Hair salon business plan with stylist pay and service menu
The biggest choice in a salon plan is how you pay stylists: commission, hourly, or renting chairs. It changes your income, your control and your costs. This prompt has your todo.is agent research salons near you, build your service menu and compare pay models side by side in the forecast.
The prompt
- Write a business plan for [SALON NAME AND STYLE] in [LOCATION]. It is for [WHO WILL READ IT]. My details: [CHAIRS, STYLISTS, SPACE AND BUDGET]. Research hair salons nearby with links: services, prices for cuts and color, booking options and review themes. Write: summary, salon concept, service menu with prices and time per service, target clients, competitors, stylist pay model comparing [PAY MODELS TO COMPARE], hiring and training, retail products, booking and rebooking, marketing, licenses to check, risks, and financials. Build an Excel forecast with chairs in use, services per stylist per day, average ticket, color and product cost, retail sales, rent and profit per month for year 1 and totals for years 2 and 3, one tab per pay model. Mark assumptions. Send a Word plan and the Excel file.
What to change
- [SALON NAME AND STYLE]: E.g. "Willow & Ash, a color-focused salon with 6 chairs" or "a small curly hair studio".
- [LOCATION]: The street or neighborhood, e.g. "Short North, Columbus".
- [WHO WILL READ IT]: E.g. "a bank", "a landlord", "an investor" or "just me".
- [CHAIRS, STYLISTS, SPACE AND BUDGET]: Number of chairs and washing stations, stylists you know who would join, space and rent, and your budget.
- [PAY MODELS TO COMPARE]: E.g. "commission vs booth rental" or "commission, hourly plus bonus, and booth rental".
Example result
- Summary
- Willow & Ash is a 6-chair, color-focused salon in the Short North, Columbus. We specialize in lived-in blonde, balayage and color correction, with an education program for junior stylists. The owner has 12 years behind the chair and a regular book of about 180 clients.
- Service menu (illustrative)
- • Women's cut and style: $75, 60 minutes
- • Men's cut: $45, 30 minutes
- • Single-process color: $110, 90 minutes
- • Balayage: from $230, 3 hours
- • Color correction: $85 an hour, consultation first
- • Gloss treatment: $55, add-on to any cut
- Pay model comparison (illustrative)
- • Commission (45% of services, 10% of retail): salon buys color and products, sets prices, runs one brand and one booking system. Higher income per chair, more payroll work.
- • Booth rental ($275 a week per chair): stylists run their own books, prices and products. Steady rent income, less control over the client experience.
- • Plan: commission for 4 chairs with an education path, 2 chairs on booth rental for experienced stylists
- Key numbers to track
- • Rebooking rate: clients booking their next visit before they leave (target 60%)
- • Retail per service ticket: target 12% of total sales
- • Color cost: under 10% of color service price
- • Chair utilization: booked hours out of available hours
- Marketing
- • Before-and-after photos with client consent, consistent hashtags
- • Referral card: $20 off for the client and the friend
- • Google Business Profile updated weekly
- Financial summary (illustrative assumptions)
- • Startup costs: $96,000 (build-out, styling stations, backwash units, color bar, first stock)
- • Year 1 sales: $420,000 with 4 commission stylists and 2 renters
- • Stylist commission: 38% of total sales; rent: 9%
- • Break-even: month 10
- Licenses to check
- • Salon or establishment license, a cosmetology license for every stylist, health and safety inspection
- Risks
- • Stylists leaving with clients: education program, clear career levels, fair pay
- • Empty chairs early: recruit renters before opening
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt and add your salon name, location, chairs and budget to the [brackets].
- Paste it into todo.is on the Today screen or send it to your agent on WhatsApp or Telegram.
- Your agent checks nearby salons, writes the plan in Word and builds one forecast tab per pay model in Excel.
- Ask your agent to turn the service menu into a printable PDF price list once you are happy with it.
Tips for a better result
- Price color services by time and product used. Long balayage and correction appointments are where salons lose money if they price by the service alone.
- Track rebooking from day one. Clients who book their next visit at the chair are the base of a stable salon.
- Compare pay models using your real numbers, not averages. The right choice depends on how full your stylists' books already are.
- Tell your agent to remember your menu and prices, then ask it each quarter to compare them with nearby salons.
hair salon business plan: FAQ
- Is booth rental or commission better for a salon? Commission gives the owner more control and income per chair but more payroll and product cost. Booth rental is steadier and simpler but gives stylists their own business. Many salons mix both.
- How much does it cost to open a hair salon? It depends on the space, plumbing for washing stations and the number of chairs. Your agent builds the startup list from your quotes and adds stock, licenses and working cash.
- How much should a salon make from retail? Many salons aim for retail to be around 10% to 15% of sales. It depends on how well stylists recommend products during the service.
- Do I need a license to open a salon? In most places the salon needs its own license and every stylist needs a cosmetology license. Check the board that covers your state or country.
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