Tier 4 hair and beauty businesses to lose £51m a week

The hair and beauty industry in London and across much of the South East will haemorrhage more than £51m a week in lost income, following the shock Tier 4 restrictions imposed on 20 December; “killing off” many previously profitable businesses, the National Hair and Beauty Federation (NHBF) has warned.

At the start of the year, barbershops, beauty salons and nail salons were the top three retail categories experiencing the highest growth in the UK - above supermarkets, coffee shops, takeaways and pizza shops.

However, in November 2020, 62% of salon owners already said they could not be sure their business would survive until the end of the financial year and 18% said they were explicitly sure they would have to close, Local Data Company figures compiled for the NHBF shows.

NHBF chief executive Richard Lambert said, “The Key Industry Statistics report paints a picture of a strong and growing industry with business survival rates bucking the decline of the high street.

“However, this was before the coronavirus pandemic and we know from our recent targeted surveys that the majority of hair and beauty professionals are struggling to recoup their losses from lockdowns, implementing social distancing measures and the costs of increased PPE.

“Whilst we appreciate these are all necessary, the sector has not received any additional financial support such as those gifted to the arts, the sports sector, leisure or hospitality.

“Businesses simply cannot continue on this basis and we are continuing our pressure on the government to recognise this.

“Financial help to salons and professionals during this difficult time will be the only way to ensure the hair and beauty sector can return to where it was at the beginning of 2020.”