At the beginning of each year, the beauty industry looks back to answer the same practical questions: How did the market do? How did my salon do? And what should I change going forward? The challenge is that reliable benchmarks are hard to find, and broad industry estimates rarely help salons diagnose what is happening in their own chairs. 

For most salons, hair color serves as a critical business indicator. When color services are in demand, the salon generally thrives. However, a decline in color bookings is quickly reflected in appointment schedules, backbar consumption, and overall productivity. 

Thanks to the Key Industry Metrics Report, or KIM Report, salons can now intimately understand these shifts. KIM's monthly salon performance report is based on anonymized data collected from salon booking and payment platforms. The report tracks 13 core metrics and publishes national benchmarks across all salons and 5 provider-size cohorts, enabling operators to consistently compare performance month after month. 

The Challenge: Salon Color Performance in 2025 

An in-depth look at recent performance highlights challenges that salons cannot overlook. According to KIM, comparing last year’s performance with the prior year reveals that 2025 was pivotal for the color business in independent salons. Somewhat surprisingly, the narrative isn’t about booming client traffic, but the value and pricing power of the salons’ expertise. 

The Big Picture: Strong Value, Soft Volume 

In 2025, salon pricing strategies proved vital for overcoming the industry's challenges. Although there was a clear drop in the number of clients seeking color services, the way salons approached their pricing helped maintain their profits. The total number of color services fell by 2.16%, showing that clients are being more careful and taking longer between appointments. 

Despite this decrease, overall revenue from color services still increased by 0.94% in 2025. The increase is attributed to a 3.2% uptick in the average color service ticket. 

Salons were wise to raise prices in 2025 and upsell advanced techniques and add-on treatments. Their team's ability to effectively communicate value also contributed to this positive outcome. Ultimately, the work became more valuable, even with fewer clients in the chair for color services.

The Balancing Act: Non-Color Services Increased

Color services remain the core of the beauty business, but non-color services like treatments, blowouts, and haircuts proved to be a steady influence throughout 2025. 

This segment saw revenue growth of 2.0%, indicating that clients remained willing to invest in hair maintenance, wellness, and overall health, even as they became more selective about how often they booked color appointments. 

This trend reflects a shift in consumer behavior: clients are prioritizing their hair and salon services but are now making more thoughtful decisions about when and where to spend their money. 

2026 Color Action Plan: Focus on Frequency

With client volume slightly declining, especially in color services, the key growth opportunity for 2026 lies in increasing visit frequency and maximizing appointment value. The decrease in color visits indicates clients are waiting longer between appointments, highlighting the need to narrow this gap. To tackle this issue, we recommend implementing a rebooking and maintenance strategy. 

Developing maintenance programs is a strategic move; creating service bundles such as glossing or deep conditioning targeted for the 3–4-week mark can help keep color fresh and discourage clients from waiting too long between appointments. Additionally, it's important to train staff not only to rebook haircuts but also to specifically rebook the next color appointment, emphasizing optimal scheduling that supports each client's hair health and investment in color. 

I also encourage reinforcing the value throughout the year. While price increases were implemented in 2025, it’s necessary to continuously justify the value of services. A key aspect of this is focusing on the service mix rather than merely on pricing; a salon’s service menu should offer high-value, high-margin color options, like premium lighteners and bond-building treatments. 

With the decline in retail unit sales, it’s critical to use regimen language when discussing services, ensuring that each service is linked to a corresponding product recommendation. Converting color clients into dedicated users of at-home regimens can help protect their investments and contribute additional revenue to your business.

Salon professionals must stay attuned to trends and consumer behaviors to emphasize the value of service. This approach transforms challenges into growth opportunities, keeping hair color central to their business. The future of hair color is promising if salons navigate today's market with creativity and strategic foresight.

About the Author:Alain Audet is Vice President, Sales and Marketing at SalonInteractive, where he oversees growth and market development for The KIM Report and On Behalf Marketing. His diverse international career includes leadership roles across the beauty, technology, consulting, education, and association sectors with companies such as Phorest, L'Oréal PPD, Solnyx Consultants, and the Allied Beauty Association. His background also includes luxury fashion leadership in Singapore and Indonesia with Club 21, as well as serving as Education Director at LaSalle International Fashion School. Known for combining strategic vision with practical industry expertise, Alain helps beauty brands and partners turn insight into action and opportunity into growth. For more information, visit www.thekimreport or follow SalonInteractive on Instagram.