How to start a barbershop: costs, checklist and mistakes to avoid

Opening a barbershop looks simple from the chair: a few stations, good clippers, a steady stream of clients. Running one involves rent, licences, staff, stock, marketing and a calendar that has to stay full. This guide walks through the decisions in the order you will face them, with a checklist at the end.

Rules and costs vary a lot between countries and even cities, so treat the numbers here as a framework. Your local business registry, an accountant and the barbers already working in your area are the best sources for exact figures.

1. Check the market before you sign anything

Spend a week on research before you look at a single property:

• Count the competition. Search "barber" on Google Maps around your target area. Note how many shops there are, their prices, their ratings and what clients complain about in reviews. Complaints are a list of opportunities.
• Watch the foot traffic. Visit your candidate streets at different times. A street that is busy at lunchtime and empty at 18:00 is a problem for a business whose peak is after work.
• Decide who you serve. Students, office workers, a premium clientele, families with children. Your answer drives your location, prices, interior and opening hours.

2. Write a one-page plan

You do not need a 40-page business plan unless a bank asks for one. You do need answers on one page:

• What services you offer and at what prices
• How many clients you need per day to cover costs (your break-even point)
• Where the first clients will come from
• How much money you need to open and to survive the first six months

The break-even calculation is the most important line. Add up your monthly fixed costs (rent, utilities, insurance, software, loan payments, your own minimum salary) and divide by the average profit per haircut after product costs. That is the number of cuts you need every month just to stay open.

3. Licences and paperwork

Requirements depend on where you are, but expect some of these:

• Business registration as a sole trader or company, and a tax number
• A professional qualification or licence for barbers, required in many countries and states
• Health and safety approval for the premises, covering hygiene, sterilisation and sometimes ventilation and water
• Insurance: public liability at a minimum
• Permits for signage in some cities

Start this early. Inspections and approvals often take longer than fitting out the shop.

4. Choose the location

The right location balances visibility, rent and the clients you want. Things to check before signing a lease:

• Is there water and drainage where your wash stations will go, or will plumbing work be needed?
• Is the electrical capacity enough for several clippers, dryers, a boiler and air conditioning?
• Can clients park nearby or reach you easily by public transport?
• How long is the lease, and can you leave early if the business does not work?

A slightly cheaper street with good reviews and an easy booking process often beats an expensive one with heavy walk-in traffic, especially once most clients book online.

5. Equipment and what it costs

Prices below are rough ranges for new professional equipment from common suppliers. They change with brands, country and whether you buy used.

The biggest costs usually are not on this list: the deposit and first months of rent, fitting out the space (plumbing, electrics, flooring, lighting) and enough cash to cover the slow first months while the client base grows. Many new owners underestimate this last part the most.

6. Set your prices

Price from your costs and your market, not from the cheapest shop on the street.

• Calculate your cost per haircut: rent and fixed costs per working hour, plus product, plus the barber's pay.
• Compare with three or four competitors who target the same clients you do.
• Keep the menu short. Five clear services are easier to choose from than twenty.
• Price longer services (skin fades, hot towel shaves, beard sculpting) by the time they take.

Raising prices later is harder than starting at the right level, so build in a margin from day one.

7. Decide how you will pay barbers

The three common models:

• Employees on salary or hourly pay. You control the schedule, the service standard and the client list. You carry all the cost when the shop is quiet.
• Commission. Barbers keep a percentage of what they bring in, often between 40% and 60% in many markets. Costs scale with revenue, which is easier in the early months.
• Booth or chair rental. Barbers pay you a fixed weekly or monthly rent and run their own clients. Steady income for you, but much less control over prices, hours and quality.

Many shops start with commission and introduce chair rental for experienced barbers once the shop has a reputation.

8. Set up booking from the start

How clients book shapes your whole day. Phone-only booking means interrupting cuts to answer calls and losing clients who call when you are busy. Online booking lets clients book at midnight, picks only free slots and sends reminders that cut no-shows.

Options range from marketplace apps that list many shops together to your own branded booking app. Our guide on choosing a booking app explains the trade-offs. For an example of a shop's own app in practice, see BarberSamir, which we built for a barbershop in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

9. Get your first clients

• Google Business Profile: create and verify it before opening day, with photos, prices and opening hours. Ask early clients for reviews (here is how to do it within Google's rules).
• Instagram: before-and-after photos and short videos of cuts are the most effective content in this industry. Post consistently from the first week.
• An opening offer for the first month, with a clear end date.
• Referrals: give regular clients a reason to bring a friend.
• Local partnerships: gyms, offices and student organisations nearby.

10. Mistakes new owners make

• Spending everything on the interior and keeping too little cash for the first quiet months.
• No break-even number, so there is no way to know whether a slow month is normal or a warning.
• Taking bookings by phone during cuts, which hurts both the client in the chair and the one on the phone.
• Ignoring no-shows until they are a habit. Reminders and a clear cancellation policy from day one prevent this. See 11 ways to reduce no-shows.
• Hiring friends without clear terms on pay, schedule and who owns the client list.

Opening checklist

• Market research and target client decided
• One-page plan with break-even calculation
• Business registered, tax number, bank account
• Licences, health approval and insurance
• Lease signed after checking water, electrics and access
• Equipment ordered, with delivery before fit-out ends
• Prices and service menu finalised
• Pay model and contracts for barbers
• Online booking set up and tested
• Google Business Profile verified with photos and prices
• Instagram account active with first posts
• Opening offer and launch date announced