Opening a beauty salon: the guide for entrepreneurs

Passionate about beauty, do you dream of opening your own institute? You knocked on the good door ! In this article, you will find all the steps to follow to succeed your project, including information on creating the business plan of a beauty salon.

Do market research for your beauty salon

In order to create a beauty salon, the first step is to carry out market research. The objective of market research is to allow you to validate the commercial potential of your institute, but also to define an optimal launching strategy.

For the market study of your beauty salon, it is necessary to carry out a detailed research of the tendencies of the sector, an in-depth analysis of your competitors, as well as a study of the wishes and expectations of your future customers.

The French beauty institute market

Conjuncture

The turnover of the sector is estimated at 2.9 billion euros, after experiencing continuous growth over the last decade, the beauty sector has been plagued since 2014 by a slight drop in turnover ( Avise -info.fr ).

Several factors can explain this decline:

the gloomy economic situation,
competition from related professions such as hairdressing salons and perfumeries,
the competition caused by the development of devices allowing consumers to carry out treatments themselves, directly at home (manicure, laser epilator, etc.)

One in four French women now regularly visits a beauty salon, and 44% of them have attended a beauty salon in the past 12 months. In men, this percentage drops to 10%. The development potential of the sector is therefore very significant ( Codebeaute.com ).

Typology of the beauty salon market

Among the 14,000 beauty salons present in France, there are two main types of actors:

independent beauty salons, which remain the majority,
beauty salons attached to a brand, which represent a third of the sector.

Future trends in the French beauty salon market

Experts predict an increase in the number of institutes under the brand, to the detriment of the self-employed, as well as increasing competition, in particular via the installation of treatment booths in department stores, spas and perfumeries.

Some aspects of the regulation of beauty salons

In order to be able to open a beauty salon, it is recommended to hold a CAP or BEP corresponding to the profession. Without a diploma, it is still possible to launch an institute, provided you have a minimum of 3 years of experience as a manager, self-employed, or employee (law 96-603 of 5 July 1996).

It is compulsory to be registered with the Chamber of Trades. Self-employed workers also have the obligation to register in the trade directory or in the trade and companies register (law 2014-626 of 18 June 2014).

Like any establishment welcoming the public, the premises of the beauty salon must comply with the safety standards relating to establishments open to the public.

Finally, there are many regulations relating to the beauty trades:

Only masseurs-physiotherapists can offer massages.
Permanent makeup requires prior specific training.
The use of tanning equipment is highly regulated.

Create a beauty salon: with what concept?

An essential decision to make from the start concerns the type of beauty salon you want to open.

You have two main choices: open a beauty salon under or not, and opt for a specialty, or not.

Independent institute or under brand?

Opening a beauty salon under the banner will allow you to benefit from the reputation of a large group as well as start-up support, but will decrease your personal room for maneuver.

The most popular generalist brands in France are Yves Rocher, Beauty Success, Physiomins and Relooking Beauté Minceur.

We also note a significant boom in low-cost offers, such as Body Minute and Esthetic Center, which operates on the basis of a monthly subscription and adopt a policy of express care, without appointment.

Specialized beauty institute

The trend is definitely towards specialization in the beauty salon sector. This allows us to emphasize professionalism and build customer loyalty. There are four main areas of specialization:

Manicure, with signs such as L'Onglerie or Le Nail bar… by V
Hair removal, with brands such as DepilTech or Radical Epil
Tanning, with brands such as K2 Chocolate or Point Soleil
Thinning, with brands such as CelluChic or Bodysano

Finding a place for your beauty salon

Once you have chosen the concept of your beauty salon, it's time to consider its location. This is a crucial decision, which will have a direct influence on the success of your project.

Opting for a location on a busy street guarantees high visibility, but will cost you more. Choosing a street further back will, however, save on rent, but will require greater investment in advertising.

Finally, taking over a beauty salon is an option allowing you to get started cheaply.

Choice of the legal structure of your beauty salon

Choosing the legal status of your beauty salon is another essential step, which will have a significant impact on both your business and your personal life.

The marketing plan of a beauty salon

After you have done your market research, decided on the type of institute you want to set up, and found the ideal location, the next step is to make a marketing plan for your beauty salon.

The objective of the latter is first to make you known, in order to recruit your first customers, then in a second time to retain them.

Apart from traditional communication methods such as the distribution of flyers or the purchase of advertising inserts in local newspapers, the rise of blogs and Youtube channels specializing in beauty represents a communication opportunity that should not be overlooked. An active presence on social networks can pay off in order to target young women, who are generally very connected.

The human and material needs necessary to open a beauty salon

Creating a beauty salon requires a significant initial investment, in particular to cover the acquisition of equipment: massage tables, comfortable armchairs, and stocks of cosmetic products.

It will probably also be necessary to recruit one or more employees: it is common to use apprentices or trainees in the beauty sector, but it is essential to make sure to hire qualified and competent personnel.

You will also need to take out insurance in order to cover yourself against the risks linked to your premises, customer reception and your activity. Finally, it may be useful to call on an accountant to assist you in financial management (keeping accounts, pay, calculating VAT and other taxes, etc.).

The business plan of a beauty salon

The business plan of a beauty salon aims to allow you to validate the viability of the project on the financial level and to serve as a reference document when seeking funding.

Schematically, the business plan contains 2 main parts: a financial forecast highlighting the need for financing and the profitability potential of the project, and a written part aimed at highlighting the strengths of the project in order to convince your financial partners.

The business plan is therefore an essential document for setting up your beauty salon.

If you have never done one, a good way to easily carry out the business plan of your beauty salon is to use specialized software.

Opting for business plan software has several advantages:

You are guided by instructions and examples for each part of the business plan
You can take inspiration from already written business plan models
You easily realize your financial forecast assisted by the software which takes care of the calculations for you
You end up with a professional document, formatted, and ready to be sent to your banker
If this type of solution interests you, know that you can test our business plan software for free by registering here .

Armed with your business plan, it's time to embark on the last step of creating a beauty salon: seeking funding.