in the location you want to operate in and the factors that influence those trends
• What channels do the customers use to share the end results of their beauty salon visits? For example, people may post their new hairstyle or nail art on Instagram & Facebook, but share their salon interaction experience on Twitter
• Things that your target audience like and dislike about the existing beauty salons (this will tell you what you must do and things you can do to improve their experience)
• What is the average amount they spend per visit?
• Do they engage in beauty-related activities at home? (This will tell you whether you can sell products such as hair oils, skin lightening creams, etc.)
• Do they like to use coupons and gift cards? (If yes, you may open a separate revenue stream by offering such products)

You can add more questions if you need to complete your customer or target audience study. The best way to get the answers is to conduct direct surveys and interact with your potential customer base. However, you will also find some data from competitive analysis.

A complete understanding of your target audience can help you develop sales and marketing strategies that can beat your competitors and give you an edge.

4. Beauty Salon Marketing Strategy

This is the section of your beauty salon business plan where you should outline your customer acquisition strategy: how do you plan to attract new customers?

Try to answer here the following questions:

What are your Unique Selling Points (USPs)?

• What marketing channels will you use?
• How do you intend to track the success of your marketing strategy?
• What is your CAC or customer acquisition cost?
• What is your marketing budget?
• What introductory promos and offers do you intend to provide for attracting new customers?
• Will you offer gift cards to open an upfront revenue stream?
• Will you sell products? If yes, how do you intend to upsell them for revenue maximization?

Let’s expand a bit on a few questions below:

What marketing channels do Beauty Salons use?

A few marketing channels that beauty salons typically use are:

• Google My Business listing
• PPC ads and social media ads
• Social media promotions and user engagement on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, TikTok, etc.
• Email marketing
• Print ads, flyers, hoardings & billboards, etc.

You need to use all marketing channels. You can focus on a few (2 to 3 is more than enough). However, make sure that you include social media marketing as one of the options because it can help you to connect and continuously interact with your customers. In addition to that, social media can help you to go viral.

Also, do not forget to provide a fair and nearly accurate estimate of your marketing budget. Failure to display a well-planned and adequate cash flow for advertising and marketing can lead to investors losing confidence.

In other words, how do you differentiate yourself vs. competitors? This is very important as you might need to win customers from competitors.

A few examples of USPs are:

• We are a full-service beauty salon offering services like haircare, bridal makeups, manicure & pedicure, skin treatments & facials, & body massage under a single roof because potential customers dislike the idea of hopping from one door to another to get all their needs fulfilled
• We are a full-service beauty salon with a focus on manicure & pedicure treatments
• We use only 100% organic and natural haircare products to prevent side effects usually caused by chemically heavy cosmetic beauty products
• We will use our proprietary range of hair care and beauty products that will not be available with any other competing beauty salon

5. Management & People

You must address 2 things here:

• The management team and their experience/track record
• The organizational structure: what are the different teams and who reports to whom?

Small businesses often fail because of managerial weaknesses. Thus, having a strong management team is vital. Highlight the experience and technical knowledge of salon managers that you intend to hire to oversee your beauty salon business.

Describe their duties, responsibilities, and roles. Also, highlight their previous experience and explain how they succeed in their previous roles.

It is also important that you explain how their experiences and qualifications help you in implementing the beauty salon services you are proposing.

Organizational Structure

Even if you haven’t already hired anyone, it is important that you provide a chart of the organizational structure of your company. Typical roles for a beauty salon may include: salon managers, hair director, hairstylists, cosmetologists, pedicurist, aesthetician, massage therapist, electrologist, makeup artist, salon/shampoo assistants, receptionists, etc.

6. Beauty Salon Financial Plan

The financial plan is perhaps, with the executive summary, the most important section of any business plan.

Indeed, a solid financial plan tells lenders that your business is viable and can repay the loan you need from them. If you’re looking to raise equity from private investors, a solid financial plan will prove them your beauty salon is an attractive investment.

There should be 3 sections to your financial plan section:

• Your historical financials (only if you already operate the business and have financial accounts to show)
• The startup costs of your project (if you plan to open a new salon, renovate your salon, etc.)
• The 5-year financial projections

Historical Financials (if any)

In the scenario where you already have some historical financials (a few quarters or a few years), include them. A summary of your financial statements in the form of charts e.g. revenue, gross profit and net profit is enough, save the rest for the appendix.

If you don’t have any, don’t worry, most new businesses don’t have any historical financials and that’s ok. If so, jump to Startup Costs instead.

Beauty Salon Startup Costs

Before we expand on 5-year financial projections in the following section, it’s always best practice to start with listing the startup costs of your project. For a beauty salon, startup costs are all the expenses you incur before you start to receive customers and make money.

Startup costs vary based on a number of factors such as the location and size of your salon, the quality of the equipment, design and furniture, whether you rent or buy the space, etc.

On average, beauty salons cost anywhere from $63,500 to $179,000 to start depending on whether you plan to lease the commercial space or buy it. Indeed, if the latter, you would have to take a loan and make a substantial deposit upfront instead.

Beauty Salon 5-Year Financial Projections

In addition to startup costs, you will now need to build a solid 5-year financial model as part of your business plan for your beauty salon.

Your financial projections should be built using a spreadsheet (e.g. Excel or Google Sheets) and presented in the form of tables and charts in your business plan.

As usual, keep it concise here and save details (for example detailed financial statements, financial metrics, key assumptions used for the projections) for the appendix instead.

Your financial projections should answer at least the following questions:

• How much revenue do you expect to generate over the next 5 years?
• When do you expect to break even?
• How much cash will you burn until you get there?
• What’s the impact of a change in pricing (say 15%) on your margins?
• What is your average customer acquisition cost?

You should include here your 3 financial statements (income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement). This means you must forecast:

• The number of customers over time ;
• Your expected revenue ;
• Operating costs to run the business ;
• Any other cash flow items (e.g. capex, debt repayment, etc.).

When projecting your revenue, make sure to sensitize pricing and the number of customers as a small change in these assumptions will have a big impact on your revenues.

When it comes to the costs, consider both startup and operating costs. For more information on how much it costs to start and run a beauty salon in the US, read our complete guide here .

7. Funding Ask

This is the last section of the business plan of your beauty salon. Now that we have explained what your beauty salon is about, what’s your strategy, where you go and how you get there, this section must answer the following questions:

• How much funding do you need?
• What financial instrument(s) do you need: is this equity or debt, or even a free-money public grant?
• How long will this funding last?
• Where else does the money come from? If you apply for a SBA loan for example, where does the other part of the investment come from (your own capital, private investors?)

If you raise debt:

• What percentage of the total funding the loan represents?
• What is the corresponding Debt Service Coverage Ratio ?

If you raise equity

• What percentage ownership are you selling as part of this funding round?
• What is the corresponding valuation of your business?

Use of Funds

Any business plan should include a clear use of funds section. This is where you explain how the money will be spent.

Will you spend most of the loan / investment to buy the real estate and do the renovations and design of the salon? Or will it cover mostly the cost of the salaries the first few months?

Those are very important questions you should be able to answer in the blink of an eye. Don’t worry, this should come straight from your financial projections. If you’ve built solid projections like in our beauty salon financial model template , you won’t have any issues answering these questions.

For the use of funds, we recommend using a pie chart like the one we have in our financial model template where we outline the main expenses categories as shown below.

Privacy Overview

•  Contact Us

• February 27, 2024

How to Write a Hair Salon Business Plan

Are you thinking about opening your own hair salon? Or maybe you already have a salon and are thinking about opening another location?  

Well, when it comes to opening a new salon business, knowing how to write a hair salon business plan can make or break your success. The good news is—we’re here to help. 

In this article, we’ll go over the ins and outs of creating a hair salon business plan. This includes everything from market analysis and financial projections to your goals for the future. Having a plan will help you obtain funding and stay on track as you grow. 

Let’s get started. 

Do I Really Need to Write a Business Plan for a Hair Salon?  

You wouldn’t drive from San Francisco to Boston without either a GPS or a map, right? So, you shouldn’t run a business without a plan either. 

A hair salon business plan is a roadmap for your beauty business. Whether you have two chairs or 200, it’s essential for your ongoing success. 

In fact, opening or expanding a business has a lot more at stake than a drive across the country. You may have saved or taken out a loan to start your salon. And you likely have employees or contractors who are dependent on your business sense, too. 

A business plan gets you organized when you’re first starting out or opening a new location. Plus, it keeps you on track as you grow. You can reach or exceed your goals, but you must know what they are first. And you need to have a detailed set of strategies to use along the way. 

Let’s go back to our road trip metaphor.  

Suppose you want to get from California to Massachusetts. First, you figure out how many miles or hours the journey will take. Then, you divide that by how many miles or hours you can comfortably drive in a day. That’s how many days it will take. Finally, you plan overnight stops along the way for each of those days to make the drive doable. 

A salon business plan isn’t much different. You probably have goals for things like: 

• How much gross income you want to bring in 
• How much profit you want after overhead and labor 
• Ideal business model structure (e.g., booth rent vs. commission) 
• Services you would like to offer clients 
• Places where you’d like to open additional salons 

Without a specific business plan for how to make them happen, those are just pie-in-the-sky dreams. You need a more granular approach to turn them into a reality. 

For instance, how much money do you need to make each month to reach your desired net profits? If that’s how much you need to make each month, what do you need to make daily, assuming you’re open five days per week? How many chairs do you need to have? At what capacity do you need to operate? 

Not to mention, you’ll almost certainly need a formal business plan if you want to get financing for your salon. Salon equipment and real estate can be quite expensive. A bank may loan you money to get set up, but only if they see you have done your homework first. 

Lenders don’t want to back a business that is more likely to fail than to succeed. And new hair salons have an average success rate of 50% in the first three years of operation. 

That means half of those businesses will fail. Most fail not because of a lack of talent or ambition but because the owner doesn’t know how to properly run a business. You can be the best hairstylist in the world. But if you consider things like business accounting and marketing, you will likely lose more money than you are bringing in every month. 

Do you want to be in the 50% of new salons that thrive? Keep reading to learn the step-by-step method of developing a business plan for your salon. 

RELATED ARTICLE:  

Owning a Hair Salon: Your Launch Guide  

How to Write a Hair Salon Business Plan: Step by Step  

Below you’ll find information on each section commonly included in a business plan. But first, here’s a tip to help you make the most of these categories. 

Use the SMART method for setting goals. What are SMART goals ? They are: 

• Specific – highly detailed, not vague 
• Measurable – able to be quantified with hard numbers and actionable items mapped out to achieve the goal you’ve set 
• Achievable – doable within the framework of your business model 
• Relevant – related to your salon today, not somewhere else or too far in the future 
• Time-bound – tied to specific dates for end goals and milestones 

Any time you set a long-term or short-term goal, ask, “Is it SMART?” If not, dig deeper to get the details you need to make it work. 

Executive Summary  

Think of the executive summary as the introduction to your salon business plan. It gives brief information about: 

• The purpose of your salon and who it will serve 
• Your business objectives (offer something novel, expansion, etc.) 
• How your salon will be different from your competitors 
• Why you think the business will perform well 

For instance, you could talk about how you plan to open a salon in a busy urban area to cater to downtown employees. Your client demographic is primarily white-collar workers aged 25 to 45. 

Your unique selling proposition , or USP, is what makes the salon special. Say it’s that it will offer 20 and 50-minute appointments to fit into standard lunch breaks. Additionally, you’ll have 10-minute appointments for fast services during coffee breaks. 

Customers can get a quick trim on their fringe or ends. Beard and mustache trims are another rapid service you will offer. Everything can be booked and paid for online to streamline the process and get customers in and out in a jiffy. 

Maybe after work hours, your salon will be open for more traditional appointments. And you’ll have more quickie services available for businesspeople going out at night. They can get an updo, blowout, or style refresh before a date. On Fridays, you’ll offer manicure services too. 

In your business plan, you’d want to outline howyour USP will help your salon be successful. For our example, you might say you believe the salon will do well financially because of three factors: 

• The area is currently underserved by hair salons. 
• You are catering to the needs of businesspeople in your locale. 
• You hired an experienced stylist who’s bringing their clients with them. 

You don’t have to get into a ton of detail yet. This is a proverbial bird’s eye view of your business proposition. You could, however, outline a rough roadmap of how you envision your business will start and where you see it going in one year and five years. 

For instance, perhaps you plan to start with one location and 10 chairs. Five years from now, you want to open two additional locations. At that time, you will add new services like brow waxing and makeup consultations. 

You can mention market analysis in this section, too. Market analysis looks at competition and consumer needs in your niche. However, there will be a place later in your business plan to address this in more detail. 

Remember, your executive summary is an investor or lender’s first impression of your salon business. Therefore, you want to make it shine. 

Company Description  

This section goes into detail about the structure of your company. How long have you been in business? Who are the owners and managers? 

You’ll also want to review how many employees or contractors you plan to have. Will they be employed under W2 status, or will they contract as 1099 workers? 

Will hair stylists pay you a fee for the use of a chair? Will your salon take a cut of their fees? How will tipping be structured? 

