01Move
DNA dimensions
Stylist utilisation, colour mix, rebook rate, retail attach, no-show rate, review velocity and chair-rent vs employed margin.
All playbooksSmall business
Hair salon playbook.
Independent hair salons with 4–12 stylists balancing colour bookings, retail and stylist churn. Wins come from rebook discipline and predictable colour pipeline.
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Reference fit-out · Hair salon
Overview
A modern UK hair salon is a medium-ticket, recurring-revenue business. The economics work when each stylist bills £45–£90 per hour at 65–80% chair utilisation, colour services hold 45–60% of revenue and retail attach sits at 15–20%. This playbook covers everything from picking a high-street unit to a 12-stylist colour-led salon in 2026 — gear, mandatory registrations, build-out timeline and realistic cost ranges.
70%
Rebook target
18%
Retail attach
+12 months
Stylist retention
What you'll need
Equipment list with real 2026 UK prices.
Sized for a 2–4 chair shop. Buy mid-range on chairs and clippers; cheap kit fails inside 12 months and walks away with your barbers.
01
Styling stations
Styling chair (hydraulic, swivel)
Aluminium base, padded leather
£280–£900 each
Buy 4–8 to start. Takara Belmont, REM and Maletti dominate the mid-range.
Styling mirror (framed)
Min 100×140 cm per station
£180–£550 each
Styling unit / colour bar
Heat-resistant top + brush rail
£320–£900 each
Stylist trolley
5-tier, lockable wheels
£70–£170
Anti-fatigue floor mat
£40–£90 each
02
Backwash & colour zone
Backwash unit + massage basin
Tilting basin, height-adjustable
£600–£1,800 each
Need 1 backwash per 3 stylists.
Colour bar / dispensary unit
Drawers + scale + sink
£700–£2,400
Colour scale (0.1g precision)
£35–£90
Climazon / processor (accelerator)
£900–£2,800 each
Cuts colour processing time by 30%. 1 per 4 stylists is the sweet spot.
Bowls, brushes, foils, clips
£180 starter / £45 per stylist
03
Tools (per stylist)
Hair dryer (pro, AC motor)
Parlux, BaByliss PRO, Dyson
£90–£400
Straightener / iron
GHD, Cloud Nine, ghd Chronos
£140–£260
Curling wand set
£90–£220
Scissor set (cutting + thinning)
5.5" + 6"
£150–£500
Combs, sectioning clips, brushes
£60–£140 starter
Gowns, towels, capes
£120 + £15/roll towels
04
Front of house & POS
Reception desk + waiting (4–8 seats)
£900–£2,800
Card reader + booking tablet
Stripe / SumUp / Square
£29–£169 + 1.5–1.75% per txn
Salon software (booking + stock)
Phorest / Fresha / Salon Iris
£0–£140/mo (Fresha free, Phorest from £69/mo)
Coffee + refreshment bar
£300–£1,200
Sound system + dimmable lighting
£400–£1,400
05
Retail shelf (opening mix)
Pro shampoo + conditioner (6 SKUs)
£420 wholesale
Target 18% retail attach. Olaplex, K18, Davines move consistently.
Styling (cream, oil, spray — 4 SKUs)
£240 wholesale
Treatment masks + bond builders
£280 wholesale
Brushes + accessories
£180 wholesale
Where to set up
Location is half the business.
Footfall
≥ 4,000 weekday pedestrians
Visibility matters less than for barbers — appointment-led — but anchor traffic still helps colour walk-ups.
Frontage
Min 4 m shop window
Light through the window is non-negotiable for accurate colour consultations.
Unit size
60–140 m² for 4–8 stylists
Allow 10–12 m² per stylist plus colour bar, 2 backwashes and retail wall.
Natural daylight
South or west-facing if possible
Stylists cannot match colour under poor light; daylight bulbs cost more than the right unit.
