What financing do salons and spas use?

SBA 7(a) for acquisitions and franchise startups (the workhorse), equipment loans for chairs/dryers/lasers/massage tables, working capital lines for cash flow, and SBA 504 for owner-occupied buildings. Med spas (medical aesthetics) often need larger equipment financing for lasers, IPL, RF microneedling, body-contouring devices — specialty medical aesthetics lenders dominate this niche.

How do I finance buying a salon or spa?

SBA 7(a) is the standard tool: up to $5M, 10-year amort, 10% borrower equity, prime + 2.25-2.75%. Most acquisitions include 5-25% seller financing. The lender will require: stylist/aesthetician roster (license verification critical), client retention data, booth-rental vs commission model, recurring service-package revenue, and buyer industry experience documentation.

What franchises are common in salon/spa?

Major hair franchises: Sport Clips, Great Clips, Supercuts, Hair Cuttery, Cost Cutters. Boutique salon franchises: Drybar, Madison Reed Color Bar, Five Salon. Spa franchises: Massage Envy (the largest U.S. spa franchise), Hand & Stone, Elements Massage. Med spa franchises: SkinSpirit, LaserAway, Ideal Image. Specialty franchise SBA lenders (ApplePie Capital, Live Oak Bank) move faster on these brands.

Can a new spa or salon get SBA financing?

Yes — SBA 7(a) for salon and spa startups is common, especially for franchise concepts. Lenders typically want experienced operator (5+ years stylist or salon manager experience for hair; medical-licensed director for med spa), 25-30% borrower equity, signed lease/LOI, detailed financial projections, and franchise disclosure (if franchised). Med spa startups require licensed medical director and state-specific medical-aesthetics compliance documentation.

Salon & Spa Business Financing Guide | SBA, Equipment, Franchise

Q: How do I finance med spa equipment?

Lasers, IPL, RF microneedling, body contouring (CoolSculpting, Emsculpt, Morpheus8), HydraFacial, microneedling, and other aesthetics equipment finance through specialty medical aesthetics lenders — Mavin Capital, BMO Equipment Finance Aesthetics, Stearns Bank Aesthetics, plus OEM captives (Allergan/AbbVie aesthetics financing for CoolSculpting, Sciton for laser, BTL for body contouring). $50K-$300K typical per device.

Quick answer

SBA 7(a) is the workhorse for salon, spa, and barbershop acquisitions, buildouts, and equipment up to $5M. SBA 504 for owner-occupied real estate (90% LTV). Specialty medical aesthetics lenders (Mavin Capital, BMO Aesthetics, Stearns Bank Aesthetics) plus OEM captives (Allergan/AbbVie, Sciton, BTL, Lutronic) for med spa lasers and body-contouring devices. Equipment loans for chairs, dryers, color stations, massage tables, and pedicure equipment. Working capital lines for cash flow. Franchise concepts (Sport Clips, Massage Envy, Drybar, Hand & Stone, LaserAway) financed through specialty franchise SBA lenders (ApplePie Capital, Live Oak Bank). Stylist/aesthetician retention is the most critical asset in salon/spa acquisitions — lenders underwrite this carefully.

Get matched with a salon/spa lender →

Salons, day spas, med spas, and barbershops have one of the most segmented financing markets in U.S. SMB, with very different products for the four sub-verticals. Hair salons and barbershops typically use SBA 7(a) plus standard equipment loans. Day spas add larger working-capital needs. Med spas require specialty medical aesthetics financing for high-ticket equipment (lasers, body contouring). This guide covers the products, the lenders that fit, and the playbook for the most common transactions: acquisitions, franchise startups, equipment (especially med spa), and real estate. For broader context see SBA loans and buying a business financing guide.

