Tangles Salon and Spa in Denver is a perfect example of the booth rental model gone right. With a team that has grown to 11 beauty and wellness specialists, this establishment offers everything from hairstyling and deluxe facials to advanced exfoliation, facial waxing, massage, and tanning services. As independent booth renters, each professional sets their own prices and hours, and sees their own clients. Working as independent contractors allows the estheticians at Tangles to keep all the profits they earn, and they are only obliged to pay their taxes and a monthly rental fee. Generally speaking, renting space in a salon or spa is the best way to maximize your profits short of opening your own successful salon or spa. However renting a space can also be more risky. The most common progression for estheticians is to start working as an employee, and then to build up enough clientele to start making the transition to greater independence by renting a booth in a salon or spa. While many take this route, it is by no means set in stone.
Plenty of estheticians are happy working as employees or on a commission basis for their entire career, while others start by renting a booth and never look back. The factor above all else that most determines your success as a booth renter is your own motivation and professional drive. When considering booth rental at least one thing is certain: this business model is for estheticians who are more inclined to be independent. *According to state law, Pennsylvania and New Jersey do not allow booth rentals. As a booth/room renter in a salon or spa, you are essentially an independent business owner who pays a weekly or monthly rental fee to the establishment owner. You keep all your profits, charge your own prices, buy your own supplies, see your own clients, and are responsible for business activities like advertising and taxes. When thinking about whether booth renting is right for you, consider these elements, which are essential for success: As obvious as it may seem, it’s important to mention that you need to have strong basic esthetician skills to be successful as a booth renter.
As great as your personality undoubtedly is, you must have experience performing all the essential services expected of estheticians – and be able to do them well. You are not going to develop a loyal base of clients if you can’t do your job, and conversely, demonstrating skills as an esthetician will earn you genuine respect in your trade among the clients you work with and your peers within the industry. Not only do you need mad skills as an esthetician; you need to be able to manage a business if you want to rent space in a salon or spa. Business skills are one of the main factors that separate a successful booth renter from a salaried employee. You must be adept in: If you lack the business prowess or simply want to focus more on your trade, you can always hire a business manager, but this will eat into your profits. Unless you have an absolutely awesome location that brings in more walk-in clients than you can handle, you will need to have a loyal base of clients to make booth rental feasible.
The most common way estheticians establish this list is through years of good work to develop regular clients who make appointments on a first-name basis. As a general rule, you can start thinking about a booth rental arrangement once you have a loyal client base that allows you to earn enough to pay your weekly rent in the first day or two. While the following model is by no means required, this is the path that most esthetician room renters take: You’ve earned your esthetician license after graduating from school or an apprenticeship. Your first step will be to find a job – most likely as an hourly or commissioned employee. After a few years you learn the business end of being an esthetician and also hone your skills working with a wide range of clients. In fact, you’ve got such a loyal base of clients that you’ve done the calculations and determined you’ll make a profit if you move to the space rental model. The nice thing about following this progression towards booth rental is that you can calculate exactly how much you will need to make in order for booth renting to be worthwhile.
Just consider your costs – how much you must earn each week/month – versus how much profit you want to make. Take the following example: A Model for Performing a Booth Rental Cost-Benefit Analysis According to this example, you should have enough guaranteed clients to make at least $1,745 each month, and that is just to tread water. You’ll want to actually turn a profit and will therefore need to bring in more than just this minimum. If you want to net $30,000 in a year, that means you’ll need a profit of $2,500 per month, which translates into a monthly gross of $4,245. Divided into 20 working days per month, you’d need to make about $212 each workday. Being a responsible business owner, you will also want to aim higher than your minimum profit margin out of recognition that things may not go as you plan each month, and you will need a cushion to absorb unforeseen expenses such as a month where your clients happen to be on vacation. Another way of determining if it’s worth switching to booth rental is to weigh how much you are making as a wage/salary/commission employee versus how much you project you’d make as a booth renter.
If the margins are much higher as a renter then that’s another good indication it’s time to take a risk and make the transition. What these models don’t show is an initial investment you must make in purchasing your own esthetician supplies and products. This will probably cost upwards of a few thousand dollars. Luckily, you can research exactly how much supplies cost before you take the leap to becoming a renter. Each salon or spa owner is different. Some prefer if you rent space, some prefer to pay you a wage, and some have a combination of both renters and salaried employees. Chances are that even if you live in a small city there is a salon or spa where you can rent a space or operate as an independent business owner. A 2016 nationwide survey of rental opportunities for estheticians revealed the following offers, provided here for illustrative purposes only (not representing offers of employment):DC Board of Barber and Cosmetology Licensing information All links labeled require you to have Adobe Reader installed on your computer.
These links will open in a new browser window. The DC Board of Barber and Cosmetology (Board) regulates the practice of barbers, body artists, and cosmetologists, including specialty cosmetology practices such as braiding, electrolysis, esthetics, manicuring and others as the Mayor may from time to time establish by rule, instructors and managers of these practices, and owners of such facilities. The Board works diligently to raise the standards of practice, ensure quality service, establish accepted codes of ethical behavior, and protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens and visitors of the District of Columbia by upholding the city’s Barber and Cosmetology license law , which took effect on May 2001. The Board of Barber and Cosmetology consists of 14 members, appointed by the Mayor. Three (3) shall be barbers, three (3) shall be cosmetologists, three (3) shall be specialty cosmetologists, three (3) shall be body artists, and two (2) shall be consumer members.
Eight (8) members constitute a quorum. The Board meets on the first Monday of each month at 10:30 a.m. at the DCRA headquarters, located at 1100 4th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024. The Board can be reached by phone: (202) 442-4320 or fax: (202) 698-4329. Board Administrator: Andrew Jackson III, Andrew.jackson5@dc.gov Education Coordinator: Kevin Cyrus, Kevin.Cyrus@dc.gov Anwar S. Saleem, PhD – Chair, Cosmetologist Raymond L. Kibler – Barber Jared Scott – Barber Mark C. Wills – Barber Eric Doyle – Body Artist Norah S. Critzos – Cosmetologist Richard A. DeCarlo, PhD – Cosmetologist Vonetta Dumas – Cosmetologist Specialty, Braider Frances O. French – Cosmetologist Specialty, Esthetician and Electrologist Sharon A. Young – Cosmetologist Specialty, Manicurist 2 Body Artists – Vacant 2 Consumer Members – Vacant (Tuesday - 9:00 am) Board meeting minutes are available at www.open-dc.gov.
License Search / News / Publications and Forms Effective March 1, 2017 NIC Cosmetology Instructor Examination Effective May 1, 2016 NIC Cosmetology Theory Examination Please read the public notice regarding amended rules regulating practice requirements and license requirements. 2014 Practitioner Forum Pictures These links take you to resource information and forms that are required to obtain your license from the District of Columbia. Barber and Cosmetology Apprenticeship Program Sponsors Listing Barber and Cosmetology Examination Information Barber and Cosmetology Licensure Act Final Rulemaking: Continuing Education Regulatory Complaint Intake Form Shop Designated Manager Change Form Online licensing services are a quick, convenient, and environmentally responsible way to manage your licensing needs. The Online License Renewal period is currently closed. The Board is committed to professional development and consumer protection.