Plumbing & ventilation
Existing or installable
2+ backwashes, dispensary sink and extraction for chemical fumes.
Council use class
Class E (commercial)
Most former retail units in England are Class E and need no change-of-use.
Area tier
Rent / month
Notes
London Zone 1–2 high street
£4,500–£12,000
Premium clientele; expect £70–£140 cut, £140–£320 colour. 9–14 month payback.
London Zone 3–5 / Outer city centres
£1,800–£4,200
Sweet spot for ambitious independents. Manchester NQ, Bristol Clifton, Edinburgh Stockbridge.
Market town high street
£900–£2,200
£45–£70 cut, £80–£180 colour. 70%+ rebook achievable inside 6 months.
Suburban parade / village centre
£1,100–£2,400
Loyal local base; great for membership and pre-booked colour models.
Licences & registrations
Get the paperwork done before you sign a lease.
UK figures for 2026. Lead times assume you submit complete applications — councils will pause the clock if you miss documents.
Requirement
Who issues
Cost
Lead time
ReqRegister the company (Ltd or sole trader)
Companies House / HMRC
£100 (Ltd) or free (sole trader)
1–3 days
ReqRegister for Self Assessment or Corporation Tax
HMRC
Free
10 working days
OptVAT registration (turnover > £90k — likely from M6)
HMRC
Free
30 days
ReqPremises registration with local council
Local authority (Environmental Health)
£0–£250 one-off
2–6 weeks
ReqCOSHH risk assessment (colour, bleach, peroxide)
Self-assessed / consultant
£0–£350
1–2 weeks
ReqPublic liability insurance (£2m+)
Salon Gold / Simply Business / Hiscox
£140–£380 / yr
Same day
ReqTreatment / professional indemnity (chemical services)
Same broker
Bundled +£90–£260 / yr
Same day
ReqEmployer's liability insurance (£10m, if PAYE)
Same broker
Bundled +£60–£140 / yr
Same day
ReqPRS for Music + PPL licence (in-salon music)
PPL PRS Ltd
£220–£420 / yr
1–2 weeks
ReqICO data protection registration
ICO
£40–£60 / yr
Same day
ReqWaste contract (colour, peroxide, hair)
Initial Medical / specialist
£25–£70 / month
1 week
ReqBuilding Regs sign-off (if structural / plumbing work)
Council building control
£350–£1,100
2–4 weeks after works
Build-out timeline
From decision to open in 12 weeks.
01
Phase 1 · Plan & finance
Week −14 to −10- Pick city, district and price band. Run NAVIZIX Demand Radar on 3 candidate streets.
- Build 12-month cashflow twin (£55–£140k startup, 6-month buffer).
- Open business bank account (Tide, Starling — same week).
- Register company and HMRC tax accounts.
- Choose colour brand partner (Wella, L'Oréal, Davines, Schwarzkopf) — terms matter.
02
Phase 2 · Premises & legal
Week −10 to −7- Sign lease (negotiate 4–6 month rent-free build-out — standard for hair).
- Submit premises registration to council Environmental Health.
- Order backwashes + styling units (10–14 week lead time).
- Bind public liability + treatment indemnity insurance.
- Sign waste disposal contract.
03
Phase 3 · Build-out
Week −7 to −2- Electrician: dedicated circuits per dryer / climazon, dimmer lighting.
- Plumber: 2+ backwashes, colour bar sink, hot water sized for peak.
- Extraction / ventilation for chemical fumes.
- Flooring (sealed vinyl or polished concrete — never carpet).
- Paint, signage, window vinyl, retail wall fit-out.
- Install salon software, link Stripe + Google Business Profile + Mailchimp.
04
Phase 4 · Hire & soft-launch
Week −2 to 0- Hire 3–6 stylists (employed or chair-rent — set commission split).
- Colour brand on-site training day (free with most distributor contracts).
- Friends & family soft-open (50% off, full review automation live).
- Council Environmental Health pre-opening inspection.
