Beauty industry trends may ebb and flow, but the desire to look and feel our best is everlasting. We rely on beauty businesses for our favorite products, techniques, and skilled stylists to help us create the ideal look. Want to know how to start a beauty business that lasts? We can help!

How to Start a Beauty Business: Develop Your Concept

Before we get into the details of how to start your own beauty business, there are some decisions to make first. 

The most important decision is what kind of beauty business you want to start. This is your business concept, which can be narrowed down by asking yourself a few simple questions.

What Type of Beauty Business?

Are you considering how to start a beauty product business? How to start a hair salon? How to start a sugaring hair removal business? What segment of the beauty industry are you interested in?

This is the biggest decision because it will dictate what type of build-out you need, what audience you’re targeting, what marketing strategies you’ll build, etc.

You cannot know how to start a beauty business until you pick your concept. 

Who is Your Target Audience?

Let’s presume you’re opening a hair salon. Now your questions center around what market demographic your clientele will be.

Will you serve high-end customers seeking designer styles and products? Will you primarily style the hair of men or women? 

Is there a market niche in your area where people are underserved, and your beauty business will fill that market void?

Determining your market informs a lot about the types of products and services you’ll offer, your pricing strategy, your marketing messaging, and more.

Now let’s look at how to start a beauty business.

Steps for How to Start a Beauty Business

Now that you’ve determined the ‘what’ and the ‘who,’ you can get started on the ‘where’ and the ‘how’ in the next steps for how to start a beauty business.

There’s some planning and preparation that will help smooth your grand opening and the details of your daily operations. 

Create a Business Plan

Creating a business plan will help you explain exactly how you plan to operate your new beauty business to financing institutions. It should include your target audience, projections for sales and revenues, expected expenses, any product lines you may decide to sell as additional revenue streams, and a description of the services you plan to offer. 

Secure Financing

Showing your business plan to banks may help you secure a business loan. There are also organizations like the Small Business Association that can help you find resources or even give you access to funding programs to help you get your business off the ground. There’s also the option of partnering with investors with capital to invest in your business. They will then share in a portion of the profits with you. 

Choose a Location and Begin Build-Out

Once you’ve secured financing, the next step for starting a beauty business is exciting: finding your new location! Whether you lease or buy can affect costs, so keep in mind your budget. Easy access to your target market should also be a big consideration.

When you’ve found the best location (the ‘where’), you can decide on what renovations, if any, are needed and get any permits necessary to begin making the building suitable for your beauty business. You’ll also need to equip the business with salon stations, shelving for product displays, and a register for client checkout. You’ll also likely need a computer to keep track of accounting, inventory, and other metrics. 

This is where your dream begins to come to life!

Permits, Licensing, and Certifications

You may need permits during the build-out phase, but business licensing may also come into play depending on your local and state requirements. Cosmetology regulations also vary by state, so be sure you’re up-to-date and certified for your planning services.

Hire Your Stylists

This is a personal decision for each salon owner—whether to hire stylists, rent out stations, or operate alone. If you choose to have stylists, make sure their certifications are up-to-date. It’s also wise to match personalities for the salon’s operating style.

Marketing Your Business

One of the most important steps for how to start a beauty business is spreading the word before you open. You’ll want clients ready to walk through your doors the first day. It’s also fun to cross-promote with businesses in parallel industries, like bridal shops, clothing stores, fitness studios, and other businesses, about making people feel good about themselves.

Becoming a recognized face in your local business community is always smart, too. It shows you care about your local economy and helps you integrate into your town. You can network with other businesses and potential new clients and build word-of-mouth.

Grand Opening and Beyond

It’s the big day! With all your hard work, hopefully, your chairs will be full, and your register will be ringing true with sale after sale. Congratulations! While this is just the start (and the ‘how’), you’ve made great strides in how to start a beauty business!

Creating a Beauty Business that Lasts

Fantastic Sams has been around for nearly 50 years, and in that time, we’ve learned a thing or two about how to start a beauty business.

For example, we know that going into the beauty business alone is a risk and one you don’t need to take. Not when Fantastic Sams seeks qualified franchise owners to expand our tried-and-true beauty businesses that have proven staying power.

We’ve also learned that inspiring stylists and investors with a franchise program that supports and empowers them is the best way to open a lasting beauty business. When passionate and confident people have everything they need to thrive, their businesses flourish, and their clients love to return time and again.

We love when people create their destiny, whether a client, a stylist, or a franchise owner growing their career. It’s why we support our franchise owners with market-tested experience and innovation.

Fantastic Sams support includes

• Site selection expertise and advice.
• Thorough training on our technology tools, training systems, daily operations, and much more.
• On-site assistance before and during your grand opening.
• Continued training and support visits for whatever you need when you need it.
• Approved vendor relations for supplies and equipment.
• Modern technology tools pre-vetted and approved for all your tech needs.
• Extensive marketing support from a legacy brand.

Want to know how to start a beauty business with Fantastic Sams and begin your future now? Contact us today!