It’s a service provider’s job to take care of clients, but it’s an owner’s job to take care of the team. Salons and spas that offer rewarding compensation and benefits packages and design transparent career paths retain talent longer, which helps them grow faster.

5TH AVENUE SALON
Hendersonville, NC
5thavenuesalonhvl.com
Debbie Berry
SQUARE FEET: 2255     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 15
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $55
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Davines, Aluram, DevaCurl
COLOR: DevaCurl, Matrix, Danger Jones
SKINCARE: Aluram 
NAIL CARE: The Gel Bottle, OPI. Orly
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Vish, Squarespace
“We offer several incentives designed to reward and encourage longevity. For example, we provide a Christmas bonus that ranges from $50 for those with us less than a year to $200 for everyone longer than 5+ years. Additionally, team members receive a percentage of their service revenue once it exceeds $50,000.”

BE INSPIRED SALON, INC.
Madison, WI
BeInspiredSalon.com
Kati Whitledge
SQUARE FEET: 2500     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 20
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $72
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Innersense, Amika, R+Co Bleu
COLOR: Goldwell, Pulp Riot 
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Mya  
ASSOCIATIONS: ICA, PBA    
“Every payroll period, our stylists have the chance to increase their service commission by 2% if they hit their retail commission benchmark. For example, for a Level Two Associate Stylist, this means if during the current payroll period, they hit 17% of their total sales in retail, they’d get bumped up to 42% service commission for that payroll period instead of 40%.”

BLISS HAIR STUDIO
Shorewood and Plainfield, IL
blisshairstudio.com
Mary Smith & Stefanie Gruber
SQUARE FEET: 2270, 4000    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 54
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $58
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Kerastase, Redken, Pureology
COLOR: Redken, Pulp Riot 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Vish, Emma 
“We track several KPIs for each service provider. Aside from the typical ones such as service dollars and retail dollars, we also focus on New Requests vs. Repeat Requests, Guest Retention over time, Rebooking and Categories Sold. These KPIs make it easy to identify any areas that need to be retrained on and helps us celebrate wins when a service provider has a best-ever KPI. This all leads to long-term career growth and happiness behind the chair.

GINGER BAY SALON & SPA
St. Louis, MO
gingerbay.com
Laura Ortmann
SQUARE FEET: 10000, 3000    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 86
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $56
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda, L'Anza, L'Oreal Professional
COLOR: Aveda, L'Anza, L'Oreal
SKINCARE: Aveda, Cosmedix. Murad
NAIL CARE: CND, OPI
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Reach.AI, Vish, Emma  
ASSOCIATIONS: ICA PBA    
“In 2023 and 2024, we had 11 stylists earn money towards their Bellami Hair Extension Certification. By staying consistent with Level KPIs, maintaining attendance and dress code requirements, meeting new social media requirements and timely completing modelists, our stylist earned $600 toward their certification and they were permitted to pay the remaining $600 toward their certification through payroll deductions over 4 months. This was a win-win!”

J.CON SALON AND SPA
St. Petersburg, FL
jconsalon.com
Joseph Connell
SQUARE FEET: 9000     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 74
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $62
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda 
COLOR: Aveda  
SKINCARE: Aveda  
NAIL CARE: OPI, Essie, CND
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Mya, Salonclouds+
ASSOCIATIONS: 2 to 10 Network   
“We believe that it is our responsibility to provide the best place for our team members to grow their income, and we have structured our compensation system to reward driven, high-achieving individuals. It’s essential for us to present stylists with a clear growth path, and we achieve that with level-up benchmarks. In the past two years, we have seen many stylists reach new heights, with haircut prices exceeding $100, and annual incomes exceeding $100K.

MAGGIE THE SALON
Pembroke Pines, Florida, FL
maggiesalon.com
Maggie DiFalco
SQUARE FEET: 2300     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 22
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $95
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Kerastase, Eufora 
COLOR: Goldwell  
NAIL CARE: CND  
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Vish  
ASSOCIATIONS:  ICA, PBA, Eufora Salon Owners Network
“We have a 401K available, and the salon matches 3% of the staff member’s contributions. We also bonus every stylist that grosses $100,000 in one calendar year with $1000 gift card. Everyone can purchase any of our retail products 40 percent off and enjoy all of our hair services free of charge.”

OHANA SALON
Scottsdale, AZ
ohanasalonaz.com
Chandra Chriswisser
SQUARE FEET: 2400     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 17
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $110
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Keune, Aveda, Rossano Ferretti
COLOR: Keune, Aveda 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo    
ASSOCIATIONS: ICA, PBA, Green Circle 
“We regularly ask our team members what their future goals are beyond the chair. Many are interested in becoming in-salon educators, managers, or industry manufacture educators or platform artists. We provide a path for them to move into these roles, if that is part of their own goals. We have found that offering further opportunities for our team beyond the chair has been key in maintaining our employee retention, and keeping amazing people on our team which in turn has helped us grow as a company.