For example: 

• Our salon is a startup organization that is not yet in business. 
• It is co-owned by two stylists who participate 50-50 in leadership. 
• There will be 10 chairs in total in the salon. 
• Eight contract stylists will be working as 1099 independent contractors. 
• Contract stylists will pay a monthly chair rental fee and a percentage of their billables to the owners. 
• All tips will go to the employed stylists, with a percentage going to a shampoo assistant. 
• Contract stylists make a commission on products sold in the salon. 
• You will also have two paid receptionists who will be W2 employees. 

You will go into more detail about financials in the Services and Pricing section. But this section should give readers an understanding of the basics of your planned salon operations. 

You can also include funding or investing requests in this section. Again, you will have further opportunity to dive into financials later. But touching on what you need to open or expand gets readers primed as they go through the next four sections. 

Market Analysis  

The market analysis section of your business plan is another area where you can wow readers and make your salon stand out. It answers the question, “Why you, and why now?” 

Remember, you don’t want to fit in with all the other salons in the area. Instead, you want yours to be unique . 

Your hair salon might be unique because of its business model, like the hypothetical one described in the executive summary. Or it could be you have a string of well-known stylists. 

Perhaps you offer extra luxury services and product lines. Maybe you offer great prices. It could be the whole vibe of your salon that’s one of a kind. Maybe it’s a retro nod to the ‘70s or a high-tech glimpse into the future. 

You don’t want to pitch your salon with a kitchen sink-style of features. After all, when you appeal to everyone, you really appeal to no one. But you can list several unique attributes that will give you a competitive market edge. 

In this section, you’ll show what the current market is like in your location. How many other salons are within a mile or two? Who do they cater to? Is there a gap you can fill to capture more market share? 

Be realistic. If everyone who comes through your door is on a tight budget, you can’t offer $300 color jobs. You need to match your services to your demographics. 

If you’ve ever sold a real estate property, you’ve done something similar to a business market analysis. You or your agent prepare “comps” or comparables. The comps show how your property is special, while reviewing what the rest of the area has to offer. 

Whether your salon is brand new or you’re opening a new location for your existing salon business, you may need to conduct market research. You can do this on your own or hire a consultant to do it for you. 

The more populated the area in which you operate, the more complicated market research is likely to be. If you’re in a suburb or rural community, there may only be a few hair salons to compete with. 

Don’t forget to include how your USP and ability to fill a need relates to industry trends. Let’s use the example above. There is a current national trend towards more online conveniences for salon customers. So, offering online payments and booking is going to help you stay at the front of the curve. 

Also, employees are feeling busier than ever these days. They struggle with work-life balance. And many are returning to the office after working remotely for several years. 

Your salon leverages this trend as well by providing stress-free quick appointments that fit into work breaks. Workers can get their hair done over their lunch hour and make better use of their personal time after work. 

If you have an existing business that you’re expanding, you can survey your clientele. Maybe you’re going to a second location because it’s underserved. Or perhaps you’re adding more services because that’s what clients want.  

It’s great to be able to give objective data that says there’s a need for your services. 

Hair Salon Industry Trends for Growing Your Salon Business  

Marketing Strategy  

How do you plan to promote your new salon or additional location? That’s the focus of this section of the plan. 

Some common salon marketing methods include: 

• SEO website 
• Social media accounts 
• Paid advertising 
• Loyalty programs 
• Cross-promotion with other businesses 
• Flyers in area office buildings 
• Bulk mailings with coupons 
• Free makeovers 
• Local news editorial coverage 
• Online review platforms 

An SEO (search engine optimized) website is a great place to start promoting your business. You can add other components later. An optimized website is set up to rank higher on search engines like Google and Bing. 

How do you improve a website’s SEO? 

• Use keywords related to your exact services that clients would search for when looking for a hair salon. 
• Be sure to mention your location multiple times on the website, including your state and local landmarks. 
• Add a blog for value-added content with links to authoritative sources. 
• Get your salon mentioned on other websites and in social media mentions. 

This section overlaps with your market analysis. You’ll be using your unique selling proposition to focus marketing campaigns. Every marketing effort is an opportunity to promote what makes your salon stand out. 

Talk about how you plan to cement the two cornerstones of a healthy salon business: 

• Repeat customers who book appointments regularly 
• New customers who keep things fresh and balance natural attrition 

How to Design and Roll Out a Beauty Salon Rewards Program  

Management and Organization  

Here’s where you can go into more detail about your salon’s company structure and staff payment plan. You can include elements like credentials here, particularly if you or a manager have a business background or education. 

Don’t simply list how you plan to pay workers. Explain why this is best for your salon business’s long-term financial health. 

Are you and any other owners taking a salary? What corporate structure are you using (LLC, S corp, etc.)? Your state may determine how you want to set this up.  

Speaking with an accountant can clarify questions for you, especially about taxes. 

Services and Pricing  

This section of your hair salon business plan outlines the meat and potatoes of what your salon will offer. It is essentially a menu of all the services and treatments you provide. It also includes prices for each. 

You can mention why you chose the pricing model you did. For example, if you’re serving affluent clients in a resort area, you can justify charging a little more. Or you might do group pricing because you serve a lot of bridal parties. 

Don’t forget to add any products you plan to sell. Why is carrying these items beneficial to your business? 

Financial Projections  

Financial projections are the nuts and bolts that lenders want to see. They’ll also keep you on the right path as you grow your salon. 

You’ve already outlined your services and pricing. Now, it’s time to do the math and calculate what that means in terms of income. 

Answer these questions first: 

• What do you expect your salon to gross (total income) in a year? 
• What are your overhead expenses (rent/mortgage, staff, utilities, wholesale supplies, etc.)? 
• What portion of your expenses are due to payroll? 
• Do you have to make capital purchases for equipment? Will these be paid with a lump sum, financing, or rental payments? 
• What is the net profit you expect (gross income minus overhead and expenses)? 
• Where do you predict expenses or income will change over the next few years? 

You want to make your business plan financial projections look truly professional. So, break them down into these categories: 

• Sales forecast – total sales expected over the next several years 
• Expenses budget – all the costs you need to operate 
• Profit and loss (P&L) statement – a 12-month summary of revenue versus expenses 
• Cash flow statement – how cash moves in and out of your business, including monthly payments 
• Projected balance sheet – items that aren’t in your P&L, like interest debt, equity, and other factors that affect the net worth of your business 
• Break-even analysis – what you need to earn (at least) to make your expenses and start turning a profit 

A certified public accountant (CPA) can help you put together this part of your business plan for a reasonable fee. It’s well worth it if it helps you obtain investors or bank funding. 

How You Can Start Writing a Hair Salon Business Plan Right Now  

Ready to get started on your hair salon business plan today? Use these tips right away to make it both convincing to lenders and helpful as an internal roadmap: 

• Write a mission statement. To write a solid executive summary, it’s helpful to first compose a mission statement. This delves into why you want to open your business in the first place. Some people include this in their executive summary. Others keep it private and use it as an inspirational jumping-off point. 
• Include milestones in your financial projections. These are points where you will examine progress and see if you’re on target. Be ready to course correct if you’re not hitting your goals. 
• Compile an appendix. It’s a good idea to include an appendix in your business plan with copies of extra materials. This is an ideal place to include photos of your salon, certifications, licenses, and financial documents. It will keep everything organized for you and make you look more professional to lenders. 
• Enlist help. If you have questions about certain sections of your salon business plan, consider consulting with the appropriate professionals. Paying a one-time fee to an attorney or CPA can save you money and headaches down the line. You could even consider hiring a business manager to deal with office and financial issues. 
• Research your competition. If you’re not sure what services to offer or how you stand out, do some in-person recon. Visit competitor salons and check out influencers on social media. How can you align with service gaps and trends to make the most of your business? 
• Explore salon management software. Salon management software can save you a lot of time and make your job a lot easier. For instance, you can use it to quickly and easily generate reports to keep a pulse on your performance. It’ll also help you with other tasks related to your financial success. The best salon management software can automate appointments, keep track of inventory, and assist with marketing. 

Learn How to Manage a Hair Salon Business with SalonBiz  

Follow us on Instagram

Most popular.

19 Consultation Questions to Ask New Salon Clients Before an Appointment 

Salon Gift Card Promotion Ideas for 2024

Hair Salon Equipment List: Tools & Supplies for Stylists 

Why Salon Staff Training Is So Important

Sign-up for our newsletter, related posts.

Stepping foot in your salon is the start of a new adventure for every client. But nailing that first impression takes more than just skill

Table of Contents Bonus Gift Cards Add-On Savings Special Packages and Bundles Sweepstakes and Giveaways Freebie Swag Bags Best Practices Setup Gift Card Promotion with

As a hair stylist, you’ve got that natural sense of fashion. You’re up on the latest trends and know how to make your clients look

Staff training is key to boosting customer numbers and your bank account if you own or manage a salon. A fully trained salon staff offers

Let's Connect

We’d love to learn more about your business! Give us 20 minutes and we’ll show you how SalonBiz can help you crush your goals.

• 3601 Walnut St. Unit 400 Denver, CO 80205
• 1.888.809.2802
• [email protected]
• Hardware Requirements
• IP Update Request
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use
• Patron Terms

Don't bother with copy and paste.

Get this complete sample business plan as a free text document.

Hair And Beauty Salon Business Plan

Start your own hair and beauty salon business plan

Trend Setters Hair Studio

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">, opportunity.

There is a need for a full-service beauty salon dedicated to consistently providing high customer satisfaction by rendering excellent service, quality products, and furnishing an enjoyable atmosphere at an acceptable price/value relationship.

We plan to supply services and products that enhance our clients’ physical appearance and mental relaxation.

We will be targeting male and female clients who are fashion conscious and have disposable income.  Our clients are mostly women, but we will make sure to include men who fit the criteria as well

Competition

There are a number of salons like ours, but they are mainly in the very high income parts of MyTown and surrounding areas. We do not intend to compete with these so called “Day Spas.” We wish to offer a middle ground for those clients who can’t quite afford those high-end luxury salons.

Trend Setters will, upon commencement of operations, sell a wide range of beauty services and products. We will provide quality hair, nail, and skin services, along with top lines of beauty products. What will set Trend Setters apart from the competition is our commitment to providing all of these services in one convenient location.

Expectations

The forecast shows small profits leveling out in the third year. We believe this is realistic, even conservative. Of course we will be watching actual results on a monthly basis, and revising the forecast as necessary.

Financial Highlights by Year

Financing needed.

We plan on needing $60K owner’s investment and getting a $50K vendor financing to purchase equipment.

Starting costs include $50K cash cushion, $9K starting expenses before launch, and $53K tangible assets at launch.

Problem & Solution

Problem worth solving.

There is a demand for high fashion haircuts, manicures, and pedicures at reasonable prices. Men and women should not need to sacrifice their essentials to get a treatment that makes them feel good about themselves. 

Our Solution

Trend Setters is a full-service beauty salon dedicated to consistently providing high customer satisfaction by rendering excellent service, quality products, and furnishing an enjoyable atmosphere at a reasonable price/value relationship. We will also maintain a friendly, fair, and creative work environment, which respects diversity, ideas, and hard work.

Target Market

Market size & segments.

The market is our town, middle class, mostly women, so largely moms, working moms, and singles. 

We’re not doing formal market research because we know this market pretty well and we’re comfortable with market prospects in our town. We’ve been in this business for decades now. If we execute right, our customers will come in as we bring in our beauticians and barbers.

Current Alternatives

We’re well aware of a lot of competition, existing salons, all over town. We are not going to try to compete with the expensive spa salons around, with visibly fancy locations; and we are going to look nicer and price above the less fashionable strip mall and in-home options. 

We’re not pretending to be unique. We intend to bring in loyal customers because we are good people, easy to work with, good at what we do, friendly, and helpful. 

Our Advantages

Trend Setters wants to set itself apart from other beauty salons that may offer only one or two types of services. Having come from such a salon, Curley has realized, from talking with her clients, that they desire all of the services that we are proposing, but they remain frustrated because they must get their hair done at one place, and nails done at another. Although the focus of Trend Setters is hair services, we do wish to offer our clients the convenience of these other services in one location.

There are a number of salons like ours, but they are mainly in the very high-income parts of MyTown and surrounding areas. We do not intend to compete with these so-called "Day Spas." We wish to offer a middle ground for those clients who can’t quite afford those high-end luxury salons.

Our business atmosphere will be a relaxing one where clients can kick back and be pampered. Soft drinks will be offered to clients as they enter for service. Televisions will be located in the waiting and hair-drying area.

Keys to Success

The keys to success in our business are:

• Location: providing an easily accessible location for customers.
• Environment: providing an environment conducive to giving relaxing and professional service.
• Convenience: offering clients a wide range of services in one setting, and extended business hours.
• Reputation: reputation of the owner and other "beauticians" as providing superior personal service.

Marketing & Sales

Marketing plan.

We anticipate regular steady social media presence, in Facebook and Twitter. Our experience has shown that social media is the best advertising for this type of business. We will, however, run specials occasionally. We will also ask clients for social media referrals, and reward them with discounted or free services depending on the number of clients they bring. We will also offer discounts to the new clients who have been referred. 