- Stock retail wall + colour dispensary for first 4 weeks.
05
Phase 5 · Open & compound
Week 0 onwards- Day 1: NAVIZIX automations live — review request, colour reminder, missed-call SMS.
- Week 1: First DNA scan, identify weakest of 8 dimensions.
- Month 1: Launch pre-book-colour-at-checkout script. Target 60% pre-book.
- Month 3: First benchmark vs cohort of salons in your city and price band.
Budget
Realistic startup and monthly cost ranges.
One-off · Startup
Setting up the shop
Lease deposit + first month rent
£3,600 → £18,000
Shopfit (flooring, paint, electrics, plumbing, extraction)
£14,000 → £48,000
Backwashes + styling units + colour bar
£5,800 → £18,000
Tools & equipment (per stylist × 5)
£2,200 → £6,500
Climazon / processor (×2)
£1,800 → £5,600
POS + salon software setup
£150 → £800
Opening colour + retail stock
£2,800 → £6,500
Licences + registrations (year 1)
£600 → £2,400
Insurance (year 1)
£260 → £640
Branding, signage, opening marketing
£2,400 → £8,500
Working capital buffer (3 months)
£14,000 → £36,000
Typical total
£55k → £150k
Recurring · Monthly
Keeping the lights on
Rent + service charge
£1,200 → £9,000
Business rates (after SBR)
£0 → £1,400
Utilities (electric, water, broadband)
£380 → £900
Salon software (booking + stock)
£69 → £220
Card processing fees (≈ 2% of takings)
£280 → £1,600
Colour + consumables
£600 → £2,400
Retail restocking (40% of retail sales)
£280 → £1,200
Waste disposal (colour + hair)
£25 → £70
Music licences (PPL PRS)
£20 → £35
Accountant
£95 → £280
Insurance (monthly equiv.)
£24 → £55
Staff wages / commission (4–8 stylists)
£7,400 → £24,000
Typical total
£10.4k → £41k
Numbers that compound
How a hair salon actually looks on a chart.
Illustrative planning ranges, not measured customer data. Toggle the views to see ramp, mix and weekly load.
12-month revenue ramp
Low vs high scenario (£ monthly)
High Low
Illustrative example for planning, not measured customer data.
First 90 days
Dates that actually matter after opening.
01Day 0
Doors open. Booking + Google Business Profile go live. First review request automation fires 3h after every appointment.
02Day 7
First DNA scan completes. Owner digest highlights weakest of 8 operating dimensions.
03Day 14
Free trial of NAVIZIX ends — by now you have ≥ 120 appointments of data and at least 18 verified reviews.
04Day 30
First rebook + pre-book-colour rates measured. Launch loyalty tier if combined ≥ 55%.
05Day 45
First colour-pipeline forecast — 6 weeks of bookings visible. Adjust stylist rotas.
06Day 90
Quarterly board pack auto-generated. Decide on stylist hire, second-location feasibility or marketing spend.
What's inside
DNA, route, automations, integrations, benchmarks, advisors — tuned for a hair salon.
02Move
Suggested route
Fix rebooking at the basin, pre-book colour 6 weeks out, build a retail attach script, then launch loyalty for top-quartile clients.
03Move
Automations
Colour reminder 5 weeks post-visit, no-show recovery SMS, review request 3h after blow-dry, stylist commission digest weekly.
04Move
Integrations
Phorest / Fresha / Salon Iris, Stripe, Google Business Profile, Mailchimp, Xero.
05Move
Benchmarks
Stylist revenue / hour and retail attach % vs salons in your city with similar headcount and price band.
06Move
Advisors
Encore advisors from multi-site salon groups, colour educators and salon-software founders.
Stack
Modules used in this playbook.
01DNA Engine02Route Map03Launch Twin04Automation05Verified06Encore
Related playbooks
Owners of a hair salon often run — or cross-sell with — these adjacent operations.
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