Triumph & Disaster Ponsonby Pomade Login to see prices Triumph & Disaster Shave Cream Jar Triumph & Disaster YLF Wash 500ml Triumph & Disaster Gameface Moisturiser 90m Essential Collection Tarifa Barbers Chair Essential Collection Beta Styling Unit Edison Styling Chair Brown Pahi Divine Reception Desk Any FinishRenting a chair in a salon, or even renting a room, is commonplace within the hair industry. A survey in 2004 suggested there were more than 100,000 self-employed hairdressers in the UK. Some hair salons rent a single chair, often to extend the range of services they are able to provide, whereas some salons have 100% of the premises occupied on a self-employed basis. Like all forms of employment there are positives and negatives to renting a chair; David Wright, who advises Habia and a range of salons on their legal business, answers some of the key questions. I employ three hairdressers, but have space for a fourth. I am considering renting the fourth chair – what sort of financial arrangements can I have?
There are basically three types of arrangement: Of course, the hairdresser will also do his/her calculations and the arrangement needs to be mutually beneficial. If I rent a chair do I need any sort of contract?The hairdresser is not an employee so they do not get a contract of employment. They are providing a service for you and receive a contract of service. This is normally for a fixed period of time, for example one to three years, although they normally also include a notice clause. The contract is vital as it will cover the nature of the service provided. In addition, you need to cover every area which might be the cause of future confusion. For example who provides the products? Who pays for salon promotional materials? Are there any additional costs? Who pays for energy costs and maintenance? Renting a chair seems a safe option for my salon, but are there potential pitfalls? You are right, renting is attractive in that you have none of the potential problems with staff, like recruitment, discipline and covering maternity.
In addition, you do not have the costs of income tax and National Insurance. There is insufficient space for me to highlight all the potential pitfalls but, for example, the person is not your employee, but your salon’s reputation can be affected if they provide a poor service. On the other hand, if they are very successful then their earnings can be substantial and this sum could have been your profit if you employed them. Finally, it is far more difficult to limit their activities if they choose to leave. It is frequently argued that the clients are their clients. In simple terms, they can be seen as actually being in competition with your business. I have read that the Inland Revenue sometimes frowns at the idea of someone being self employed in a salon. You are right, the Inland Revenue is sometimes sceptical, but many thousands successfully do this without a problem. Sometimes there are issues when a salon closes or there is a major disagreement and the person argues they are really an employee.
There have been many tribunal cases on these issues and there is a range of features that tribunals consider determining if the person is an employee or not. Clearly, the individual will pay their own tax and National Insurance. As they are self-employed they are free to trade elsewhere. In theory you have contracted for their services so the individual may be free to let someone else (subject to specified qualifications) deliver the service on their behalf. The person is more likely to be viewed as an employee if they have to wear your uniform and have fixed hours in your salon. I want to extend the range of services in my salon but don’t want the risk of employing someone. Is renting the space the route for me? It might well be, just consider the issues in question one. If you have done your research and you believe there is a market/demand you could easily employ someone and seek to minimise any risks. For example, you could recruit someone on a temporary basis and possibly initially on part-time hours.
I accept you do have the salary costs, but if it doesn’t work out, then there is the probationary period and there are no redundancy costs to the employer until the employee has attained two years’ service. More of David Wright’s Legal Advice For Salon Owners Keith Rosenberg is what is known as Hairdressing Royalty, and it’s not just from his vast experience and the impressive client list that he has had the privilege to work with in the past; there’s no doubt that he came from ‘good stock’. His mother, who sadly passed away when Keith was just three years old, was at Adolph Cohen in Whitechapel with Vidal Sassoon. Keith’s partnership with David McCann goes back a long way, to when Keith was just 17, working together first at Sassoon’s and then at Crimpers, one of the first unisex salons to rival Vidal Sassoon. Despite being held in high esteem Keith soon got itchy feet and decided to leave David at Sassoon’s in South Molton Street while he pursued a career further afield.
It has taken almost 30 years for the pair to finally reunite. It is the McCann chair which Keith drives his energy in to these days. Having known it was always something he wanted to do, Keith reached out to his oldest friend and colleague David McCann and the pair joined forces to put dreams to reality and produce the revolutionary McCann chair, as Keith explains: “It’s not just the way the styling chair is, it’s about the way the hair is produced. Usually a hairdresser’s chair is all about the aesthetics and can just go up and down, but this is a hairdresser’s styling chair that has been created by the top hairdressers in the world, FOR hairdressers”. I first started hairdressing as an apprentice in a local salon on the High Street in my local town of Berkhamsted, and ended up as the general manager and Vice President of Vidal Sassoon on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. During these years I had the pleasure of working with some of the most talented individuals in a salon environment, many of whom are recognized as some of the top people in our craft today.
From all of these individuals, I gained the skills and knowledge that led me to design the McCann styling chair, and it’s these people who get my thanks for getting me to this point today. It's hard to believe that next year will be my first fifty years in the hairdressing industry. I started in the mid-sixties, which was when the revolution started by Vidal Sassoon swept the world. Traditional shampoo and set salons were left behind as everything moved to wash and wear hair and a new era of styling began. But one thing has never changed in our industry since hairstyling began and that is the salon styling chair, Up until now. “The difference between my Styling chair and a normal salon chair, is that it allows for the natural fall of the hair, as if the client were standing up. It’s virtually impossible to sit up straight in a normal salon chair that is not designed to do that. My styling chair, while not only being comfortable, places your client in an erect position, which is the perfect position you want them in whilst cutting their hair.”