We expect income to increase steadily over the next three years, as the reputation of the salon, its stylists and services become apparent to the general public. Second year revenues also anticipate the addition of one new stylist.

Locations & Facilities

The salon will be located in a retail strip mall at 1234 Stylish Road, MyTown. The salon will utilize 1,540 square feet. The location is strategically situated on one of the busiest streets in MyTown. It is a high profile area, with easy access from all parts of town.

Milestones & Metrics

Milestones table, key metrics.

The key metrics that will make this business a success is: 

• Average revenue per client per month.
• Average breakdown revenue from previous clients vs. revenue from new clients. We’ll develop specific standards as we go, so first we track. This will show us repeat business and new leads from word of mouth. 
• New clients from word of mouth. We’re going to have the discipline to ask new clients how they heard about us. As we develop the business we’ll track this metric and see how the different people compare. 
• Facebook likes and Twitter follows. We’ll develop standards as we develop the business. We need experience to see how this works. 

Ownership & Structure

Curley Comb, co-owner with Roller Comb, Jr., co founded and co own this llc 

Management Team

Curley Comb, co-owner with Roller Comb, Jr., her husband, has worked in a prestigious, upscale salon in MyTown, Texas for the past two years. Curley has created a large client following through hard work and dedication. Curley, and her talented team of beauticians, has what it takes to make this venture an extremely successful one. We expect our growing reputation to lead to new clients and beauticians to support our anticipated growth.

Personnel Table

Financial plan investor-ready personnel plan .">, key assumptions.

Brought to you by

Create a professional business plan

Using ai and step-by-step instructions.

Secure funding

Validate ideas

Build a strategy

• We’ll be using a full commission model with stylists and barber getting 60% commission on revenue. Industry average runs 45-65%. We’re on the high end because we are not offering a guaranteed base. This is what we’re used to. The owner will take a straight salary plus dividends on profits. 
• We’ve looked at the booth rental model but we’re used to commission and that creates a more orderly process for payments too, with all stylists able to use our credit card account.
• There can occasionally be issues with commission base related to reporting revenue, but we are a small salon with the owner mostly present.  
• We project revenues lower than average over the first few months, and then stable. We anticipate annual increase to stay steady throughout the following year to account for the normal flow of new clients coming into the salon. Estimates for sales revenue and growth are intentionally low, while anticipated expenses are exaggerated to the high side to illustrate a worst-case scenario.
• Our direct costs are mainly stylist and barber commissions plus direct costs of the products we intend to sell, plus an estimate for the ongoing cost of products, supplies, etc. 
• Product sales are a minimal part of our market. We are not quite sure how much revenue will be derived from products, so we took a low-ball approach and estimated sales of $800 a month.  Also in the sales projections table are services such as nails and massages. We are not quite sure how much revenue these two services will generate. We are certain that in time these services will be a large part of our revenue, but to err on the conservative side, we estimate revenues from these services to be only $1,500 a month for the first year.

Revenue by Month

Expenses by month, net profit (or loss) by year, use of funds.

We estimate initial purchase of $50,000 in equipment plus $1,000 for starting inventory and $2,000 for other current assets (supplies mostly) and $9,000 in initial loss for expenses incurred before launch. These include legal, location fix-up, early marketing expenses, branding, logo, and social media. 

We also estimate needing $50,000 cash cushion when we start. 

Total starting costs, therefore, are $9K in expenses plus $103,000 in assets including $53,000 tangible assets and $50,000 cash in the bank. 

Sources of Funds

We anticipate $60,000 in owner investment from owner savings, which shows up as paid-in capital in the initial balance; plus a 5-year $50,000 vendor/manufacturer loan to finance initial equipment. 

Projected Profit & Loss

Projected balance sheet, projected cash flow statement.

The quickest way to turn a business idea into a business plan

Fill-in-the-blanks and automatic financials make it easy.

No thanks, I prefer writing 40-page documents.

Discover the world’s #1 plan building software

• Start Free Trial
• Write for Us

How To Write the Perfect Salon Business Plan for Your Salon in Just 7 Simple Steps

The US salon industry includes more than 80,000 establishments with a combined annual revenue of about $532 billion. So opening a salon, and owning a salon business is a pretty safe bet; it’s steady and profitable . But lack of proper planning makes it difficult to juggle all the aspects of your business, starting from marketing and sales, to accounting, and whatnot. 

Here’s a quick tip! Searched all over the internet for concrete information on how to open your own salon? Confused? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Check out this blog on opening your own salon business that gives you a comprehensive 10 step guide to help you get started now.

Writing a properly structured salon business plan is crucial to guarantee your salon’s success in this highly competitive market. Whether you’re wanting to secure a business loan for your salon or trying to expand or reinvent your salon business, a business plan for your salon will help you get there.

So how exactly would a business plan help you?

• A business plan will help you to figure out what you want your salon to offer, where you aim to take your salon’s growth, what kind of people you want to cater to, and who you’re competing against . 
• If you are looking for investment from private investors, banks, or any other lending institutions or public grants, structuring a business plan is crucial. 
• A business plan will help boost your salon business’s productivity through improved oversight and direction, and help you make informed decisions.
• As your salon business starts to grow and gain clientele, a well-developed business plan can help you acquire the capital needed to expand to new locations.

How to make the perfect business plan for your salon business?

Whipping up a perfect business plan can be pretty daunting because it needs to be immaculate. No worries! Here we’ve broken down the entire process into 7 easy-to-follow , foolproof steps, along with their templates, to help you create a successful salon business plan. 

• Write a mission and vision statement
• Create an executive summary
• Analyze and identify your target market
• Perform a competitor analysis
• Write your salon’s business description
• Make strategies for advertising and outreach marketing
• Figure out your financial plan

Whether it’s a hairdressing salon business plan, a general beauty salon business plan, or even a  small salon business plan for opening a salon on your own from scratch, we’ve got you covered. This is a complete, comprehensive guide to help you in the process of making a business plan for a salon. It’ll give you a basic understanding of how to write a salon business plan in the easiest possible way. 

1. Write a mission and vision statement

I) mission statement .

It articulates the immediate purpose of your salon business. Under this, you can state all the short-term goals that you plan on achieving with your salon within 6 months , stretching up to a year.

Here’s how you can nail a perfect mission statement

• Value – What is the value of your salon in the market? How can it help your clients? 
• Inspiration – Why should people want to come to your salon?
• Remember to make your mission statement sound plausible and reasonable . Also, make it specific and concise – clarify all your short-term goals and the timeframe within which you’re planning on achieving them. 

ii) Vision statement

 Now, where do you aim to take the salon’s growth in the next 5 years ? Well, if you’re dreaming, dream big! And you can be as ambitious as you want, the sky’s the limit. 

Setting strategies for a longer-term makes sure that you don’t stumble on the road to success. It makes the overall structure of your business stronger. It prepares you for anything that the fickle market demands from you and throws at you.

Here’s how you can write a perfect vision statement :

• Review your long-term goals in a way that you can analyze how achieving your long-term goals could impact your business and the salon industry in general.
• Derive how your clients could benefit from the visions that you would be implementing.
• Your business’ end goals can drive your vision statement, For instance, if you’re planning to branch out to different locations after, say, 5 years, you can frame your vision statement in a way that states to make your salon a household name, popular in the neighboring areas and so on. 

2. Create an executive summary

After you write the mission and vision statements, you can summarize everything that you’re aiming to achieve with your salon under an Executive Summary. Whether you’re writing a business plan for a hair salon or a business plan for a beauty salon, you should be properly aware of what your intentions are with the salon. This section is the most important part of your business plan as it dictates the tone of your salon, and makes an impression. 

Remember to keep this section very brief and concise to give an overview, as you’ll be elaborating on these points in the later sections of your business plan. 

If you’re having trouble writing your salon’s executive summary, you can always write it after you’re done with all the other sections in the business plan . This will give you a better understanding of your salon business and help you succinctly put your points together to describe it. 

What can you do to write the most fitting executive summary for your salon?

• Start by stating all the short-term goals that you plan on achieving within, say, 6 months or a year.  Remember to keep your goals realistic and feasible. 
• Summarize your approach towards your business, to give an overview of how you will run things in your business.
• Clearly and briefly express the value proposition of your salon, and how it would potentially position your business in your target market.

How to write your salon’s executive summary: A simple template

Divide your business summary into sections of opportunities and expectations, and put brief points in those subsections in the most convincing way. The following template can help you with this :

• How are you trying to achieve recognition in your target market?
• What is your salon’s tagline/motto?
• What is your salon’s growth plan for the first 6 months after its launch?
• Which demographic is your salon meant for?
• How are your services aligned with your target market?
• How many salons are there in the area of establishment of your salon?
• What products and services do they offer?
• What is the range of variation of their clientele?
• What products and services is your salon offering?
• What is the unique selling point of your business? For eg: If your salon is the only one in the area that offers holistic services with spiritual healing, then put it down as your differentiating point.
• How are you different from your competitors? For eg: Is it the lower cost of services of your salon, or the vast range of services that make your salon stand out? 

Make sure you catch the eye of potential investors in the above section. Don’t forget to state how you can attract potential customers. 

• What is the salon costing you? List down the projected expenses and costs that come from daily operations, rent, staff hiring, cosmetics, appliance expenditures, etc. for the first 6 months. 
• What is the cash flow and how much profits are you bringing in for the initial 6 months? This is completely variable and the reaction of your target market to your salon decides this. So aligning your services with them is of utmost importance. 
• Why does your salon need financing? For eg: you can convey that you’re trying to meet the anticipated growth of your salon in the market.

3. Analyze and identify your target market

Analyzing and defining a target market for your salon is very important as it goes hand in hand with your salon’s growth and outreach . 

A beauty salon can service all genders and age groups. Your target audience can include working professionals, college students and teenagers, homemakers, to-be-Brides, and even children. And each group will require different types of services.  So make sure you list down each individual section of your target market and what services they would require. 

Here’s a checklist to make sure you’re going the right way about it. 

Steps to analyze and identify your target market 

• Find out what kind of people you think would resonate with your salon’s services the most. For example, if your salon offers low commitment (temporary) coloring services, you can get a lot of customer traffic from the millennials. 
• As an extension to that, find out if your services are more inclined to serve a particular demographic better, or if you’re good with people of every demographic.
• Keep up with the trends in the salon industry to know what’s hot and what’s passé.
• Peek inside the brains of your target clients to know exactly what they want or like and tune your salon accordingly.

An easy-to-follow template to proceed with your target market analysis

• Segregate the people in the market pool into different categories.

Do not forget these bases:

• Personal income/occupation
• List out the services that your salon would offer that would fit one or more of the stated categories above. 

For eg: If your salon offers Diamond Facial at $200.00, then you can list this service out as follows :

• Use social media to get an understanding of the trends in the market at present. Join salon and beauty communities on Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit, and follow beauty bloggers on Youtube and Instagram. 
• Look up the people who subscribe to or follow these beauty pages and beauty bloggers to identify which trends appeal to a certain demographic. You can tell a lot about your target market’s behavior from the posts they like and the thoughts they share in the comment section of these posts and videos.

4. Perform a competitor analysis 

With a great market demand, several strong competitors emerge. And we don’t want your salon to get lost in the sea of other salons now, do we? As it goes, keep your clients close but your competitors closer.

Figuring your competitors out gives you a necessary nudge in the right direction to take your business plan forward. It gives you an idea of what the other salons are practicing with their clients, and what gaps they’re leaving that you can fill up as you step into the salon business yourself. 

How do you analyze your competition?

• Find out what the other salons in the area are doing successfully or poorly.
• Get a rough idea of the cost of services that the competitor salons are offering. This helps you price the services for your salon.
• Identify how many salons provide services that focus on a specific niche and do not serve a wide group of customers.
• Find out the industry-specific challenges they are facing that you may also face while running your own salon.
• Analyze what they can do differently to improve their situation, and implement it in your business mission plan to avoid facing such challenges yourself. 
• Have your salon address these deficiencies in the market.

Follow these easy steps to perform your salon’s competitor analysis 

• Visit your competitor salons’ websites.
• Follow them on social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin) to get an idea of how much influence and reach they have. Check out who follows their social media page to get an idea of the target market as well.  
• Sign up for any interactive sessions that these salons might conduct and check how other people respond to these sessions, to understand their grip and dominance on the market.  
• Visit the other salons in the market as customers, to get an idea of their quality of services.

5. Write your salon’s business description

So now that you have your market and your competitors figured out, it’s time to work on your salon business . A beauty salon or a hair salon is fine, but what kind of salon do you want yours to be like? Setting a proper description for your business gives your salon a custom style and personality. 

Your business description should include an overview of the products and services that your salon would offer, and how your salon would stand out in the market. Setting a trademark vibe to your salon also helps with its brand image. 

To get started, you can answer the following questions :

• Would you specialize in any particular service like nail art or bridal makeup? 
• Would you want your services segmented for various types of clients?
• What services would you want to offer in packages? 
• Would you serve complimentary refreshments to the clients?
• What theme are you going for with respect to interiors and ambiance (Japanese zen, tropical beach day, etc, etc)?
• What would be your salon’s “it” factor that distinguishes it from the other salons in the area? 

