Beauty salons and hairdressers in Russia

2023

Hairdresser and beauty salon services market growth by 5% to 278.6 million units

In 2023, hairdressers and beauty salons in Russia provided a total of 278.6 million services. This is 5% more compared to 2022, when the figure was 265.3 million. The beauty industry in the Russian Federation is developing dynamically, as stated in the BusinesStat review, published in early October 2024.

The study covers facial, body, nail and hair care procedures: haircut, styling, dyeing, curling, hair straightening, shaving and trimming beards, facial cosmetic massage, body massage, manicure, pedicure, makeup, hair removal, etc. The review does not include the cosmetology services of medical centers, specialized massage rooms and SPA salons, as well as the services of artisans working from home.

According to estimates, in 2019, Russian hairdressers and beauty salons provided 240.9 million services. In 2020, a 13.9% decline followed - to 207.5 million: the fall is associated with restrictions and self-isolation of citizens in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the indicator increased by 18.6% - to 246.1 million services under the influence of the implementation of deferred demand. In 2022, an increase of another 7.8% was recorded.

The authors of the report highlight several factors that contribute to the development of the industry. This, in particular, the emergence of new formats of institutions - children's hairdressers, barbershops, salons of the "super economy" class and express studios. Another stimulating factor is digitalization: many salons offer their own mobile applications, through which customers can not only sign up for services, but also receive notifications about special offers, promotions and new services. At the same time, virtual consultations help determine the choice of services and products. Salons actively use social platforms to promote, publish the works of masters and interact with clients. Plus, convenient payment methods through applications and sites are developing.^[1]

12.6% rise in hairdresser and beauty salon franchises

In 2022, there were 188 franchises of hairdressers and beauty salons in Russia, which is 12.6% more than in the previous year. This indicator has been growing steadily since 2018, which is facilitated by such factors as the formed culture of regular maintenance of style and well-being, an increase in the urban population and the development of economy class salons. This is stated in the BusinesStat study, the results of which were published on December 29, 2023.

It is noted that franchising has certain advantages over opening a business from scratch. Thus, the owner of the franchise helps in launching the project, purchasing equipment and materials with a significant discount directly from the manufacturer, as well as in promoting the brand. Among the significant players in the industry are called "Thai Franchising," "Point" (Beauty Point), "Face-Only," "Prive7" (Prive7) and "Topgun Management Company" (Topgun).

According to estimates, in 2018, the number of franchises of hairdressers and beauty salons in the Russian Federation was 88. In 2019, the number climbed 42%, reaching 125. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the dynamics of the appearance of franchises slowed down. Under quarantine restrictions, hairdressers and beauty salons were forced to suspend activities. However, the industry showed positive dynamics at 16.8% with a final result of 146 franchises. In 2021, an increase of another 14.4% was noted - to 167.

The study says that in 2022, the franchise market faced certain difficulties due to the deteriorating geopolitical situation and sanctions. The business was busy finding new suppliers and changing logistics, which led to increased costs in almost all areas of activity. However, even in such conditions, the number of franchises of hairdressers and beauty salons grew under the influence of the enlargement trend.^[2]

2022: The number of barbershops in Russia increased by 54%

By September 2022, there were 3.5 thousand barbershops in Russia, which is 54% more than two years earlier. Such data in early October 2022 were provided by analysts of the 2GIS service.

As Kommersant writes with reference to these statistics, the leaders in terms of the increase in the number of barbershops over the two-year period were Novosibirsk (+ 87%), Ufa (+ 71%), Rostov-on-Don (+ 70%), St. Petersburg (+ 65%) and Kazan (+ 59%). During the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the dynamics was much more modest: from September 2019 to September 2020, there were 17% more barbershops in large cities.

The number of barbershops in Russia increased by 54%

To launch a barbershop, according to the estimates of expert Franshiza.ru Anna Rozhdestvenskaya, on average, it takes from 2 million rubles, the payback period is from 14 months. The owner of the FIDEL network Gevorg Vopyan speaks of 3.5-5 million rubles and a payback period of 24-36 months.

According to Rozhdestvenskaya, by October 2022, approximately 35% of the total number of barbershops operate under the federal franchise model. However, any hairdresser can hang a barbershop sign for himself, while not being one, warns the owner of the TopGun barbershop chain Alexei Lokontsev. In this segment, there is a large selection of franchises and it is possible to easily build a model for franchisees with good financial performance, notes DNA Realty CEO Anton Belykh.

The main audience of barbershops is young men, so this is one of the most vulnerable segments of franchising, Rozhdestvenskaya believes. According to her forecasts, soon the demand for the opening of new barbershops will fall until the geopolitical situation stabilizes.

Initially, the cost of a haircut was quite high, after the pandemic, the owners of many barbershops began to reduce prices. This led to the opening of salons of medium and economy segments, which influenced the total number of points, said Vasily Mikhailov, founder of the Superman barbershop network.^[3]

2021: The costs of Russians for the services of hairdressers and beauty salons soared by 47%

In 2021, the volume of the Russian market for hairdressers and beauty salons exceeded 150 billion rubles, an increase of 46.9% compared to the previous year. Thus, the market fully recovered from the crisis. The research company NeoAnalytics announced this in March 2022.

According to experts, the market in 2021 grew largely due to the demand postponed due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic in 2020 - then the costs of Russians for hairdressers and beauty salons decreased by 13.5% (to about 100 billion rubles) amid falling incomes of the population.

In 2021, the volume of the Russian market for hairdressers and beauty salons exceeded 150 billion rubles

• The main market trends in 2021 were:
• a surge in service sales;
• an increase in the volume of customer flow;
• a significant change in the market structure (an increase in the share of self-employed people working at home);
• reduction of the number of salons.

The self-isolation regime has exacerbated competition between salons. Specialist craftsmen moved to work at home, taking with them the client base. After the restrictions were lifted, some specialists did not go to work in salons and began to promote their services via the Internet, the study says.

According to experts, in 2021 the dynamics of closing beauty salons slowed down: if in 2020 the reduction in the number of points in Russia averaged 10%, then a year later - 5-6%.

In general, the Russian market of hairdressers and beauty salons is not sufficiently saturated, the market retains opportunities for development. Only 45% of the Russian population visit salons on a regular basis, analysts point out.^[4]

According to the SberServices service, by the end of 2021, a beauty salon cost Russians at least 5300 rubles, and in Moscow and St. Petersburg - 7050 and 6400 rubles, respectively. At the end of 2021, the demand for the services of hairdressers and nail service masters, as well as for the correction of eyebrows and eyelashes, significantly increased.

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