Financing Products by Need

Need	Product	Range
Salon/spa acquisition	SBA 7(a)	$200K-$5M
New salon buildout	SBA 7(a) or term loan	$150K-$1M
Franchise startup	SBA 7(a) franchise lender	$200K-$1.5M
Salon equipment (chairs, dryers, color)	Equipment loan	$25K-$200K
Med spa lasers / body contouring	Specialty aesthetics loan	$50K-$300K per device
Owner-occupied building	SBA 504 or conventional CRE	$500K-$3M
Working capital	Line of credit	$25K-$300K

Salon/Spa Acquisition Playbook

Most acquisitions use SBA 7(a) plus seller financing. Representative $900K hair salon acquisition (8 stylist stations, 6-year history):

SBA 7(a): $720K (80% of purchase). 10-year amort, 10.75% APR. Monthly P&I ~$9,860.
Seller note: $135K (15% of purchase) on full standby for 24 months, then 5-year amort at 6%.
Buyer equity: $45K (5% cash) + standby seller note covers SBA equity requirement.

The lender will require: P&L (3 years), stylist roster with license verification (state cosmetology board), client retention data by stylist, booth-rental vs commission breakdown, recurring service-package revenue (color clients are the highest-margin retention asset), equipment list with values, and lease. Stylist retention through ownership transition is the most critical underwriting concern — structure incentives early.

Med Spa Equipment

Med spa (medical aesthetics) financing is its own specialty market because the equipment is medical-grade and high-ticket:

CoolSculpting (Allergan/AbbVie) — $130K-$200K per unit; cryolipolysis body contouring. Allergan offers OEM financing.
Emsculpt / Emsculpt Neo (BTL) — $150K-$200K; muscle-stimulation body contouring. BTL offers OEM financing.
Morpheus8 (InMode) — $80K-$120K; RF microneedling for skin tightening. InMode operates a captive financing arm.
Sciton lasers (BBL HERO, Halo) — $100K-$200K; multi-modality laser platform. Sciton OEM financing available.
HydraFacial — $20K-$30K; hydradermabrasion device. Vendor-direct financing common.
Lutronic, Cynosure, Solta laser platforms — $50K-$200K; specialty captive financing.

Specialty medical aesthetics lenders: Mavin Capital, BMO Equipment Finance Aesthetics, Stearns Bank Aesthetics, plus OEM captives (Allergan/AbbVie, BTL, InMode, Sciton, Lutronic, Cynosure). 5-7 year terms, 7-12% APR, 0-20% down. The medical aesthetics asset class is unusual: depreciates moderately, has a deep used market, and is consumable-driven (CoolSculpting applicators, Emsculpt energy modules) which lenders factor into underwriting.

Franchise Concepts

Major salon and spa franchises with established SBA lender relationships:

Hair: Sport Clips, Great Clips, Supercuts, Hair Cuttery, Cost Cutters — $200K-$500K typical buildout
Boutique hair: Drybar, Madison Reed Color Bar, Five Salon — $250K-$700K buildout
Massage/spa: Massage Envy (largest U.S. spa franchise), Hand & Stone, Elements Massage — $400K-$1M buildout
Med spa: SkinSpirit, LaserAway, Ideal Image — $500K-$2M buildout (driven by laser equipment)
Nails: ProNails, Pinky Nail Lounge, Frenchies — $150K-$400K buildout

Specialty franchise SBA lenders: ApplePie Capital, Live Oak Bank, Newtek.

Specialty Salon/Spa Lenders

SBA

Live Oak Bank — deep salon/spa SBA book including franchise and independent
ApplePie Capital — franchise-focused (Sport Clips, Massage Envy, etc.)
Newtek Small Business Finance — very active SBA 7(a)

Med spa equipment

Mavin Capital — specialty medical aesthetics
BMO Equipment Finance Aesthetics
Stearns Bank Aesthetics
OEM captives: Allergan/AbbVie (CoolSculpting), BTL (Emsculpt), InMode (Morpheus8), Sciton, Lutronic, Cynosure

General salon equipment

Stearns Bank, Crest Capital, Direct Capital, Ascentium Capital

Next Step

Whatever your salon/spa financing need — acquisition, franchise startup, med spa equipment, real estate — specialty lenders dramatically outperform general lenders. Get matched with a salon/spa lender.