Once you’re done with the salon’s description and personality, set a brand logo and a tagline to go with it. To get a professionally designed custom logo, you can always reach out to freelancers or companies that can do it for you, like 99designs . 

You can also use an online designing software like Canva to design your salon’s logo on your own. 

And that should complete the branding. 

Creating a business brand will prepare you to answer someone asking you “Why should I come to your Salon?” 

Remember to make your salon stand out, noticeable, and interesting.

6. Make strategies for advertising and outreach marketing 

Now you have to position your salon in the market in a way that makes people take an avid interest in “the new salon”. Your target audience will guide you towards the perfect approach to spread the word around about your salon. 

A simple guide to writing the marketing plan for your salon business :

• Your salon should be Google-able. To show up in digital searches, make sure your business is listed in online directories.
• Create a website or a mobile application for a better customer experience. 
• It’s always better to spread out to all social media platforms to promote your business so that your customers (and other potential clients) can get to know you on a more personal level. Connect with your business community by following other small businesses in the area. Actively engage with your target market and share behind-the-scenes content (like before and after photos of clients’ haircuts) to build your credibility and cultivate brand awareness.
• Partner up with other businesses that may share the same clientele as a salon would (like spa retreats) to offer coupons and vouchers, for outreach marketing.
• Offer “first-service” discounts to your customers.
• Keep service rates lower than the other salons in the area to attract clients. 
• Once the rapport is established, and your clients trust you with the service quality, you can cut out the discounts. It is also very important that you optimize the discounts in a way that you don’t run into a complete loss, but we’ll get to that in a minute.
• It is crucial to maintain the service quality to the highest degree after you start getting clients. Remember that your clients wear the marketing after they come out of your salon. This will definitely help you secure referrals from existing clients.

Marketing Tip! Want to pull off a great marketing campaign for your salon business but don’t know where to start? Do you feel like the marketing section in your business plan is incomplete? For more detailed marketing ideas for your salon, check out our blog on 7 hand-picked salon marketing ideas to boost your business .

7. Figure out your financial plan 

It’s time to play the number game. This is probably the trickiest part of writing a salon business plan because you have to be extremely careful while juggling your revenue and expenditure budget optimally. 

You don’t want to scare or throw off your customers by charging exorbitant prices for the services, but at the same time, you don’t want to crash and drown in debt yourself. Not to forget, cutting costs on cosmetics may affect the service quality. Cut hair, not costs!

Ergo, you need to have a proper financial plan for your salon. 

Writing a detailed financial plan will help you get a rough idea of how your salon would be progressing on a monthly/ yearly basis. Moreover, if you’re applying for a loan, your financial plan will determine your eligibility .

What can you do to create a solid financial plan for your salon?

• It helps to bifurcate all the expenses into Fixed costs, and Variable costs. Then you can analyze your fixed costs and variable costs to set an optimal budget.

Fixed Costs: This section includes all the costs associated with your salon business that must be paid regardless of the customer traffic in your salon.

• Rent or mortgage for the salon space.
• Payroll for the employees you hire.
• Equipment maintenance costs for hair spa and other services that are heavily equipment dependent.

Variable Costs : This section includes all the costs in your salon business that are directly associated with the customer traffic in your salon. 

• Expenses of purchasing cosmetics and other salon supplies.
• Electricity consumption by salon equipment. For eg: If you’re writing a hair salon business plan, make sure you include the electricity consumption by blow dryers, hair straighteners. 
• Have a clear idea of how much discount you plan on putting on your services during the first few months of opening your salon, and for what duration you will be offering these discounts. Note that during the first few months of opening your salon, your sales are likely to be lower than your projections, and that’s completely okay.
• Make a list of pros and cons for renting out space for your salon versus buying a place.
• If you’re renting and wish to own the salon space, spot out a tentative date of when you’ll become capable of buying the place.
• Figure out how many people you are going to hire in your staff, and how much salary you would be able to offer them. Note that you’ll have to improvise this according to how the customers respond to your salon.
• Reach out to your local chamber of commerce to get more insights on funding and loans.
• Tentatively figure out the time it will take you to break even, and start earning chunky profits.

Here’s an easy-to-follow template to proceed with your ‘financial plan’ section 

The following simple template can help you make the financial plan for your salon: 

i) Sales and revenue projections for the first five years :

Figure out how much you’ll charge for your services, and estimate how many services you may perform in a week. A periodic analysis of this over the next five years will give you the necessary projections. Put the details down in a spreadsheet to keep it organized. It also helps to collate all this information and analyze using bar graphs.

ii) Expenses’ budget :

Break down the expenditure of your salon for a given term, by referring to the “fixed and variable costs” list that you made. You can pick the term to be a month, a quarter, or a year long .

It’s a safer practice to stick to a month-long or a quarter-long term. You don’t want the budget analysis task to loom over you and become a burden. Not to forget, it keeps you in touch with the financial status of your salon business. 

iii) Estimated profit margins:

Accumulate the sales projections and budget report analysis to find out the profit for that term. Display the margins in pie charts or bar graphs for easy comprehension. 

iv) Liabilities:

Note all the losses that your salon business can possibly incur in the time period that you have defined as a term. For example, your blow dryers may stop functioning and need to be replaced.

Also include the factors that may stunt your business from growing. For example, you may be short on staff, or your nail salon is lacking an appointment scheduling and business management tool.

v) Cash flow statement:

Make a projected plan of cash flow-in and flow-out for your defined term, where you include cash flow from sources that are not directly related to your salon services or your salon business-related expenses. 

Include the cash flow from loans, loan payments, taxes, and personal funds that you used for your salon.

vi) Break-even analysis:

Predict the break-even point for the first five years of your business. Break-even is achieved when your salon business has covered all the expenses, and your sales surpass the expenditure costs. From that point on, your salon will start earning profits.

Other ways to create your financial plan :

Dealing with numbers can be tedious and scary, especially when you already have a lot of other things on your mind as a salon business owner. Moreover, documenting the financial projections yourself can be a pretty daunting task, especially because there’s no room for mistakes. 

Instead of making the document yourself, you can choose to consult professionals to help you write the perfect financial plan for your salon. 

• Hire freelancers : You can collaborate with business plan consultants to make your financial plan. All you need to do is give them your salon’s budgetary estimates and inputs. 
• Use Financial planning tools :  It asks you to enter all your financial information. They use built-in formulas to give you the most accurate financial statements that include all the charts and projections that an investor would expect to see in a business plan. 

Some important things to keep in mind :

• Keep reviewing the target market, competitor analysis, and marketing and advertising strategies once every while, however frequently necessary.
• Set realistic long-term goals that would be in sync with your current business performance. For example, you can think about branching out to two different locations after a few years. This will allow you to expand your local salon to an enterprise salon.

Go ahead with the pretty business plan 

Executing a well-structured salon business should reap good-looking numbers. And the first step towards that is making a killer business plan for your salon.

It gives you the courage to place your faith in your business, and we don’t want you to doubt something you’re passionate about. Remember that you can convince the people in the market about all the great things your salon has to offer, only when you truly believe it yourself. 

So go on ahead, start creating your salon business plan today, and give your dreams a much-needed flight. Good luck :))

About Appointy We at Appointy, help business owners grow and run their businesses with our online scheduling software. This blog was a part of our ‘Manage your Business’ category, where we provide expert tips, and resources, or simply talk about the challenges that small and medium businesses face every day.  If you have any thoughts on this blog or would like to chat about your business struggles and achievements, let us know in the comments below.  We love a good talk!

25 comments

Am really satisfied thank you

The blogs are really appreciable and one can trust the knowledge and information provided in the writing.

This blog was so helpful.. I really appreciate they way it was broken down and easy to understand.

Thanks Brittany 🙂

Very nice article .Thanks for sharing this great post.

Thanks a lot 🙂

Thanks this blog really helped me now I know where to start

Happy to help! 🙂

Great information. It’s really useful. Please shares these kinds of information in the future.

Thanks! Please subscribe to https://blog.appointy.com/ for more such information.

Very Informative thank you so much for this wonderful article

good article

Interesting & informative to read, thank you for sharing this article with us. it’s really helpful to me. Can you suggest something on started a homemade business plan?

Very nice content about salon buisiness,Its very informative.

Very insightful blog post. Thanks for sharing

The perfect salon business plan requires defining your vision, researching the market, outlining services and pricing, addressing operations and finances, and emphasizing exceptional customer service

It is really helpful. Thank you for the content

Thanks for your content, it is very helful.

Let this be a guide for those starting salon business. Thank you for the blog.

Thanks for the information

Very well said! All your tips and advice is so helpful.

Thanks, Peter! 🙂

You are welcome Netra! You have a great blog, indeed!

Thank you for the blog. Its very helful

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.

Learn how to grow and manage your salon business like a pro!

Subscribe now and get valuable insights from credible sources - delivered straight to your inbox!

We promise to never spam you :) 

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Beauty Salon Business Plan Template

If you want to start a beauty salon business or expand your current one, you need a business plan.

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 5,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their beauty salons.

Below are links to each section of an example beauty salon business plan template:

Next Section: Executive Summary >

Beauty and Hair Salon Business Plan FAQs

What is the easiest way to complete my beauty salon business plan.

Growthink's Ultimate Salon Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily complete your salon or beauty bar business plan.

Where Can I Download a Beauty Salon Business Plan PDF?

You can download our  beauty salon business plan sample pdf  here.

Our beauty salon business plan PDF template is a free resource to help you get started on your own business plan. This is a business plan template you can use in PDF format for a beauty bar or salon.

What Is a Salon Business Plan or Beauty Bar Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your salon as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business’s goals, business model, the type of services you will offer (beauty services, spa services, nail services, skin care services and/or hair salon services), management team, target market, and a marketing plan for the many ways you can reach new and existing clients. It also includes market research to support your plans and allow you to find the perfect salon location.

A comprehensive financial plan is also key to include so you can show investors the potential viability of your business.

Why Do You Need a Business Plan?

If you’re looking to start a beauty bar or salon or grow your existing business, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your new salon in order to improve your chances of success. Your business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

What Are the Sources of Funding for a Beauty Salon?

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a new beauty salon are bank loans and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable. But they will want to see a professional salon business plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate your own business.

The second most common form of funding for any type of salon is angel investors. Angel investors are wealthy individuals who will write you a check. They will either take equity in return for their funding, or, like a bank, they will give you a loan. 

This is all true for a new salon business plan or a plan to grow an existing salon business.

BEAUTY SALON BUSINESS PLAN OUTLINE

• Beauty Salon Business Plan Home
• 1. Executive Summary
• 2. Company Overview
• 3. Industry Analysis
• 4. Customer Analysis
• 5. Competitive Analysis
• 6. Marketing Plan
• 7. Operations Plan
• 8. Management Team
• 9. Financial Plan
• 10. Appendix
• Beauty Salon Business Plan Summary

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Examples of a Successful Hair Salon Business Model

A key component of every successful hair salon business is having a clear and quality plan ahead of you before you get started. If you are new to running a hair salon, you may not be sure what that could look like. That is why we have compiled a list of successful hair salon business models for you to learn from.

Successful hair salons utilize a variety of business models including giving their establishment a theme, encouraging referrals, offering a commission to employees, and branding themselves as an educational business.  

While each of these business models will provide a very different environment for your customers, they are each a potential way for you to find success in your new endeavor, all while doing what you love.

Table of Contents

Establish a Hair Salon Business Theme

Giving any business endeavor a specific theme is a quality marketing decision.

The purpose of this theme is to help you stand out in the minds of your customers, potential customers, and community. There are likely multiple hair and beauty salon options for your community to choose from. Including a theme in your business model will help potential customers understand what makes you special.  

Note: While establishing a theme for your business can be one way to help you find success, it is not the only way. It may not feel right for you to brand your hair salon in this way and that is completely okay. There are many other ways to set your hair salon up with a successful business model.

If establishing a theme for your business feels right for you, here are a few potential options to consider:

Natural Hair Salon Business

One way that various businesses market themselves is by embracing a holistic mindset for all that they do.

In a hair salon, this could impact nearly every decision you make from what type of products you utilize to what type of building materials you use to how you decorate your hair salon business.

While this theme will not attract everyone, the customers who choose your business because of its theme will likely be loyal fans for life.

If you decide to move forward with this theme, consider asking for assistance from those who fully embrace this lifestyle so that you do not miss any opportunity to cater to your ideal client. Market research will also help you understand what type of natural products would be most important to your future customers.

High-End Hair Salon Business

You can also make your hair salon business stand out by attempting to be the fanciest salon in town.

If you can nail this niche, you may even be able to raise your prices as you will be attracting clientele who prefer to pay for the very best service out there, regardless of pricing.

The potential downside to choosing this theme for your business is that your initial investment might be higher than it would be with other themes.

For example, to keep up a “high-end” image, you may need to purchase:

• High-end products
• High-end décor
• High-end tools
• High-end staff
• High-end building materials

That being said, if you can afford to spend a little extra time figuring out a way to do-it-yourself, you may be able to cut down costs dramatically.  

