For long Black hair salons have provided the black community with professional services. Running black hair care salons have turned out to be a  lucrative business for many multi-ethnic salon franchises, such as Hair Cuttery and Hair Studio, and department store chains, such as J.C. Penney and Saks Fifth Avenue. The total of the health and beauty aid industry  including hair, skin and cosmetic products and services is worth $2.8 billion.
Running a hair salon is a great  business opportunity. But running a hair salon successfully requires proper planning and management.
The cost of starting a hair salon is anywhere between $30,000 to $50,000. It includes equipment, insurance, licenses, maintenance and repairs. In many states, salon owners are liable for the taxes of booth renters (stylists who rent space). According to an Industry analysts  roughly one-third of the  black hair salons are booth renters. These independent contractors keep payments made by their clients, and pay the owner a weekly fee. In contrast, employees are paid by commission or salary.

 Most hair salon owners start out as stylists. Whereas a top stylist may have a $30,000 salary, a hair salon owner can eventually earn up to $100,000 or more.
Often when stylists become owners of hair salons , they forget that they are running a business. The stylist need to  adjust to the changes and accept greater responsibility. They should also adjust to a change in the flow of funds. It  includes designating duties to employees, staying abreast of new products and developing vendor relationships.


Also many owners assume the role of manager and stylist, only to find it too difficult to take on the tasks of staffing, bookkeeping, marketing, maintenance and repairs.
All of these tasks are full-time jobs in themselves so you’re sure to run into trouble if you try to do even two of them yourself.
It is imperative that hair salon owners have a good record-keeping system, says Geri Duncan Jones, executive director of the American Health Beauty Aids Institute (AHBAI), a trade association for manufacturers of black hair care products and cosmetics. “This way, if the IRS wants to see the salon’s records, the owner will be prepared.” Barbara Giles, associate publisher of the black beauty trade magazine Shop Talk, says, “Salon owners can avoid certain pitfalls by hiring the professional services of accountants and lawyers.”
For some hair salon owners, staffing a salon may be a challenge, says John Atchison. The veteran has namesake salons in New York and Los Angeles. It’s often easier to train people than to find qualified stylists, he says.

Besides providing services to their customers the Hair Salon owners should lay emphasis on marketing their business, says James McDowell, owner of two Black Roots hair salons in Brooklyn. “Salon owners need to develop a strategic marketing plan in which company resources are directed toward specific goals.”
A word of advice to hair salon owners. Since  it  is a mobile business employees tend to jump around. Also, the high rents and price cutting competitors cause many hair salons to come and go.
Still, Giles is optimistic that the market is wide open for the salon owner with management know-how. “Learning various aspects of managing your salon properly is critical to who falls out or stays in the business.”