sunsally

6. DO know the competition - in detail.


Look up all the salons in a 5 mile radius to the one you are considering.

Include gyms with tanning beds, hair salons with tanning bed(s), nearby apartment complexes that have tanning for their residents.


Go TAN at your prospective competitors BEFORE you buy! At least once in each, preferably two. Walk in as a new customer. See what they do, how they treat you, how they try to "sell" you, etc. Buy a single visit and tan. See what that experience is like. For your closest competition - do this twice.

Do they push memberships or longer term commitments, do they try to sell you a lotion, do you get a good result from your tan, is it clean, does it seem busy, are the staff friendly, etc etc etc.

IF you make this investment - you will be competing with THEM to see who makes money - and who loses. KNOW THEM and make a REALISTIC judgment -- is it worth trying to go up against them?? Or should you consider a different location or scratch the idea altogether?

Unless you are the only salon in the market, you will be competing with everyone else for the same sized pie. You will be trying to take customers away from them - but they will be trying to get them from you!

Analyzing the competition is a BIG part of your overall business plan and helping to determine if this can be a profitable investment!

jerilynn

Thank you for posting such helpful information, I really appreciate the time you spent in sharing all of this!

TanRepairBook

This is pure gold, outstanding post!

PlatinumTanTer

Great tips, thank you. It's really amazing how many small/prospective business owners don't factor in the hours they will have to work as an investment!

__________________
Terry

Platinum Tan & Skin Bar
The Premier Tanning Salon in San Diego

jlfuller75

This post is wonderful! I just looked at a salon for sale by the bank today. The previous owner turned in the keys because of a family situation (as you suggested) and the owner before that was "absentee". The salon is in a VERY good location with no competition for 10+ miles so the opportunity is still very attractive. The next thing I am going to do is research the beds to determine the true value of the business. Honestly, I already think the banks asking price is pretty fair but the income statements do not show an attract profit for the last few years so that is very concerning. I will continue with my research to see if this is a good financial investment opportunity. Thanks again for the information!!

ledfrazier

Great post!

Milos@BellaSpa

Great post, really helpful.

MaryK

This post was by far the most helpful post I have read on this site so far!! Thank you!

I was hoping that you could look at my post about potentially buying a salon in CA and tell me what you think or give me some help please. I want to be able to be a successful owner if I do get the chance but I also want to make sure that I am purchasing the salon in a smart way. I am definitely not in love with the decor which I would like to slowly change and I am slowly getting into the finances of the salon. Any help or advice you could give would be amazing.