We all know how impossible it can be to get an appointment at the hairdressers. Between the chaos of everyday life- school runs, going to work, making time for family, friends or to run errands, it’s a miracle if we manage to get ourselves into the hairdressing seat at least twice a year. Alternatively, for those who own hair salons, it can be expensive to lease your own place and run the business from there. Throughout lockdown people around the globe saw the closure of salons, which caused chaos for those who attempted to give themselves ‘lockdown haircuts’, but also for salon owners- who faced huge financial repercussions. As lockdown restrictions began to ease and we were allowed to have close contact outdoors, hairdressers and barbers found themselves cutting and styling hair from the comfort of their own garden or outdoor home visits- which ensured their business was kept alive and that their clients were (thankfully) not doing anymore home haircuts. In the grand scheme of things, many business owners were unfortunately forced to permanently close, however most people found themselves continuing with their home-based business. Starting a home business can be a daunting venture, however, here at We Buy Any House we have compiled our top tips and advice to help you make your home hair station or salon a success.
Start By Investing the Legal Side of Things:
Although you may be qualified to cut and style hair, you will need to ensure that you have looked into the legal aspects of using your home as a place of business. Before you start advertising your business and investing in signs to attract new customers, there’s a few things you need to make sure of, such as:
- You need to ensure that your mortgage and tenancy agreement enables you to run a hair and beauty business from home. Sometimes, your agreement may prevent you from operating a business from your home.
- Consider the fact that if you decide to move house, you still may be liable for paying capital gains tax on the part of the bedroom in which you ran the business from.
- Get in touch with your insurance company. It’s vital that you do this as you will need to have cover for your business- especially if you have things considered a hazard such as hair dyes or electrical equipment.
- Ensure that your local council are aware of what you wish to do, as you may need their permission to set up your salon and may need to pay business rates.
- Make sure you have a health and safety expert to look around and ensure everything is stored correctly and is compliant. You can get information from the Hairy and Beauty Industry Authority to help your business.
- If you want music playing in your salon, then you will have to pay for a special music license or else you can be fined.
Understanding Boundaries:
You may be thrilled about the fact that you get to work from home, but it’s important to establish boundaries. Working from home has lots of benefits, but sometimes it can be hard to distinguish the physical and mental boundaries between your home and work life. Don’t get caught up in a mindset that is like “oh one more client won’t hurt”, or you’ll begin a cycle of not having set boundaries for work and home. It’s important that you establish exactly what your working hours are, and how you are going to separate your home from your business.
Be the Real Deal:
If you are going to make your home into a salon, then it’s important to be the real deal. Although you may not want to have a flashy salon, it’s important that you invest in quality products and equipment, so although your client is in your house, they feel as though they are in a high-street hairdresser. Things you may want to focus on include:
- Comfortable and stylish furniture, including chairs, tables and trolleys.
- Quality lighting which enhances the room and doesn’t put your customers into unflattering lighting.
- Having all the smaller and correct hygienic measures and necessities such as cutting gowns, disinfectant for your tools, appointment book and somewhere safe for your customers to leave their belongings.
Make a Record of Everything:
Just because your business is being run from home doesn’t mean it gets to be any less legitimate. In fact, it’s vital that you make an extra effort to record-keep, as it will make your home business easier to manage and your clients will have more trust in your professionalism. From purchases to the salon, client record to see what they have previously had done- all the record keeping will be great for you too as it can reduce your tax burden and therefore increase profit. Perhaps have a storage space designated for these records. You can implement a filing cabinet that is locked and holds all of your important info.
This article was written by a quick house sale company We Buy Any House. If you’re wondering “how can I sell my house fast?”, head to the We Buy Any House website for more information relating to all property related enquiries.