Should you choose to do so, make sure you understand what your ideal target customer is looking for most. Do they just want the establishment to feel high-end or do they truly need to see brand-name products and decorations all around them?

Vintage or Art-Oriented Hair Salon Business

In the same way, you might theme your hair salon business for a high-end customer or a naturally-focused customer, you can cater to those who enjoy art and vintage-themed businesses.

Again, you will want to listen carefully during your market research so that you fully understand what is most important to these customers.

Often, art-oriented or vintage salon businesses include a great deal of art. They may also include atypical architecture and products.  

A great way to be successful with your art-oriented hair salon is to reach out to the local community for their favorite local artists and treasures. Often, people will come out of the woodwork if it means their talents might be featured by someone who will appreciate it.

You can also rotate various pieces of décor so that people are encouraged to continue visiting your business so that they can always see the latest, trendiest pieces that are on display.

A Referral Business Model

Another business model option to consider is creating a referral system.

Referral systems can help spread the word about your hair salon business without you actively spending any money on advertising or publicity.

For a referral system to work, you need to offer something so valuable to your customers in exchange for them getting their friends or family members to sign up for one of your services that they do so.

Personal experience speaks loudest when it comes to advertising.

This means that no matter how wonderful you tell other people that your business is, people will always believe someone else’s experience of your business over your experience. This is because you, as the business owner, have much to gain over them using your service whereas a random customer typically is not impacted whether or not their friend uses your services.

When you establish a referral system, you are offering a benefit to that friend or family member to spread the word and encourage others to sign up.

This could be a discount on one of their services or even a free visit to your hair salon.

Some business owners may see this as losing money, but in reality, it is a great business model because the value of a new customer’s first visit is much higher than your loyal customer’s regularly scheduled one.

While you might miss out on 25%, 50%, or 100% (depending on the discount you offer) of your loyal customer’s payment, you have gained a new customer that you can continue to reach for many more visits to your hair salon.

Check out our guide for creating a business plan HERE .

Offer Commission to Hair Salon Employees

Another business model that helps hair salons succeed is when they offer their employees a commission.

This means that any time an employee has a customer sign up to work with them, they make a certain percentage of the money that is made. This is very similar to a referral program, except you are giving your staff an incentive to drive traffic to your hair salon rather than your customers.

Offering commission can be a great way to give your hair salon employees a bit of entrepreneurial encouragement. In a sense, it gives them more control over the amount of money that they make.

They can decide not to seek out new customers and simply make whatever you were already planning to pay them or they can increase their revenue dramatically by encouraging everyone they know to sign up with them, and thus, sign up with your business.

Educational Hair Salon Business Model

Finally, you can find success in your new endeavor by branding your hair salon as an educational business.

This does not mean you stop serving the hair needs of your clients.

Instead, this means you will add a component to your daily work: providing value.

The value you provide can and should be both online and offline.

The idea is that you are putting continuous effort into training people on all things related to hair. As you continue to serve them, they will repeatedly recognize you as an expert in your field.

They will grow to trust you over time and that will make them more likely to buy from your services.

If you find that most of the people you are helping online are not local to your hair salon business, you may need to consider finding other ways to monetize your efforts from afar.

This might look like selling a hair product or even packaging your lessons as a course. Whatever you decide to do, make sure you are constantly focused on your customers and how you can best help them.

Related Questions

How do I determine what theme I should give my hair salon business?

The best way to determine what theme your hair salon business should have is to conduct proper market research. You can do this by surveying as many people in your business’s community as possible. Once you understand what the majority of people want to see, you will be better equipped to decide whether to give your business a theme and what it should be.  

How do I know when my hair salon business is successful?

Everyone has their version of what success is.

Some business owners want to make as much money as humanly possible. They may have an exact dollar amount in mind or they may just want to continuously grow.

Other business owners have a more modest level of income in mind but want to maintain a healthy work-life balance. These folks may prioritize spending time with friends and family over making as much as they possibly can.

Still, other business owners just want to work for themselves in a field they enjoy, rather than working for someone else for more money. As long as they aren’t taking on debt and can pay their bills, they are happy to do what they love.

As long as you know what success means to you, you can pursue it with everything you have!

Looking to start your own Salon? Get the documents you need to get organized and funded here .

Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.

About the author. Entrepreneur and Salon Business Fan.

Hi! I am Shawn and I am a happy individual who happens to be an entrepreneur. I have owned several types of businesses in my life from a coffee shop to an import and export business to an online review business plus a few more and now I create online salon business resources for those interested in starting new ventures. It’s demanding work but I love it. I do it for those passionate about their business and their goals. That’s why when I meet a salon business owner, I see myself. I know how hard the struggle is to retain clients, find good employees and keep the business growing all while trying to stay competitive.

That’s why I created Salon Business Boss: I want to help salon business owners like you build a thriving business that brings you endless joy and supports your ideal lifestyle.

Features overview

All Features

Keep your business running 24/7 with Trafft features and integrations

Features and Plans Comparison

Check the detailed comparison of Trafft plans

Reserve with Google

Accept bookings via Google Search and Maps

WordPress Plugin

Add Trafft booking form to any page of your WordPress website

Business and client management

Business Dashboard

Gain a comprehensive view of your business performance

Business Processes Automation

Automate every single aspect of your business with one tool

Employee Management

Organize everything related to employees

Customer Management

Gain more returning customers

Self-Serve Customer Booking

Let your customers book, cancel or reschedule appointments 24/7

Booking and Scheduling System

Booking Core

Adapt Trafft completely to your specific booking needs

Smart Calendar and Scheduling

Have a clear view of all your appointments in one calendar

Flexible Scheduling

Create your schedules with complete flexibility

Payment Automation

Payments Processing

Get paid for your services easily, safely and on time

Invoicing and Tax Management

Manage invoices, taxes and payments automatically

Marketing and Sales

No-code Booking Page Creation

Promote your brand online with a customizable booking page

Loyalty Boost

Automate and personalize the communication with customers

Lead Capture

Turn your leads into customers with effective marketing

Integrations

Use Trafft's integrations to connect Trafft with other tools

Professional Services

Government & Administration

Reduce waiting time in queues and enhance staff productivity

Home services

Make your business available for booking 24/7

Cleaning services

Create your team’s schedules with complete flexibility

Automotive services

Manage your entire automotive business with scheduling software

Personal Services

Get the most out of your service business with effective organization

Beauty & Hair

Make your salon business stand out with effective management tool

Keep your barbershop well organized

Healthcare & Wellness

Automate repetitive tasks and have more time to focus on your patients

Dental clinics

Build a successful and modern dental practice

Education & Coaching

Coaching & Consulting

Give your coaching or consulting business a professional look

Education & Teaching

Automate the interaction with your students

Fitness & Sports

Turn your occasional visitors into members with the best experience

White Label for Agencies

Offer your clients a modern and intuitive scheduling platform, white-labeled as your product

Trafft Blog

Check out the latest information on industry trends and get advice for running a service business online

Guides and Documentation

Get a detailed explanation of how every Trafft feature and integration work

Read about Trafft’s story, mission and values we share

Affiliate and Partners

Join us on our journey of helping service businesses thrive through automation

Partner with Trafft and expand your market reach

Investor Relations

Reach out to us if you are interested in investing in Trafft

Learn more about why you should choose Trafft

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or suggestions

WordPress plugin

How to Create an Effective Beauty Salon Business Plan

• July 5, 2023
• For Salon Owners

The beauty salon business plan is like your secret weapon for effective management and planning. It’s the ultimate tool that helps you and your team develop smart strategies and stay on top of things.

Many in the industry think that all you need is sheer motivation to succeed. Well, while having a strong passion for your salon is crucial, motivation alone won’t cut it. There are other super important factors you should consider if you want your business to thrive. And that’s where a killer salon business plan comes in handy.

This guide is going to walk you through the process of writing a document that perfectly fits your operational needs. You’ll also dive into all the different elements that make up a business plan and see why they’re so important for your salon.

But first, let’s see why having a thorough business plan is an absolute must.

Why You Need a Business Plan

A business plan is like the ultimate snapshot of your salon’s identity. It gives you the data on everything, from your mission statement and business model to where you fit in the market and who your target customers are. And let’s not forget about the financial aspect and your goals – it’s all in there.

A business plan is not just a boring piece of paper. It’s like a detailed map that’ll guide you through the wild world of the salon industry.

One of the best things about having a business plan is that it helps you keep tabs on how you’re doing. It’s like having a built-in performance tracker that lets you make those necessary tweaks with precision. What’s more, it’s not just for your own benefit. Potential investors find it useful too. They use your plan to figure out what you’re all about and if you’re worth investing in.

Keep in mind that this plan isn’t set in stone. It’s a living, breathing document that grows with your salon . It adjusts to the ever-changing market and keeps up with your goals, so you can make informed decisions along the way.

The Different Types of Beauty Salons

If you are starting a new salon, you should know where to position your business within the industry. There are many existing salon business types according to their beauty products and service offerings:

• Full-Service Salons : These are the jack-of-all-trades in the beauty industry. Full-service salons offer a wide range of services, including haircuts, styling, coloring, manicures, pedicures, facials, waxing, and more. They aim to provide a one-stop shop for all your beauty needs.
• Hair Salons : As the name suggests, these salons specialize in all things hair-related. From trendy haircuts and styling to hair coloring, highlights, extensions, and treatments, hair salons are the go-to places for fabulous locks. Some hair salons may also offer additional services like blowouts and scalp treatments.
• Nail Salons : If you’re all about nail art, manicures, and pedicures, nail salons are your haven. These salons focus on providing expert nail care, including nail shaping, polishing, gel manicures, acrylic nails, and intricate nail designs.
• Spa Salons : Spa salons take relaxation and rejuvenation to a whole new level. These upscale establishments offer a range of spa services, such as massages, body treatments, facials, aromatherapy, sauna sessions, and more. They create a serene ambiance where you can unwind and indulge in self-care.
• Barbershops : Barbershops cater specifically to men’s grooming needs. From classic haircuts and beard trims to hot towel shaves and grooming products, barbershops provide a masculine and welcoming environment for gentlemen to spruce up their style.
• Specialty Salons : Within the beauty industry, you’ll find specialty salons that focus on specific services. For example, there are eyelash extension salons, eyebrow shaping and threading salons, tanning salons, and even salons specializing in specific ethnic hair types. These salons hone their expertise in a particular area, delivering exceptional results.

When it comes to pricing, you need to decide which segment you want to be part of:

Budget segment : This is all about catering to price-conscious customers who are looking for affordable options. You keep your prices reasonable and offer quality services without breaking the bank.

Mid-Range segment : This is where you strike a balance between affordability and a touch of upscale charm. Your prices are a bit higher than the budget segment, but you offer more luxurious experiences and better-quality products. You cater to customers who want a little extra pampering without going overboard on the budget.

Luxury segment : If you’re all about the high-end, luxurious experience, this is your domain. You offer premium services and top-notch products and create an atmosphere of opulence and indulgence. Your prices are on the higher side, but you attract clients who are willing to splurge for a truly extraordinary beauty experience.

Remember, each segment has its own customer base and positioning. It’s important to understand your target market and what they value. Consider factors like location, competition, and the demographics of your area when making your decision.

How to Write a Winning Beauty Salon Business Plan

Image by rawpixel.com on Freepik

Balance is crucial when writing a business plan. You don’t want it to be super long, but you also need to make sure it covers all the important points in an easy-to-understand way.

Beauty salon plans are a bit unique compared to plans in other industries because there are a whole lot of services and products involved.

Every beauty salon business plan should include:

Executive summary

• Business description
• Salon history & brand story

Market analysis

Marketing plan, management team and internal structure, detailed financial plan.

Surprisingly, the element that appears first in your business plan is the one you should write last. This section summarizes the document’s content on a single page.

Private investors might judge your business model solely based on the executive summary, so it needs to be right on point. Share all the highlights and the compelling facts and show the investors why your business model is a winner and why they absolutely need to get on board.

Beauty salon business description

This section is all about giving your salon business a proper introduction. Share what motivates you, the problems you’re here to solve, and how you plan to tackle them head-on.

Explain your geographic area and its advantages. Tell them about the advantages of your location. Is it a prime spot with lots of foot traffic? Does it have a funky vibe that’ll attract the cool kids? Dive into the nitty-gritty of the place itself – its layout, equipment, and all the possibilities it holds.

Detail your schedule plans and the type of salon services you will provide. Are you going to be open seven days a week, ready to glam people up whenever they need it? Will you offer special services like late-night appointments or early-morning pick-me-ups?

Likewise, clarify your legal structure and explain why you became a sole proprietor or opted for a Limited Liability Company (LLC).

Salon history and brand story

For an existing salon business, the business plan should cover its history and explain its foundations.

So, let’s start with the history of your salon. How did it all begin? Was it a wild idea that sparked one day? Did it start from humble beginnings and grow into something amazing? Share the journey and let them know the story behind your salon’s success.

Your brand story is when you make everything personal. Talk about why you started this salon adventure. What inspired you? What are the values and vibes that make your brand unique? Connect with them on an emotional level and let them feel the passion that drives your salon.

