Crownwick Advances, a small-business funding service in Lancaster, PA, arranges funding for hair salons, nail studios and barbershops: equipment financing for chairs, stations and ventilation, working capital for openings and slow stretches, and merchant cash advances where daily card sales suit them. Lancaster County, PA had 174 beauty salons with employees in 2023.
| Beauty salons, county | 174 employers (CBP 2023) |
|---|---|
| Nail salons, county | 72 employers |
| Barbershops, county | 13 employers |
| Beauty salons without payroll | 611 (NES 2024) |
| Barbershops without payroll | 191 (NES 2024) |
| Beauty salons in ZIP 17602 | 16 (ZBP 2023) |
How money moves in a salon
Salons are paid at the chair, mostly by card, so receivables are minimal. The larger costs are the space and equipment: styling chairs and stations, shampoo units, dryers, pedicure chairs with plumbing, ventilation for nail work, lighting and a reception area. Business models vary: some salons employ stylists on commission, others rent booths or suites to independent operators, and some mix both. Booth rent gives steadier income to the owner; commission gives more revenue but more payroll.
Lancaster County, PA salons and barbershops in the Census counts
Census counts for 2023 show 174 Lancaster County beauty salons with payroll and 955 people working in them, plus 72 nail salons employing 303 and 13 barbershops employing 26 (County Business Patterns 2023). More than half the beauty salons, 55.7%, had fewer than five employees. ZIP 17602 had 16 beauty salons, 7 nail salons and 3 barbershops (ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023).
The owner-operator side is much larger. In 2024, 611 beauty salons, 128 nail salons and 191 barbershops in the county operated without payroll (Nonemployer Statistics 2024). That is a different program and year from the employer counts, so the two are not added or compared here.
Salon equipment financing
Salon equipment financing covers chairs, stations, shampoo bowls and backbars, dryers and processors, pedicure spas, ventilation systems and point-of-sale. Barbershops finance chairs, clippers and sterilization equipment on a smaller scale. A salon equipment loan uses the equipment as collateral; partners want the quote and, for used furniture, its condition. See equipment financing.
Our post on funding a hair salon or barbershop in Lancaster, PA covers salon furniture financing, build-out costs and how booth-rent income looks to a partner.
Small business loans for salons: build-outs and working capital
Opening or relocating a salon means plumbing for shampoo and pedicure stations, electrical for dryers, and finishes that must look right on day one. That one-time cost suits a term loan. Working capital covers the first months of rent and payroll while the book of clients builds, or a slow stretch after a stylist leaves and takes clients along.
Merchant cash advances for salons
Because salons take daily card sales, a merchant cash advance is one option that may come up. An advance is not a loan: it is a purchase of future receipts, collected from daily sales. Add up the full amount to be remitted before you agree, and compare it in dollars.
Salon needs and the funding usually discussed
| Need | Usually discussed |
|---|---|
| Chairs, stations, pedicure spas, dryers | Equipment financing |
| Build-out or relocation | Term loan |
| Rent and payroll while the book builds | Working capital |
| Short gap with strong card sales | Merchant cash advance (a sale of receipts, not a loan) |
How to get a business loan for a salon
- Bank statements plus merchant processing reports
- The equipment quote or the contractor's estimate
- The lease, and booth-rent agreements if you have them
- Existing loans or advances still being remitted
- Time in business and personal credit
Hypothetical example, for illustration only: a six-chair salon refits with new stations and two shampoo units quoted at $23,600. Financing that over the furniture's working life keeps the cost to a monthly payment the salon can test against its card deposits. County data is on the Lancaster, PA data page.
By Crownwick Advances · Updated
