Can you believe the New Year is only a couple weeks away?! A new year is the perfect time for a fresh start. Are you ready to start your own salon business in 2021? If you’ve been dreaming of owning your salon and being your own boss, now is the time to start planning! Here are a few helpful tips to help you make this big decision and help you along the way:
1. Are you ready to take the plunge?
Opening your own salon suite takes courage. As we all know, with freedom comes responsibility. But don’t let that turn you away from opening a salon studio – it can empower a beauty professional to be in charge of their dream career! Having a large enough clientele is a must. Are you booked out at least a few weeks in advance, do you have a large base of clients who keep coming back to see you? If so, you may be ready to open your salon suite!
2. Find an Ideal Location
Location is key in starting a successful business. It is essential to find salon suites for rent that check off three boxes:
1. Within a 10 mile radius of your current salon
2. Close to your clientele
3. Close to where you live
Next, find a good balance between rent and location – sometimes it pays off to go with a better location with a little higher rent. Make sure you are also considering factors such as utilities, laundry facilities, and parking. View our list of locations to see if there is a Vibe Salon Suites near you.
3. Take Care of Legal Responsibilities
Although this isn’t the most fun part about starting up your new salon suite, it is crucial to understand the licensing you need. We are happy to offer assistance and guidance with obtaining licensing. Here are a couple things you will definitely need:
Business License
A business license is necessary when renting and opening a salon suite. To get started, call up your local government (you can start by calling city hall) and find out which department grants business licenses. From there, do some basic paperwork and voila! You have a business license! Additionally, you will likely need to apply for an establishment license with your cosmetology state board, which you are often able to do online.
Professional Liability Insurance
This is one of the last of the boring – but very necessary – paperwork that you’ll need to do when opening a salon suite. It is important to protect yourself and your business from claims and lawsuits, and professional liability insurance can help pay for lawyers, certain damages, and civil suits. We all hope we will never be faced with such complaints or problems – but it never hurts to keep you and your business protected. We partner with Elite Beauty Society to offer all of the insurance you need at an affordable rate:
https://elitebeautysociety.com/partners/vibe/
4. Booking & Credit Card Processing Solution
Work smarter and not harder – use technology as your assistant to make it easy to keep up with everything from booking appointments to marketing.
Instead of having clients contact you directly to set up appointments, consider using an online scheduling software – such as Gloss Genius, Vagaro, Salon Iris, Square and many more. Most services that offer online booking have other benefits, such as product inventory assistance, client tracking, credit card processing, appointment reminders, and marketing assistance. There are endless options in software assistance, so do your research to decide which one would work best for you and your new salon suite.
5. Finance Tracking and Taxes
To keep track of your finances and be ready for tax time, consider using accounting software. There are several free options you can use on your computer or phone that can assist you with accounting, invoicing, and receipts. If you don’t want to go with a full-on accounting system, a simple spreadsheet on Excel or Apache OpenOffice may be right for you. If you aren’t using a software that already assists you with inventory, a basic spreadsheet can assist you, so you always have what you need in stock.
6. Marketing
Marketing is essential in the salon business. If you aren’t putting yourself out there on social media and connecting with current and potential clients, you are losing clients and money. Make sure to at least have a Facebook business page and Instagram business page. These are key for staying in touch with your current clients and marketing yourself to new clientele. This is important for a business at any age, but especially important when you are just opening a salon suite! Check out our blog post on how to grow your social media following for more information and assistance!
7. Know Your Worth!
It is important that you don’t undercharge for your services at your brand-new, luxury salon suite. Just because you are opening a new business, doesn’t mean your services and time are any less valuable. First, make a list of all your expenses, and estimate your average costs per month. Second, make a list of your intended services. Consider average pricing in your area, your most popular services, how booked you plan to be, and the clientele you are looking to attract – then decide on pricing based on those and your expenses. You want to ensure you are receiving enough profits to make your new venture is worth your time and effort.
8. Choosing Products
Now that you’re the boss, you get to pick your favorite products and find the line that represents you and your salon studio. Instead of just going through your local professional beauty supply store, consider working directly with a sales representative for your trusted line – they will keep you updated about new products, specials, and educational opportunities. In order to work directly with the product brand or find a sales representative, check out the brand’s website – most will have a business support section that can connect you with representatives and provide you with professional signage.
9. Design Your Salon Suite
Now for the fun part – setting up your space so it reflects you and the salon culture you want to create! Design your salon suite to reflect your unique personality by switching up paint colors, choosing shelving, light fixtures and more!
Now that you know what it takes to get started, are you ready to make the leap? If so, we are here to help you every step of the way! Contact us today to schedule a tour or request pricing.
