How much profit do small hair salon owners earn?

[FreakStar]

Had an argument with a friend today who was complaining her hairdresser was unethical for putting her prices up post lockdown. I said she had to make a living, she said she has had money from the government so was unethical to charge more and that hairdressers were all money grabbing and all rich. I said hairdressers are not usually that rich!

So, how much would the average small salon owner- someone who just has herself and one other employee, in a small town in the north make in a year after all outgoings on rent, products, equipment etc make? Would they really be that well off?

Any salon owners out there?

My friend owns a salon and lost a lot of money in lockdown. It was a very stressful time for him. The staff were paid furlough but the government money did not cover the outgoings at all. They are now working VERY hard to try and support the business. I think that salon owners will appreciate you having their back.

A small hairdresser (no other stylists employed and no "rent a chair" stylists) would be earning around local average wages, so £18k-£26k on average depending on area, if working full time.

The ones who earn more are the ones with bigger salons and more stylists.

You also have to remember that the self employed income support grants are based on profit, not income, and it's quite possible they only cover the overheads and don't leave much, if any, left to replace the owners profits/drawings. They'll have ongoing costs that they can't avoid, such as insurance, security, rent, rates, power, subscriptions, accountancy fees, bank charges, loan interest, telephone/internet etc - yes, some will be less if closed, but some will be the same.

So as I thought then! Her hairdresser is unlikely to be rich! She wanted a dry cut for £5! Hairdresser wanted £25 for a cut and blow dry which friend thinks is far too much.

£5!!!!!!!!!

£5? Has she teleported from 1972?

I paid £75 for a cut and blow dry last week !

I go to a back Street hairdresser in the North of England and for a cut and blow-dry I pay£25 for a colour I pay £45.

I complained to my hairdresser because she hasn’t put her prices up since lockdown!

Well what hairdressers earn will vary quite a lot and I'm sure some do earn a decent living but they are skilled workers who offer a service and are free to set their own prices, but in the situation you describe, some won't be making very much at all as they have to take enough to pay their rent, rates, utilities (lots of water and power), laundry, products, employee wages, PPE before they even start to make any money to pay themselves.

Even a small salon in a small town will need to take tens of thousands per year to make any sort of living and they're not going to do this with dry cuts and even £25 for a cut and blow is probably just about as cheap as you can get.

Your friend is delusional.

The £5 is apparently what she's been paying before lockdown for her teenage daughter to have her hair trimmed. The hairdresser has said now she's not doing dry trims anymore and the daughter will have to pay the adult price of £25 for a cut and blow. I would have though cutting and styling a teenage girls hair is pretty much the same as doing an adults so don't think that's unreasonable. Child prices are surely for little tots who just need their fringes tidying every few weeks.

£25 for a cut and blow?? That’s ridiculously cheap.
I’d expect to pay a minimum of £45.

Your ‘friend’ is a cheeky fucker if she thinks a trained hairdresser should be earning less than NMW.

She can’t expect to pay £5 for a teenagers hair cut!

We are not rich
I earn a normal average salary.
My dh earns a lot more than I do in a job he's been doing for 5 years.

I've been doing mine for 25 years.

We all get the clients that want a cheap cut or their child's hair cut that takes as much time as an adult but they moan

I tend to filter them out. I much prefer my lovely clients that come to me because of my skills and experience than those that just want a cheap job

£5??? I'm 52 and it was more than that 40 years ago. She's being ridiculous. My hairdresser always offer 20% off DDs hair but I refuse as her waist length hair is a nightmare to wash and blow dry . £45 for a cut and blow dry . In the NorthWest. Can't imagine how stressful it must have been for small businesses and will continue to be.

I paid my (brilliant) hairdresser £45 for a wash and cut last week, plus the PPE charge, and was happy. Snipping a few locks from a small child is easy and cheap. Dealing with a teenage girl who wants THE look: I think should be charged as an adult.

As above, if it takes as long as an adult cut, then adult prices apply.... even if the child is 12 or 13. It is about the time involved to do a decent job, not about the customer's age.

Of course, if the teen child is gorgeous and the cut is going to feature as a model/marketing shot on the website, it's slightly different. But that was true 40 years ago, even before t'Internet. Hairdressers have done model shots since forever.

She's being unrealistic. I pay £20 for DD8 to have a cut in a small NW town on a street that's saturated with salons. I think mine is about £40. They don't do dry cuts for whatever reason. I think even the 5 minute barbers would charge more than a fiver for a once over with the clippers.

I live in Vancouver, Canada now and at my local mall there’s a place that does all haircuts for $12 (around £7) Obviously only dry cuts, male/female. You go to a machine inside, pay for a ticket and get called.

They spend just as long cutting my hair (and are just as good) as many of the far more expensive places I’ve been. I went back the other day thinking their prices would have gone up, but no. They encourage tips and I would guess that the average customer would leave a £3 tip.

They seem to be pretty successful, have been there for years and are typically very busy. Just wonder if a model like that would work in the U.K.?

My hairdresser is ridiculously cheap. She is a mobile hairdresser who comes to the house so doesn't have overheads - I had my hair done yesterday and she charges £50 for a cut and colour. £5 for a dry cut on teenage DD.

Hairdressers are not known for being rolling in money though! Unless they are a celeb hairdresser like Nicky Clark or something.

A lot of hairdressers don't declare earnings, as they operate from their home or such. I still think that prices for hair services in the UK are extortionate in comparison with other countries and having visited a lot, they are unable to style anything without hair straighteners. I would have no problem paying for the skill, but all those I have visited including proper named salons have none. I have now resorted to having a simple trim 2 times a year as I can't get what I have grown accustomed abroad and stopped colouring my hair years ago for similar reasons.

A lot of hairdressers don't declare earnings, as they operate from their home or such.

Didn't take long for the "most self-employed people are on the fiddle" thing to start again.

A lot of hairdressers don't declare earnings

Please provide proof if you want to be taken seriously.

@user1497207191

A lot of hairdressers don't declare earnings

Please provide proof if you want to be taken seriously.

I don't need to do anything other than offer my experience. You can take it or leave it, but I certainly do not have anything to gain or reason to lie by offering my perspective. Ask why you and the poster above are so reticent in accepting another viewpoint.