This is where you dive deep into the beauty industry and figure out your niche or segment . Now’s the perfect time to describe your target customers. Who are they? What makes them tick? Get inside their heads and understand what they’re looking for in a salon. This is how you’ll know exactly how to cater to their beauty needs.

Also, it’s time to perform proper competitor analysis . Check out what others in the beauty game are doing. What services are they offering? How are they attracting customers? This way, you’ll know what makes you stand out and how to outshine the rest.

Armed with all this knowledge, you’ll show the world that you’ve got a solid grip on your positioning. You know exactly where you fit in the beauty universe and how to make your mark.

And then you’ll use all this research to craft your Unique Selling Propositions . It’s like your secret weapon, your special charm that makes customers go, “Wow, this is the perfect salon for me!”. You’ll highlight what makes you unique and what makes you the best choice out there.

The marketing plan presents your unique selling propositions and defines clear promotion strategies. What makes you unique? What makes you the go-to spot for all things beauty? You need to highlight your USPs.

Also, you need to figure out which channels you’re going to use to reach your target audience. Social media? Email campaigns? Maybe even go old-school and rock some print ads. It’s all about finding the best ways to connect with your clients .

Additionally, introduce your marketing expenses budget and establish performance tracking criteria. Set a budget and keep track of your progress to make sure you’re on the right track.

A clear management hierarchy is essential for your business plan and model. Everyone on your team should know their roles and who they answer to.

Go beyond just talking about the number of employees you have or need. Instead, explain your team’s strengths and accomplishments to justify your management structure.

You’ll need a solid financial plan to raise funding from public institutions or investors. This plan helps you make accurate financial projections, whether you’re using your own funds or dealing with loan payments.

The financial plan includes the income statement , the balance , and the cash flow statement . You can add complementary documents like the break-even point and the break-even analysis.

The Essential Documents You Need To Open a New Beauty Salon

Beauty salons must ensure compliance with local laws and industry-specific regulations. Although these regulations and licenses can be a bit confusing, they’re super important for your salon’s success.

The Ultimate Checklist You Need to Open Your Salon

Get Trafft’s FREE & PRINTABLE step-by-step opening a beauty salon checklist every salon owner needs.

Bonus: Discover 5 essential steps to building a successful beauty salon

Here are the seven documents you need to have if you want to open your beauty salon :

• The Salon Business Plan: this is the first document that guides your whole operation. It’s the key to building a sturdy, scalable, and sustainable beauty salon. Plus, it helps you secure that funding from lenders and angel investors.
• The Cosmetology License: it varies depending on where you’re located and what services you offer. You’ll need different licenses for spa services, nail art and care, and hair salon services. Check with the local Licensing Division to make sure you got all the right permits.
• The Tax ID: this is the number you get from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). With it, you report your income and all the expenses for tax purposes.
• The Business License: this is a must-have for all local businesses. It enables you to offer hair and skin care services as a professional activity.
• The Employer Identification Number (EIN): It allows you to register your salon business, hire employees, and file taxes. You can apply for it through the IRS platform.
• The Certificate of Occupancy: It guarantees that your location is safe and up to code. It confirms that it complies with all the necessary building and security regulations.
• The Retail Seller Permit: This is for all beauty entrepreneurs who want to sell some cosmetic products alongside their services.

These are the crucial documents you need before you can open your salon doors to the public. However, there are some other permits, licenses, and qualifications that you need to have as a beauty salon owner. Just remember that requirements may vary depending on where you’re located and the specific beauty services you offer. So, don’t forget to check in with your local community authorities for any extra licenses and regulations.

The Significance of Thorough Market Research

Image by vectorjuice on Freepik

Market research is the first big step you need to take in any industry. It’s like putting on your detective hat and digging deep to understand what’s going on out there. It gives you a comprehensive market perspective and helps you understand its latest trends and needs.

Check out the local community and see what they’re into. What’s the supply and demand looking like? Get the full picture!

Once you’ve got a handle on things, it’s time to make some assumptions to position yourself just right in that market. Maybe the beauty trends are pointing towards a need for a full-service beauty salon, or perhaps there’s a niche waiting to be filled, like an artsy nail salon.

Moreover, you need to take a careful look at your competitors, their offerings, and pricing practices. If you notice that everyone’s focused on hair salon services, here’s your chance to stand out. You can emphasize skincare or nail services and give your customers something they can’t find anywhere else.

This market research is about getting to know your target market inside and out . Get to know your clients, understand their pain points, and discover what they’re willing to spend. This way, you can craft a winning marketing strategy that’ll grab their attention and keep them coming back for more.

And here’s a bonus tip : start looking into potential partnerships. It’s all about building connections and working with suppliers and other professionals. By doing so, you’ll make those connections early on, pave the way for smooth negotiations, and even score some sweet deals. Plus, it’ll expand your network and open up exciting opportunities.

How Much Is It Going to Cost to Open a Beauty Salon?

When starting a beauty salon business, you should know the expenses involved in the process . Some of them might vary according to your activity, services, opening hours, and team. Still, most are predictable or even stagnant.

We’re going to break down those expenses, so you know exactly what you’re getting into:

• Rent: the rent rate can suffer some changes with time, but it is usually a regular cost. Its value can vary depending on where you’re located and the size and condition of the place. Do a quick online search to get an idea of the average amount you’ll be paying each month.
• Licenses and permits: most licenses and essential documents come with a cost. You should expect to spend at least $1000 – legality and safety are not cheap at all.
• Insurance: You have to protect your salon, your equipment, your services, and your workers. That means you’ll need different kinds of insurance coverage. The fees can add up to a few hundred dollars a month.
• Equipment: to start working, you must own proper equipment like chairs, mirrors, and trade-specific tools that make your salon shine.
• Inventory: whether you’re planning to sell cosmetic products or not, you’ll need some inventory. A hair salon needs shampoo, conditioner, and hair colors, while a spa craves massage oils, cleansers, and masks. That initial inventory can be a bit pricey, totaling a few thousand dollars.
• Marketing: set aside a marketing budget to spread the word about your fabulous salon and fuel growth.

Picking the Best Location

An excellent location is like the holy grail of salon success.

First things first, when it comes to picking the perfect location, you should think about your target market. You want a place that catches their eye. Think about convenience – easy access by foot, car, or public transportation is key. And having nearby parking is a big bonus. You don’t want your clients circling the block for hours, right?

Some popular spots for beauty salons are near shopping centers or bustling commerce streets. You want to be where the action is, where people are already out and about, ready for some splurging. Essentially, it’s all about that foot traffic.

And let’s not forget about branding. Your location should match the vibe and identity of your salon. Think about the local scene, the seasonality, and what people in the area like. Be in sync with their tastes and preferences.

Buying or renting

Now, the big question: to buy or to rent?

Buying gives you the freedom to renovate and make the place truly yours. But it’s a bigger investment, so you got to commit for the long haul. On the flip side, renting gives you more flexibility to move around if things change. Plus, some rentals come with equipment and licenses already set up. Just be ready to meet the landlord’s requirements and you’re good to go.

Hiring the Right Team

Image by macrovector on Freepik

Let’s talk about building your dream team for your beauty salon. Make sure you’ve got the right people with the right skills to create that magical salon experience for your clients.

First things first, set some hiring practices and standards. You need people who complement each other, like the perfect puzzle pieces. They should have top-notch customer service skills and be able to create a friendly and welcoming atmosphere in the salon.

You also want each team member to be passionate about the beauty industry and committed to making your salon a roaring success.

Here are some common positions you might hire for:

• The Receptionist : This superstar is the first face your clients see when they walk through the door. They handle appointments, greet everyone with a warm smile, and make sure the payment process goes smoothly.
• The Esthetician : These skin-savvy pros specialize in skincare, offering fabulous facials, relaxing massages, and waxing services.
• The Hairstylist : These hair wizards work their magic with scissors, treatments, styling, and coloring. They’re the ones who can turn a dull haircut into a head-turning masterpiece.
• The Nail Technician : These nail artists are all about pampering fingers and toes. They’ll give manicures and pedicures and can create some jaw-dropping nail art.

Develop an Effective Marketing Strategy

Business plans include a detailed marketing strategy that helps promote a beauty salon business and its services efficiently.

One of the best approaches to marketing is to combine different methods in order to reach your specific target market. Embracing a broad range of publicity efforts increases your chances of success. Also, it strengthens relationships with existing clients and attracts new ones.

So here are four fantastic marketing approaches to get your salon the attention it deserves:

• Print ed advertising has been popular for centuries and still gets excellent results. You can publish ads in local newspapers, magazines, or outdoor billboards. Flyers and business cards placed in strategic locations also help spread awareness of your brand.
• Invest in online tactics by consistently using social media and creating a website for your beauty salon. This strategy broadens your audience. It improves customer service through online bookings and payment processing. Besides, it’s easily trackable and flexible to your marketing goals and needs.
• Another efficient technique is establishing customer engagement strategies, like exclusive business events. Doing so helps you retain clients and build an active community.
• Finally, you can trust word-of-mouth to elevate your beauty salon business. Ensure an impeccable customer experience every time and you’ll have clients lining up at your door.

Set a Budget for Time-Saving Tools and Software

Let’s talk about optimizing your salon’s operations and saving some precious time and energy.

Running a beauty salon can get pretty hectic, so why not invest in some handy tools and software to make your life easier? It’s a great idea to set aside a budget specifically for time-saving tools and beauty salon scheduling software . Trust us, it’s a smart move that’ll pay off in the long run.

And when it comes to finding the perfect software for your beauty salon, let us introduce you to a real gem called Trafft .

Trafft is like your secret weapon for efficient management. It’s a comprehensive software solution that’s got your back when it comes to handling bookings, customers, employees, and finances. No more juggling spreadsheets or dealing with clunky systems – with Trafft, you can streamline your operations and keep everything in check with just a few clicks.

You can apply Trafft to various aspects of your salon operations:

• Customer service: Trafft allows you to add a booking feature to your website that automatically updates your schedule. You no longer have to struggle with complicated scheduling processes, overbooking, or double-booking issues. Plus, it even handles online payments, sends out appointment reminders, and helps you manage your client base.
• Performance tracking: Trafft helps you keep an eye on those important Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). You’ll have reliable insights into how your salon is doing in different departments. It’s like having your own personal performance tracker, guiding you to make smart business decisions and optimize your strategies.
• Marketing: Trafft provides exceptional booking experience, smooths client communications, and helps you build captivating loyalty programs.

So, if you’re ready to level up your beauty salon business, you better give Trafft a try .

How to Calculate Your Return On Investment (ROI)

Along with the Executive Summary, the Financial Plan is the most vital part of your beauty salon business plan. Thus, take extra care and attention when composing it.

One key metric to keep your eye on is the Return On Investment (ROI). This metric helps you assess your business performance. It shows you how profitable your beauty salon was during a given period. You can use it to evaluate the efficiency of your current policies and strategies and make adjustments if needed.

To calculate it, you subtract your initial investment from its final value and then divide that number by the cost of the investment. Finally, multiply that amount by 100 to get a percentage.

FAQ on Creating a Beauty Salon Business Plan

What’s the scoop on beauty salon business plans.

Creating a salon business plan is like painting a picture of your future salon. It’s about deciding on your style, your vibe, and your unique offering. It’s like choosing the right color palette, deciding on the decor, and creating a welcoming environment.

A business plan helps you make informed decisions, avoid costly mistakes, and increase your chances of success.

How do I dive into making a business plan?

Before diving in, take a step back. Think about your vision, your target audience, your services. Start your business plan with an executive summary – it’s like the homepage of a website. Keep it short, precise, and inviting. Then delve into the nitty-gritty: company description, market analysis, organization and management structure, and so on.

Where do I get market info for my plan?

Market research is like user research for web design. It’s about understanding your customer – their needs, desires, and behaviors.

You can gather information from industry reports, beauty magazines, social media trends, competitor analysis, and customer surveys. There are also online resources like Statista and IBISWorld .

What’s the deal with financial projections?

Your financial projections are like the back end of a website – crucial but unseen by customers. They include forecasts of your sales, expenses, and profitability.

You’ll need to understand basic accounting or hire someone who does. And remember, be realistic with your numbers.

How should I tackle competition in my plan?

Recognizing competition is essential, just like in web design where you study other websites. Identify your main competitors, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and define what makes you different. That’s your competitive advantage.

What should go into the services section of my plan?

Your services are like the features of a website – they need to be user-friendly and valuable. List the services you plan to offer, their prices, and why they meet your customers’ needs.

Explain how they differ from your competitors’ services.

How does the staffing plan fit into this?

Think of your team as the developers and designers of a website. They bring your vision to life. Detail how many staff you need, their roles, and the skills required.

Also, outline your plans for hiring and training.

Do I need to include a marketing and sales strategy?

Absolutely! It’s like SEO for your website, you need a strategy to drive traffic . Your marketing plan should detail how you’ll attract and retain customers.

Will you use social media, flyers, or partnerships with other local businesses?

How do I end my business plan?

Wrap up your business plan with an appendix. It’s like the footer of a website, where you can include additional information.

This could be your salon license, lease agreement, resumes of key staff, or photos of your products.

