Why Salons Need to Stop Being Afraid of Their Labor Rate

I was driving past an autobody shop on my way to the gym the other day and noticed a sign advertising their labour rate at $140/hour.

It immediately made me think about salons and one of the hesitations we hear around Parts + Labor pricing.

A lot of salon owners love the idea of Parts + Labor, but there can be this fear around clients knowing what the product actually costs. If you used $20 worth of color and the appointment was $200, will the client wonder what they’re paying the other $180 for?

But other industries advertise their hourly labor rates all the time. That autobody shop wasn’t hiding theirs. It was a comparable rate for the industry, and they were being transparent about what customers were paying for.

We already accept this kind of pricing in so many other places.

Other Industries Already Charge for Parts + Labor

When you take your car to a mechanic, your bill accounts for the parts they used and the labor it took to do the work. When you hire a painter, you’re paying for the paint and materials, plus their time to actually paint the room.

You don’t expect to only pay for the paint, and you don’t question why the mechanic is charging an hourly rate to complete the service. You know you’re paying for their expertise and the products it takes to get the job done.

So why should salons be any different?

Your Clients Are Paying for Your Expertise

Your clients are coming to you for your expertise. They picked you for a reason.

They’re paying for your years of training, continued education and the specific skills you bring to their appointment. They’re paying for your ability to formulate their hair color, make adjustments when needed, protect the integrity of their hair and create a result they couldn’t create for themselves at home.

The color and products are the parts. Your time and expertise are the labor.

And they both need to be accounted for.

That’s the Point of Parts + Labor

Parts + Labor pricing isn’t about adding another fee to a client’s bill. It’s about making sure everything that goes into a service is actually accounted for.

If one client uses $20 worth of color and another uses $40, your salon shouldn’t have to absorb that difference just because they booked the same service.

And knowing you only used $20 worth of color shouldn’t make you feel like your $200 service is worth any less. The product is only one piece of what your client is paying for.

Other industries have been confidently charging for parts and labor forever. Salons can too.

SalonScale helps you track exactly what goes into every service so your product costs are covered and you can confidently charge for the time, skill and expertise that go into the rest.

Ready to see what Parts + Labor could look like in your salon?

Book a demo with SalonScale and talk to one of our salon sales experts about your current pricing, how you’re accounting for product costs, and how you could implement Parts + Labor in a way that works for your business.