How Much Does It Cost to Open a Sola Salons Franchise?

Opening a Sola Salons franchise offers a promising opportunity to tap into the beauty and wellness industry by providing salon suites to independent beauty professionals. However, before you dive in, it's important to understand the initial investment required. 

According to the 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) for Sola, the total estimated investment necessary to open a Sola Salons franchise ranges from $924,021 to $1,957,824*, depending on various factors such as location, real estate and buildout costs. Expenses include without limitation:

• Initial Franchise Fee: $55,000
• Rent or Real Estate: $30,800 - $121,000
• Improvements/Conversions: $538,799 - $1,136,784
• Furniture & Fixtures: $216,336 - $339,627
• Architectural Fees: $10,000 - $45,000
• Design Services: $3,500 - $5,000
• Low Voltage Installation (Music, Wi-Fi, etc.): $6,535 - $63,749
• Signage: $10,000 - $20,000
• Rent Manager Property Management Software: $744 - $1,044
• Utilities (3 Months): $1,357 - $21,587
• Operating Supplies: $1,000 - $21,200
• Advertising/Marketing: $10,900 - $20,000
• Insurance (6 Months): $3,250 - $5,000
• Computer Equipment & Software: $1,300 - $2,300
• Repairs & Maintenance: $3,000 - $28,033
• Labor (for Hiring Manager): $9,000 - $15,000
• Additional Funds (3 Months): $20,000 - $50,000

For additional information and additional expense categories see the 2024 FDD. 

Sola Salons takes a proactive approach to helping franchisees manage their costs. According to Andy Tarbutton, director of construction at Sola Salons, one of the key strategies the brand uses is value engineering, which involves finding ways to achieve better design outcomes at lower costs.

“We significantly increased the expertise of the people involved from a site analysis perspective,” Tarbutton said. “By doing key strategic due diligence quickly and early during lease negotiations, we seek to either get better terms or more favorable deals from landlords. When you consider construction costs, it’s not just about finding something cheaper; we want our owners to have a strong foundation to start their franchise business. We look at the process holistically, using our experience from supporting the building of over 700 Solas over the years.”

Similarly, Tarbutton says the team has also worked hard to build a bid set that makes it easier to assess more complicated sites. 

“If you search for a recipe online, a poorly written recipe will make executing that dish more expensive and time-consuming,” said Tarbutton. “But a simple recipe with great directions is easier to follow and results in a much better final meal. Similarly, architects and engineers often create complicated blueprints which will drive your costs up significantly. We work with our architecture team to help our owners develop a bid set that makes it easier to understand what needs to be built. With the number of Solas we’ve built, we have a lot of information to share, making execution smoother and inevitably less expensive.”

The Sola team has also developed more regional general contractor (GC) solutions to ensure high-quality construction at competitive prices. 

“By building more projects within our network, we can identify and encourage GCs to take on multiple builds,” said Tarbutton. “This brings cost efficiencies because repeating the same project allows them to offer better pricing. We’re proactive in finding construction solutions for franchisees, especially in markets where we don’t yet have established GCs.”

For ongoing maintenance, Sola continuously looks at ways to help franchisees manage costs, whether it’s maintaining water heaters or addressing HVAC issues. “We provide guidance on how to care for stylists and tackle maintenance problems,” said Tarbutton. “It's unlikely a franchisee will face a problem that someone else hasn’t already encountered, so we can share best practices.”

Overall, the fight to reduce cost is important, Tarbutton says, but the overall outcome is just as important. Franchisees are looking for a team that helps them create a business that lasts.

“If a Sola opens, fills up quickly and becomes successful, that’s the best way to open another one. At the end of the day, we are deeply committed to our franchisees.”

To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/sola-salons.

This article is not a franchise offering. A franchise offering can be made by us only in a state if we are first registered, filed, excluded, exempted, or otherwise qualified to offer franchises in that state, and only if we provide you with an appropriate franchise disclosure document. Follow-up or individualized responses to you that involve either effecting or attempting to affect the sale of a franchise will be made only if we are first in compliance with state registration or notice filing requirements, or are covered by an applicable state exclusion or exemption. Such registration or filing does not constitute approval, recommendation, or endorsement by any state. Sola Franchise, LLC, 300 Union Blvd., Suite 600, Lakewood, CO 80228, MN Registration F-8475.

*See Item 7 of the Sola 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document for more information.