Day: October 12, 2025

In an industry built on creativity, client experience, and glamour, numbers are often viewed as the dull and unappealing side of running a salon. But the truth is, financial readiness is what keeps the lights on and the chairs full. 

With the beauty sector facing higher supplier costs, shifting customer spending habits, and increasing competition from all sides, even talented salon owners risk being caught off guard without solid financial preparation.

VR Beauty Consulting founder Valerie Reynaert works with salons across the GCC region and can say without hesitation that relying on “gut feel” might get you through a season, but only data-driven financial planning will set you up for long-term growth.

“Planning for the future isn’t about over-complicating things, it’s about giving yourself stability and agility. A well-thought-out financial plan acts as a safety net when times are tough and a launchpad when opportunities arise,” says Valerie.

“Before you can map out where you want to go, you need a clear picture of where you stand today, and this will look different depending on your stage of business,” she says

VR Beauty Consulting is uniquely positioned to assist clients with taking stock of their business, whether they are a startup, scale-up or turnaround client.

Startups

Where to begin

Valerie advises startups to get brutally honest about setup costs: rent deposits, design, fit-out, equipment, initial stock, licences, insurance, recruitment, and marketing. 

“Many founders underestimate how much capital is needed – both to set up and to cover the inevitable early losses. They often run out of cash before the salon even opens. A financial roadmap is crucial,” she shares.

“Some salon owners also have a ‘we’ll see once we open’ mindset that can be damaging. Skipping revenue projections means no monthly targets or KPIs, so staff can’t be held accountable and growth is accidental at best.”

Building your plan

A strong financial roadmap will calculate the Initial capital required for fit-out, licensing, and launch, will include a cash buffer to cover early-month losses, a timeline to reach positive operating profit, and clarify the expected return on investment (ROI).

Your budget must also consider marketing expenses. This is a must if you are in the startup phase. 

VR Beauty Consulting’s marketing partner, Carol Holdsworth, advises salon entrepreneurs to do thorough market research as well as a competitor analysis. Money must also be set aside for brand development as well as a proper marketing strategy.

“When it comes to where to invest your money first, digital ads, social media and building awareness of your brand is first prize,” says Carol. 

You will also need to do the following:

• Decide which services to offer and set prices based on thorough research
• Define how many service providers and operational staff you need and set salaries and commissions for each position.
• Identify direct costs (products, consumables), operating expenses (rent, utilities, marketing), and required fixed assets (furniture, equipment, fitout).

Common mistakes to avoid

• Overstaffing from day one – It’s safer to hire the minimum team and scale as client demand grows. 
• Overspending on interiors – Lavish design slows down your return on investment. Beautiful doesn’t have to mean expensive.

How VR Beauty Consulting can help

For our startup clients, we offer a feasibility study to help get you started. Before you sign a lease, our feasibility study gives you the clarity to decide with confidence. 

“We analyse the market and location, define the right concept and service mix for your target clients, and build a detailed financial model covering start-up costs, operating expenses, and projected cash flow. You’ll know exactly how much capital you need, how long it will take to break even, and whether the numbers truly work,” Valerie explains.

Scale-ups 

Where to begin

“A common mistake scale-ups make is copy-cat expansion – opening branches, franchising, or adding online channels just because ‘others are doing it’, without a proper feasibility study. This is a surefire way to drain resources fast,” says Valerie.

“Underestimating capital needs is also a pitfall some salons encounter. Multi-site growth requires far more working capital for deposits, fit-outs, inventory, and marketing than many owners anticipate.”

Her advice is to review your current profitability. Are you running healthy margins? Assess your cash reserves and consider what level of investment you’ll need to support extra staff, marketing, or new locations.

Building your plan

The most important decision to be made by scaleups is to decide on the growth pathway and how to expand. Will you open additional company-owned locations to capture new areas, or cities, or will you create a franchise model with manuals, brand guidelines, and training to scale faster with less capital? 

You will also need to do the following:

• Break down projections by location, service category, retail, and new revenue streams (online sales or training fees).
• Upgrade your POS/booking, inventory, and CRM tools to handle multi-site operations.
• Create compensation plans, career pathways, and leadership training to develop future branch managers or franchisees.
• Shift from local awareness to brand-wide campaigns, loyalty programs, and cross-promotion between physical and online channels.
• Model best, base, and worst cases to manage the higher risks of multi-branch operations or franchising.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Allowing each branch or franchisee to interpret the brand differently dilutes reputation and confuses clients.
• Running multiple locations on basic booking or inventory software leads to scheduling conflicts, stock losses, and poor data visibility.
• Promoting great stylists into management roles without training leaves new sites without skilled leaders and causes high staff turnover.
• Continuing to track only overall sales instead of branch-level metrics hides underperformance.
• Rapid hiring without embedding values and service standards can damage team spirit and the client experience.
• Expanding service menus or retail without proper margin checks, or failing to diversify at all, can leave the business exposed if one category dips.

How VR Beauty Consulting can help

Scaling a salon isn’t just about opening more chairs. It’s about creating systems, processes, and strategies that turn your existing success into sustainable growth and essentially creating efficiency with what you already have in hand.  

At VR Beauty Consulting, we help salon owners expand through new branches, franchising, online retail, or training academies, while maintaining brand consistency and profitability. 

“We optimise operations, implement efficient technology, refine staff structures, and introduce data-driven KPIs to ensure every expansion decision is backed by insight, not guesswork,” shares Valerie.

Turnarounds 

Where to begin

Valerie’s advice for turnarounds is to get real about their financial discipline. 

“Without regular financial reviews, owners can’t see where margins are thinning or costs are creeping up. Being consistent with your monthly Profit and Loss statements is vital.” she says.

Another contributing factor to salons being in this phase is an unrealistic pay structure. Offering 45 to 50% commission might attract talent in the short term, but it erodes profitability and sets an unsustainable benchmark.

“Diagnosing the problem is the first step to fixing it. Without this clarity, you risk pouring new investment into old cracks,” she says.

Building your plan

The first step to be taken as a turnaround is to do a P&L deep-dive where you review every expense line and revenue stream to identify leaks and low-margin areas. Next is to analyse your sales data, audit your inventory, and do a marketing review that identifies which campaigns drive bookings and which don’t.

“Armed with this knowledge you can build strategies to fix underperforming areas and plan areas for growth. This is where you set a realistic turnaround budget and timeline and start using a project tracker to stay accountable,” says Valerie.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Heavy promotions without checking margins can create a culture of bargain hunting and long-term losses.
• Skipping a deep-dive into sales, retention, occupancy, or staff performance leaves owners guessing which areas actually need fixing.
• Hoping for a quick rebound without a clear budget, milestones, and accountability only delays recovery.
• Even a solid plan fails if management doesn’t stick to it and track progress weekly.

How VR Beauty Consulting can help

“The best tool for salons requiring a turnaround is our Business Audit, gives salon owners a clear, actionable view of how their business is performing. We dive into your financials, service mix, client retention, team performance, and operational efficiency to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities for growth. The result is a practical roadmap with prioritised actions, helping you optimise profits, improve client experience, and make data-driven decisions,” says Valerie.

In conclusion

Financial planning isn’t about limiting your creativity, it’s what funds it. The salons that will shine in 2026 aren’t necessarily the ones with the flashiest interiors or the biggest marketing budgets. They’ll be the ones whose owners understood their numbers, made smart choices, and built stability before chasing growth.

“If you take the time now to prepare financially, 2026 won’t catch you off guard, instead it will open up as a year of opportunity,” says Valerie.