What if my plan needs changes along the way?

Just as websites need updates and maintenance, your business plan is not a one-and-done deal. As your business grows, your plan will need to evolve.

It’s your plan, so revisit and revise it as needed. Remember, it’s okay to change your plan.

So, How to Craft an Excellent Beauty Salon Business Plan?

A beauty salon business plan is one of the keys to ensuring your operation thrives. It is a living document that accompanies your salon’s growth and helps you define purposeful strategies.

Thorough market research will provide a sturdy base for your plan. Remember to analyze both your target audience and competitors and specify your positioning. That information will be crucial if you want your marketing to be effective.

Then, use various techniques in your promotion efforts to maximize your brand visibility. Build a team of highly-qualified and passionate people with premium customer service in mind.

Finally, implement tools like Trafft to support efficient management and optimize your operation. With these tips, you can write a winning business plan that sets your salon up for success.

If you enjoyed reading this article about creating a successful beauty salon business plan, you should read these as well:

• How to Make Your Salon More Profitable With Trafft
• 23 Paid & Free Salon Marketing Tools Every Owner Should Use
• How Much Do Beauty Salon Owners Make

• Jovana Smoljanovic Tucakov

Jovana Smoljanovic Tucakov is a Content Marketing and SEO Specialist who uses both words and data to communicate a message and deliver value. With more than 5 years of experience in digital marketing and content production in the IT industry, she loves identifying and solving the readers’ pain points and creating targeted content.

Curious about the human mind and emotions, especially those that drive consumer behavior. Likes fitness, food preparation, board games, reading (both for pleasure and learning), and binge-watching Netflix.

Related Posts

Creating a Successful Salon Business Plan: A Step-by-Step Guide

• January 23, 2024

How To Get More Clients In A Salon: The Ultimate Guide

The Best Salon Scheduling Software in 2024

• October 9, 2023

BUSINESS STRATEGIES

A step-by-step guide on how to start a beauty business

• Amanda Bellucco Chatham
• Jun 16, 2023
• 12 min read

Ready to embark on your dream of starting a beauty business? Diving into the beauty space offers an exciting opportunity to be part of a thriving industry fueled by people's desire for self-care and personal expression (for other types, check out types of businesses ).

As of 2022, the global cosmetic market was valued at over $262 billion and it’s predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.2% through 2030. The market’s healthy trajectory is due in part to constantly evolving beauty trends, new formulations and packaging, and a push for products that put sustainability at the forefront. With proper planning, your new beauty business has plenty of potential to thrive in this lucrative market.

So, whether you're looking to set up a business website , open a brick-and-mortar store or offer mobile beauty services, you're in the right place. This comprehensive guide will help you navigate the complexities of launching your beauty-related venture and lay the foundation for long-term success.

How to start a beauty business

Research and define your niche

Decide on a business model and concept

Decide on manufacturing strategy (if applicable)

Create a business plan

Pick a legal structure, then register and license your business

Create your website

Build your brand

Source and manage inventory

Provide excellent customer service

Promote your business

01. Research and define your niche

Let's start with the basics. To establish a beauty brand, it's crucial to understand your target audience. Researching and defining your niche or specific beauty business idea will set you up for success by differentiating you from competitors and attracting your target audience.

It's also important to understand that defining the right niche for your beauty business is an ongoing process. As your beauty business matures, stay open to adapting and refining your niche based on changing trends, emerging customer needs and industry developments.

Here are some methods to help you define your niche:

Identify your passions and expertise: Consider what aspects of beauty excite you the most, whether it's skincare, cosmetics, hair care, organic products or specialized services. For example, you might be passionate about bridal makeup, organic skincare treatments or men's grooming. Use your passion and knowledge to influence and build your niche. Looking to start a specific niche? Check out our guide to starting a nail business , as just one example.

Study the market: Research current trends, gaps and opportunities within the beauty industry. For example, analyze competitors within your geographic area or online space, and identify areas where they might be lacking. Consider fulfilling those unmet needs if they align with your business.

Define your target audience: Determine your ideal customers by considering demographics like age, gender, location and lifestyle. Additionally, delve into consumer preferences, interests and values. Understanding your target audience will help you tailor your products, services and beauty marketing efforts to cater to their needs and desires.

Find a unique selling angle: Find a unique selling proposition (USP) that sets you apart from your competition and appeals to your target market. For example, you could offer personalized consultations, use all-natural or sustainable ingredients, provide specialized services or create a distinct brand identity.

Test and validate: Conduct surveys, interviews or focus groups with your target audience to gather feedback on your proposed offerings. This will help you fine-tune your niche to ensure it resonates with your potential customers.

02. Decide on a business model and concept

When you start a business , it's essential to focus on a specific business model or concept that best enables you to bring your chosen niche to life. At a basic level, there are two primary models to consider: a service business model or a product business model. But, they aren’t the only options you have to choose from.

Other popular beauty business concepts include:

Mobile services: Offer on-the-go beauty services, traveling to clients' locations for personalized treatments like hairstyling, makeup, manicures or facials. This model provides flexibility and convenience for customers who prefer on-location pampering.

Brand and product development: Create your own beauty brand and develop a unique line of products. This requires strategic product development, branding and marketing to stand out in the competitive market.

Dropship beauty supplies: Curate products from a dropshipper specializing in your niche. Dropshippers will handle storage, packaging and order fulfillment, allowing you to sell products without the need for upfront manufacturing or inventory.

Retail store: Open a physical retail store to showcase and sell a curated selection of skincare, cosmetics, hair care or other products tailored to your niche. Offer in-person consultations and demonstrations, and complement your store with an eCommerce website for global reach.

Check out this list of over 60 service business ideas for more inspiration.

Let's look at some real-life examples of companies within the beauty and cosmetics industry to better understand how your selected business model and concept might come together.

Bringing Beauty to You

Nichole Alexis, licensed esthetician and owner of Bringing Beauty to You , offers various skincare services to both men and women within the Chicago area.

Business model: Service

Business concept: Personal beauty consultant

What this business does: Provide exceptional service and education, and guide clients to achieving healthy, radiant and beautiful skin—whether they choose to wear makeup or not.

MDRNbeauty is an eCommerce store that carries a variety of cosmetics and hair care products curated from a select collection of brands.

Business model: Product

Business concept: Online retail store

What this business does: Provide high-quality hair care and cosmetic products from select brands.

Beautifully Blessed Salon

Located in Delhi, Louisiana, Beautifully Blessed Salon hosts a variety of beauty service providers, including hair stylists, makeup artists and massage therapists.

Business model: Service and product

Business concept: Beauty salon and spa

What this business does: Offer a place where customers can find passionate, high-quality professionals and a world-class salon experience for all their self-care needs.

03. Decide on a manufacturing strategy (if applicable)

If you plan to manufacture your own beauty supplies, your strategy must be affordable and allow for a reasonable net profit margin—without sacrificing product quality or customer satisfaction.

Here are some key points to keep in mind:

Regulations and compliance: Familiarize yourself with the regulations and compliance requirements for manufacturing beauty products in your region. This may include adhering to safety standards, ingredient labeling, product testing and obtaining necessary licenses or certifications.

Research and development: Invest time and resources into creating high-quality and effective beauty products. Consider factors like formulation, ingredient sourcing, product stability, packaging and compliance with industry standards.

Manufacturing facilities and equipment: Determine the volume of products needed and assess the required facilities and equipment. Consider whether you will manufacture in-house or outsource production to a contracted manufacturer. Evaluate your chosen manufacturing approach's cost, quality control measures and scalability.

Supply chain management: Establish a reliable supply chain for sourcing raw materials, packaging components and other necessary ingredients. Build relationships with suppliers and ensure consistent quality and timely delivery to maintain a smooth production process.

Quality control and testing: Implement stringent measures to ensure your product's safety, effectiveness and consistency. Conduct regular testing and quality checks to meet industry standards and customer expectations.

Branding and packaging: Develop a strong brand identity and appealing packaging that reflects your brand values. Consider the functionality, design and sustainability of your packaging choices.

04. Create a business plan

A business plan helps set a solid foundation and roadmap for your beauty business. It's a dynamic document that serves as a guide to keep you focused on your goals and communicates your vision to potential stakeholders, such as investors or lenders.

As your business evolves, plan to review your business plan regularly to keep you and your business on target. Remember to focus on clarity and brevity while ensuring that the key elements of your business plan are covered.

The key elements of a solid business plan often include the following:

Executive summary: Provide a concept statement which includes a brief overview of your business operations , goals and products/services.

Company description: Describe your beauty business, its structure, location and unique selling proposition.

Market analysis: Research your target audience, industry trends and competition.

Products and services: Explain your beauty offerings, their features and any proprietary technologies.

Marketing and sales strategy: Outline your marketing, pricing and distribution plans.

Organization and management: Provide an overview of your team and their roles.

Operations: Describe your production processes, supply chain and facilities/equipment.

Financial projections: Include income statements, startup capital , cash flow projections and funding needs.

Risk analysis: Identify potential risks and outline contingency plans.

Appendices: Attach supporting documents like market research data and key resumes

05. Pick a legal structure, then register and license your business

Establishing your startup beauty business as a legal entity makes sure you’re protected, regarding both your business assets and your personal assets.

There are five legal structures (business entity types) to choose from. A limited liability company (LLC) structure is one of the most popular choices for startups. However, you may decide that another structure fits your business better.

Sole proprietorship : A business owned and operated by one person who is liable for business debts. Business income taxes are reported on the owner's personal tax return.

Partnership : A business owned by multiple individuals who share profits, losses and responsibilities. General partnerships have equal liability, while limited partnerships have limited liability. Partnerships are taxed on partners' personal tax returns.

Limited liability company (LLC) : Combines the liability protection of a corporation with the flexibility of a partnership. Owners (members) have limited personal liability, and management and taxation options are flexible.

C Corporation : A separate legal entity owned by shareholders, providing limited liability protection. Corporations have a complex structure, subject to regulations and formalities. Taxation can be at both corporate and individual levels unless certain tax elections are made.

S Corporation: A regular corporation with special tax status. Provides liability protection and allows pass-through taxation, with income, losses, etc. Taxes are reported on shareholders' individual tax returns.

Consider each entity type's unique characteristics and requirements when choosing the most suitable structure for your beauty business. If you need help deciding what structure to choose, seek the advice of a business attorney or other professional.

The registration process may vary depending on your location and business structure, so it's best to consult with a business attorney or seek guidance from your local Small Business Administration (SBA) office or Chamber of Commerce to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.

State registration

Business name: Choose a unique name for your beauty business and ensure it complies with your state's naming guidelines. If you need some inspiration, try Wix’s free business name generator to spark some creativity. You can also consider these beauty business name ideas or these nail business names .

Register with the Secretary of State: Visit your state's Secretary of State website and follow the instructions for registering your business. Fill out the necessary forms and pay the required fees. Be prepared to provide information about your business, such as its name, structure and address.

Secure business licenses and permits: Research and obtain any required business licenses and permits specific to your state. Ensure you clearly understand any specific regulations that apply, such as health and safety standards, cosmetology licensing or product labeling guidelines. Bear in mind you will likely need to show your business license in order to obtain business liability insurance.

Looking to start a beauty business in a specific state?

How to start a business in Connecticut

How to start a business in Indiana

How to start a business in Wisconsin

How to start a business in Washington

How to start a business in Michigan

How to start a business in Utah

How to start a business in Virginia

How to start a business in Arizona

How to start a business in Texas

How to start a business in Ohio

How to start a business in Georgia

How to start a business in Colorado

Federal registration

Employer identification number (EIN): Apply for an EIN online through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website . This unique identifier is used for tax purposes, hiring employees, opening a bank account and filing federal tax returns.

Understand federal tax obligations: Understand your federal tax obligations, including income tax, employment tax and any industry-specific taxes or regulations that may apply to your beauty business.

Trademarks: If you plan to use a unique brand name, logo or slogan, consider registering for trademark protection with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to safeguard your intellectual property.

06. Create your website

Choose a solution that includes all the tools and support you need to build a beautiful website for your new business needs. For example, Wix offers a complete suite of tools for managing and growing your business, including hundreds of professionally designed website templates, a drag-and-drop website builder, inventory management, marketing tools and more.

Choose your design: Pick a design template for your website that reflects your brand. Wix has various product and service website templates to choose from. Customize your chosen template with your graphics and colors.

Organize your pages: Create essential pages like About, Contact, Shipping and Return Policy. Add your products or services to your online store and always use high-quality photos. If you see clients in person, like at a spa or salon, you can integrate the Wix Bookings app for clients to schedule appointments directly through your website.

Describe your offerings: Provide detailed descriptions for each product or service, including size, fragrance, color, warnings and usage tips, if applicable. Consider creating an FAQ page to address common questions.

Set competitive prices: Factor in production costs, labeling and packaging, and aim for a profit margin between 25% and 50%. Adjust prices based on market response.

Set up online payment processing: Integrate services like Wix Payments and PayPal to easily accept payments online. Offer multiple payment options to streamline the checkout process and help customers feel confident about their purchases.