PAUL KENNETH SALON & SPA
Woburn, MA
pksalon.com
Paul Kenneth Costa
SQUARE FEET: 5256     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 11
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $58
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: PK private PKEco Chic, Nutrafol
COLOR: Matrix  
SKINCARE: Zo Skin  
TECH SUPPORT: Milano, Demandforce  
ASSOCIATIONS: ICA  
“Our latest compensation benefit is a stock option purchase for key employees who are high-level producers that represent the PK brand.     We knew we had to make bold changes that would secure our future growth, so we offered a 5% shareholder option, and the idea was well received. It requires their investment of hard dollars into the company, and in return, they are an intricate part of policy making, giving them more control of their future. It’s been a real eye-opener as they learn about the tough decisions that need to be made on a daily basis in the running of a high-end salon.”

PROGRESSIONS SALON SPA STORE
North Bethesda, MD
progressions.com
Cynthia Feldman
SQUARE FEET: 9000     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 43
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $122
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Oribe, Kerastase Bumbleandbumble
COLOR: Goldwell, Redken, Pulp Riot
SKINCARE: Eminence. Dr. Gross, Alchimie
NAIL CARE: OPI, Dazzle Dry 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Tippy, Vish. Emma
ASSOCIATIONS: ISPA. PBA    
“Flexibility in scheduling was a huge factor coming back from Covid. We have created a new structure with the idea of work/life balance, while still making the most of the hours and chairs within the salon in order to grow. Many of our senior service providers are working less hours and are just as or more productive than before. We encourage our newer team members to work later nights and weekends in order to grow their business and be available during high demand times. We allow service providers to come in late and or leave early if approved by management.

RAIN SALON & SPA
Meridian, ID
rainsalonandspa.org
Mechele H Duke
SQUARE FEET: 3100 2300    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 37
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $70
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda 
COLOR: Aveda 
SKINCARE: Glymed, Aveda, Alastin
NAIL CARE: Luminary, Madam. Glam, OPI
TECH SUPPORT: Aura, Mya  
“We have our team track their numbers monthly and fill out a sheet of paper that they send me monthly. Their numbers are on their phone with our software so they can see them anytime, but writing it down gives them a clear view and they see how they compare to last year.”

REDBLOOM SALONS
Calgary, AB
redbloom.ca
Troy Winget
SQUARE FEET: 2400 1500 1800   
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 45
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $87
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda, Kevin.Murph,y Evo
COLOR: Aveda, Redken, Staino
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Vish  
ASSOCIATIONS: 2 to 10 Network   
“When stylists have met or exceeded their benchmarks for the three-month period, they are provided a promotion. If a stylist is promoted twice in a six-month period, they are granted the status of ‘High Performer.’ High Performers enjoy scheduling flexibility and a degree of autonomy within the space, like being issued a key to the salon so they can serve clients outside of our regular hours of operation. Public announcements to our clients and staff are made to celebrate these promotions through our website, social media and in-salon displays.”

SHEAR ART SALONS
Tampa, FL
shearart.com
Heather Bagby
SQUARE FEET: 3000, 1650, 400   
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 72
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $66
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: L’Oreal, Redken. Kerastase
COLOR: Redken, L’Oreal Professionnel 
SKINCARE: Dermalogica  
NAIL CARE: OPI  
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Vish 
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA, SSBC
“Shear Art Salons offers a career path that encourages work-life harmony by offering two-three shift options daily, Monday through Sunday. Our service providers’ earning potential ranges from $40,000 to $180,000 annually based on earned customer demand. All front desk professionals start at $15-$18 per hour, and they may earn monthly bonuses in the form of paid time off, and can increase their base earnings by up to $2,000 per year. Managers earn an annual salary and have established quarterly bonuses based on company sales goals.”

THE PARLOR AVEDA
Las Vegas, NV
theparlorlv.com
Matthew Martin
SQUARE FEET: 1600, 900    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 26
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $69
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Aveda 
COLOR: Aveda 
SKINCARE: Aveda 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Demandforce, Tippy, Beefree, Green Circle
“Our team members enjoy a structured compensation model that includes performance-based incentives, allowing them to earn more as they build their skills and clientele. Beyond base compensation, we offer comprehensive health benefits, 401K opportunities, and paid time off, supporting a balanced lifestyle that fosters mental and physical well-being. Recognizing that the beauty industry is constantly evolving, we also invest in professional development opportunities that keep our team inspired and at the forefront of industry trends.”

URBAN BETTY
Austin, TX
urbanbetty.com
Chelle Neff
SQUARE FEET: 4000, 2800, 1500   
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 90
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $78
BEST-SELLING RETAIL: Kerastase, Pureology, Redken
COLOR: Redken, Wella 
SKINCARE: Sorella 
TECH SUPPORT: Envision, Mya, Trello, Green Circle
“When a stylist at Urban Betty is promoted, we ensure it’s a celebration for the team and our guests. We highlight the promotion on Instagram by tagging the stylist and featuring their level number in a fun, big balloon display. We also do a full write-up that shares who they are, showcasing their achievements and their journey to reach this milestone. In addition to the social media shout-out, stylists personally inform their guests about any price increases at their next appointment. This personal approach is more effective and well-received than sending a mass email.”

COME CELEBRATE the 2025 SALON TODAY 200 at our annual Award Dinner, which is part of Data-Driven Salon Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona, Sunday, April 27th. For more information and tickets, visit https://www.datadrivensalon.com/st200.