Lindenfield Business Funding helps hair salons, nail salons and barbershops in La Crosse, WI request equipment financing for chairs and stations, term loans for build-outs, and working capital. La Crosse County, WI had 35 beauty salon employers and 247 salons without payroll. Funding partners decide on any offer; you choose whether to accept.
| Beauty salon employers in La Crosse County, WI | 35, 60.0% under 5 employees (CBP 2023) |
|---|---|
| Beauty salons without payroll | 247 (NES 2024) |
| Nail salons, with / without payroll | 6 (CBP 2023) / 34 (NES 2024) |
| Barber shops, with / without payroll | 5 (CBP 2023) / 13 (NES 2024) |
Booth Rent, Commission and What They Mean for Funding
In a commission salon, the owner employs stylists, pays wages or commission, and keeps the service revenue. In a booth-rent salon, stylists are independent and pay the owner rent for a chair; the owner's income is the rent. The two models produce very different bank statements, and partners read them differently: commission salons show service revenue and payroll, booth-rent salons show steady rent deposits and lower costs.
A salon can mix the two. Be ready to explain your model in one sentence; it is the first thing a partner will want to understand.
Getting a Business Loan for a Salon: Where to Start
| The spending in question | Option to look at first | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Chairs, stations, shampoo bowls, dryers | Equipment financing | The equipment secures it |
| Build-out of a new or larger space | Term loan | A fixed schedule for the project |
| Payroll or product stock through a slow stretch | Working capital | Sized to the gap |
| Cash tied to card receipts | Card-receipt advance (not a loan) | Collected from receipts; compare the total |
Salon equipment financing companies and general equipment partners both handle salon furniture; compare total cost, not just the monthly payment. See equipment financing, working capital and the merchant cash advance explainer.
Census Counts for Salons and Barbershops in La Crosse County, WI
County Business Patterns counted 35 beauty salon employers (NAICS 812112) in La Crosse County, WI in 2023, with 214 employees and $6.3 million in annual payroll; 21 of them, 60.0%, had fewer than five employees, and 15 had a ZIP 54601 address. Nail salons with payroll numbered six, all under five employees, and barber shops five (CBP 2023).
Nonemployer Statistics is a separate program from the employer counts above. It found 247 beauty salons, 34 nail salons and 13 barber shops with no paid employees in 2024, with combined receipts of $9.9 million, $1.2 million and $440,000 respectively. These come from a separate program and year and are never added to the employer counts.
More figures for the county are on the La Crosse, WI data page.
Nail Salon Business Loans and Barbershops
Nail salons buy pedicure chairs with plumbing, ventilation and tables; barbershops buy chairs, clippers and a fit-out. Both can be financed as equipment. A business loan for a barber shop opening a second chair or moving to a bigger space may be a modest term loan.
What Partners Review for Small Business Loans for Salons
- Bank statements, with service income and rent income clearly visible
- Card processing statements
- The lease, especially for build-outs
- Quotes for equipment or contractor bids for a fit-out
- For booth-rent salons, the booth rental agreements
Owner-operators without payroll can request funding too; partners will read the bank account closely in place of payroll history.
An Illustrative Station Expansion
Hypothetical figures, for arithmetic only. A salon adds two stations at $4,500 each, financed over 24 months. If each new station is rented to a stylist at a weekly booth rent, divide the monthly payment by two and compare it with a month of rent per chair. When the rent comfortably covers the payment, the expansion carries itself; if the chairs might sit empty, line up the stylists first.
Questions Before Financing Stations or a Build-Out
- Will new chairs be rented to booth stylists or staffed on commission?
- Does the landlord allow plumbing changes for shampoo bowls?
- Is ventilation needed for nail services, and is it in the quote?
- Is the supplier's financing cheaper than a partner's once fees are counted?
On a modest request, small fees can be a large share of the cost. Compare in total dollars.
By Lindenfield Business Funding · Updated