07. Build your brand

When launching a new business, it’s also important for you to consider what essential assets round out the heart of your brand. You’ll want to draft up a compelling mission statement, define your core values, your business ethics and establish your brand’s voice. These elements shape your business identity and further resonate with your target audience.

Brand recognition takes repetition and consistency, and when you combine branding with a positive shopping experience, customers are more likely to shop with you again.

Looking to design a beauty logo from scratch? Try Wix's free logo maker .

08. Source and manage inventory

Whether you choose to dropship your products or purchase them wholesale, always take the time to research your sourcing options. Determine what aspects are most important to your business and your target market. Consider the following when selecting a supplier:

Minimum order quantity

Shipping speed and cost

Customer service

Fulfillment services

Product variety

Also, don't be afraid to contact potential suppliers directly to negotiate terms. You may be able to work out a deal.

Choose a product mix that aligns with your target market and business niche, and start by curating a small selection of products. As your business grows, expand your inventory based on customer feedback and sales data.

You’ll also want to implement an inventory management system to track product inventory, sales and reorder points. For example, Wix eCommerce makes it easy to successfully manage and track your inventory right from your website dashboard.

Effective inventory management is crucial for maintaining optimal stock levels, meeting customer expectations and maximizing profitability. Regularly review and refine your inventory strategies to adapt to your market's needs and drive the success of your beauty business.

09. Provide excellent customer service

This point cannot be stressed enough. By providing excellent customer service, you entice your shoppers to visit your store again. Stay responsive to customer feedback and continually improve your products based on their needs and preferences.

Consider creating a Customer Service Credo to list your service expectations for your team. For example:

Respond to customer inquiries or complaints promptly, take ownership of issues, proactively work toward a solution and follow up to ensure a satisfactory resolution.

Listen attentively to customers, understand their needs and concerns while showing empathy and making them feel valued and heard.

Provide personalized interactions with customers, address them by name and consider their preferences or past interactions with your business.

Treat customers with respect, courtesy and professionalism at all times and use a positive and friendly tone, even in challenging situations.

Provide clear and concise information, avoiding jargon or technical terms that may confuse customers.

Go above and beyond to meet customer needs by offering additional assistance, recommendations or special considerations when appropriate.

Encourage and actively seek customer feedback to understand areas for improvement and then implement changes to enhance your products, services or overall customer experience.

Delivering consistent customer service across all channels and touchpoints while maintaining a high standard of service quality.

10. Promote your business

There are several ways to promote your business. Start by identifying your unique selling points, then determine which methods (such as social media campaigns, email marketing or influencer partnerships) align best with your business. From there, develop a comprehensive marketing strategy that not only attracts potential customers but also engages, nurtures and converts them into loyal advocates of your brand.

Below are some easy ideas to get you started.

Promote your brand on social media: Select the platform where your target market is most active, create a business account and share high-quality photos and short videos showcasing your products in action.

Build an email list: Add a sign-up link on your website, urging social media followers to visit and sign up (you can also incentivize them with a sign-up bonus or coupon). Utilize newsletters for feedback, product announcements, tips and driving traffic to your website.

Utilize paid advertising platforms: Create paid ads on Google or your preferred social media platform, setting clear goals and defining your audience. Engage potential customers with captivating visuals and persuasive copy, and leverage data insights to optimize marketing strategies for maximum ROI.

Expand your reach through local marketing: Participate in local shows, events or offer to host in-home parties with special host bonuses. Check with the local Chamber of Commerce for additional resources for new businesses in your area.

Related Posts

How to start a service business and what you need to succeed

How to create a service website in 10 steps

How to start a business in 14 steps: a guide for 2024

Was this article helpful?

Beauty Salon Business Model Canvas

$15.00 $9.00 1 review

Resources On Beauty Salon

• Financial Model
• Business Plan
• Value Proposition
• One-Page Business Plan
• SWOT Analysis
• Marketing Plan
• Bundle Business Plan & Fin Model
• Description
• 1. Key Partnerships
• 2. Key Activities
• 3. Key Resources
• 4. Value Propositions
• 5. Customer Relationships
• 6. Channels
• 7. Customer Segments
• 8. Cost Structure
• 9. Revenue Streams

Introduction

The beauty industry is flourishing and shows no signs of slowing down, with a predicted growth rate of at least 5.77% expected in 2020 alone. A report released by Zion Market Research estimated that the global beauty and personal care market in 2019 was valued at $531.43 Billion, with projections that it will reach $805.61 Billion by 2026.

Beauty salons, in particular, take a significant portion of this market share, offering services such as manicures and pedicures, waxing, haircuts and much more. And yet, many salons lack the necessary strategies to maximize customer experience and generate more revenues.

This is where entrepreneurs come in. Investing in the beauty industry can be an exciting and profitable venture for those looking for a unique business opportunity. Salons offer a wide variety of services that can help customers improve their overall appearance and help them stand out from the crowd.

In this blog post, we will discuss how to create a successful business model canvas for a beauty salon. We will look at different customer segments, value propositions, cost structure, revenue streams, financial projections and more.

Beauty Salon Business Plan

$59.00 $39.00 DOWNLOAD

Key Partnerships

Suppliers: Business owners need to identify quality vendors and suppliers to purchase products and equipment needed to keep the beauty salon stocked and running safely and efficiently. It is important to research potential suppliers and evaluate their compatibility with the salon's needs. Developing mutually beneficial relationships with suppliers can open the door to excellent purchasing options, discounts, and service support.

Local Advertising and Marketing Services: To find new customers and stay competitive, insuring beauty salons are on the minds of potential customers is key. That is where brand-building and advertising can help. Establishing relationships with marketing and advertising companies and agencies can help salons create an effective strategy and craft effective material to boost visibility and increase customer loyalty.

Salon Professionals or Independent Contractors : In the range of services that beauty salons provide, it is crucial to find trained and knowledgeable professionals or independent contractors to meet customer needs. From hair stylists to skin therapists and massage specialists, experienced and trustworthy staff is essential in a beauty salon. It is essential to identify trustworthy and quality individuals to collaborate and build a long-term relationship based on mutual respect, trust, and continued education in the field.

Key Activities

Design salon packages and services: A successful Beauty Salon should strategize a variety of packages and services that meet different customer needs. Developing packages should consider cost, quality of service and value for customers.

Hire qualified personnel: Investing in experienced and knowledgeable personnel is a key factor in the success of a Beauty Salon. Look into personnel with experience in different hairstyles, manicuring, waxing, and other areas related to beauty.

Train personnel on safety procedures: This is important to ensure the safety and hygiene of the salon. Employees should be trained on safety and hygiene protocols that are in line with industry standards and local authorities regulations.

Attend to customers in salon: Ensuring a high level of customer service to all customers is essential for success in the Beauty Salon sector. Offer a friendly, knowledgeable and courteous atmosphere for customers to feel comfortable and valued during their visit.

Key Resources

Physical Infrastructure : Beauty salons require physical infrastructure to operate, such as premises, furniture, and other decor such as mirrors, manicure and pedicure stations, and so on.

Equipment : Beauty salons require the right equipment to provide services, such as hairdressers’ tools, facial and body waxing kits, manicure and pedicure equipment, spa accessories, and so on.

Manpower : Beauty salons require appropriate manpower, such as hairdressers, facial treatment specialists, massage therapists, receptionists, and so on.

Marketing Materials : Beauty salons require appropriate marketing materials, such as digital and printed brochures, flyers, posters, and other promotional channels.

Value Propositions

The beauty salon business model canvas offers a wide range of value propositions for the customer. This includes:

• High quality products and services: The salon offers professional quality products and services to the customers. Furthermore, all the staff members are well-trained to provide exceptional customer service.
• Convenient location and flexible hours: The salon is strategically located and open at convenient times, allowing customers to access the salon easily.
• Variety of packages and value options: The salon offers a range of packages for different budgets, as well as custom solutions for customers looking for a specific service.

Customer Relationships

The beauty salon needs to establish relationships with customers that foster loyalty and repeat visits. To achieve this, the salon should implement the following customer relationship policies:

• Flexible customer service policy: This involves providing flexible hours and different types of services to meet customers' preferences.
• Friendly and helpful attitude: The salon should always strive to have friendly and helpful staff members who are willing to go the extra mile to make the customers' visit enjoyable.
• Discounts for loyal customers: Loyal customers should be rewarded with discounts or special offers, further motivating them to visit the salon.

The beauty salon will use a variety of channels to create an efficient and effective booking system, reach customers and build a successful business. These channels will include an online booking system, social media channels, and networking with local groups and businesses.

Online Booking System

The beauty salon will offer an online booking system that will allow customers to easily book appointments with convenience and accuracy. The booking system will contain features such as appointment reminders and address information to ensure that customers have accurate bookings. The booking system will also allow for customers to easily change or cancel appointments without any additional fees.

Social Media Channels

The beauty salon will use a variety of social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to reach potential customers and share information. The salon will use a combination of posts, stories, and videos to share promotional content, customer reviews, and links to the online booking system. This will help to build a loyal customer base and provide a platform to build relationships with potential customers.

Networking with Local Groups and Businesses

The beauty salon will also take advantage of networking opportunities with local businesses and groups. This will include participating in local events and collaborating with businesses to offer discounts and special promotions. This will help to attract customers and build relationships with businesses in the community.

Customer Segments

The Beauty Salon will target three main customer segments – local residents, travelers, and group bookings. Each of these customer segments has its own unique needs and will have to be tailored to in order to maximize customer satisfaction and loyalty.

• Local Residents: The Beauty Salon can target local residents for one-off treatments such as hair styling, make-up applications, manicures, and pedicures.
• Travelers: The Beauty Salon can offer services to travelers, such as specialized treatments and packages that can address the needs of this customer segment, as they usually seek certain treatments while they are on their travels.
• Group Bookings: The Beauty Salon can offer services to groups who desire a customized experience, such as wedding parties and bridal showers. These events can be tailored to each customer’s needs.

Cost Structure

The cost structure of a Beauty Salon consists of rental and utilities, salon supplies, marketing and advertising costs, and personnel costs.

• Rent and Utilities: Rent, electricity, and other utilities (gas, water) are expenses that vary depending on the location of the salon, the size of the salon, and the services provided.
• Salon Supplies: Products, tools, and other supplies necessary to keep the salon running and providing high-quality services are necessary expenses.
• Marketing and Advertising Costs: Investments in marketing and advertising are required to attract and retain clients.
• Personnel Costs: Costs associated with salary, benefits, and performance-related bonuses for the personnel staff must be taken into consideration.

Revenue Streams

The Beauty Salon will generate revenue by four primary streams, including salon services and products, group packages, and online booking fees.

Salon Services/Products

The Beauty Salon will offer a variety of beauty services, including hair care, nail care, facial treatments, and waxing services. The salon will also sell products associated with these services, such as styling products and cosmetics. These services and products will be offered to individual clients as well as groups of people, such as bridal parties or corporate events.

Group Packages

The Beauty Salon will offer special group packages designed for larger parties and events. These packages will include a discounted rate for all services and products included in the package. The salon will also be able to customize packages to fit the needs of the group.

Online Booking Fees

The Beauty Salon will offer online booking services, which will require customers to pay online booking fees. Customers will be able to choose, from a selection of available time slots, the time that suits them best and then complete the booking by making payment. The fees for this service will be set by the salon and are separate from the cost of services/products.

The Beauty Salon Business Model Canvas represents a holistic model for a successful salon. It outlines the necessary pieces of a viable business model: value proposition, customer segments, cost structures, key partnerships, customer relationships, distribution channels, key activities and resources. By taking into account these components, entrepreneurs can effectively plan and launch their salon business.

The most important conclusion to consider when building a Beauty Salon Business Model Canvas is the importance of fitting each element of the canvas to the market you will be servicing. By tailoring the value proposition, key activities and resources, customer relationships, distribution channels, customer segments and cost structures, salon owners can develop a model that meets their own individual goals. Upon creating the canvas, entrepreneurs should ensure that their tactics remain flexible and that they are prepared to adapt to changes in the market.

The overall aim of the Beauty Salon Business Model Canvas is to create a viable business that can generate a profit for its owners. By taking into account the above outlined components and focusing on customer profiles, operations and distribution channels, entrepreneurs can create a blueprint for setting up and launching a successful salon.

Customer Reviews

Real time saver!

Frequently Asked Questions

• Current item: Beauty Salon Business Model Canvas $15.00 $9.00
• Annual Financial Performance Dashboard $29.00 $19.00

Welcome to Sue's Cuts & Perms!

Our mission, look your best, growing relationships, your true colors.

Hair is our passion, and our passion shows on every client that walks out of our doors. Through ongoing education, our stylists stay up to date on the latest cut, color styles and techniques to bring you the looks you want. 

From natural colors to pastel hues our technicians can mix up almost anything! Then, follow it up with a fresh cut and style. 

You will leave here with vibrant hair and a plan to keep it vibrant between visits.

If you have a look you want but don't know how to achieve, we can work together to form a plan. 

We'll listen to what you want and offer suggestions that you may not have considered. 

Copyright © 2024 Sue's Cuts & Perms - All Rights Reserved.

Powered by GoDaddy Website Builder