Rich REWARDS

Discover smarter ways to run a beauty business with RICHARD MCCABE, lifestyle salon coach

RECRUITMENT IN 2026: HOW TO FIND THE PERFECT EMPLOYEE

one of the biggest challenges salon owners face isn’t finding staff: it’s finding the right staff. The key to this is understanding what your business needs.

A changing industry

Years ago, posting a job advert was enough. Today, recruitment is completely different. The best beauty professionals are not just looking through job sites; they are researching salons’ workplace cultures, leadership, education opportunities, flexibility and growth.

The businesses building great teams focus on three areas:

• Attract: Why would someone want to work for you?

• Develop: How will you train and grow them?

• Retain: Why would they stay long-term?

Hiring straight from college

There’s often frustration around hiring newly qualified staff. Salon owners may say: ‘they’re too slow’, ‘they lack confidence’ or ‘they’re not trained properly’, and sometimes that’s true. However, college leavers offer something incredibly valuable: they are mouldable. They haven’t spent years building habits that are difficult to change.

If your salon has strong systems, onboarding, education, leadership and patience, a junior can become one of your strongest team members. The mistake many business owners make is expecting confidence and speed early, without providing enough structure.

Hiring experienced staff

On paper, experienced staff feel safer. They usually perform treatments confidently, manage clients well and generate income fast. But sometimes, they are set in their ways and less keen to adapt.

One of the biggest issues in the beauty industry is timing. This affects your pricing, profitability, column size, team productivity and client satisfaction. An experienced therapist who takes too long to complete services can create financial problems.

This is why onboarding matters at every level. Even experienced hires need clear standards, expectations, timing targets, consultation systems and culture integration.

Who should I hire?

The better question is: ‘What is my salon built to support?’. Problems happen when salon owners hire emotionally and desperately, instead of strategically.

When is the right time to hire?

One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is hiring too late. Usually, recruitment happens when a salon owner is stressed, a team is exhausted, clients are waiting too long for appointments and standards are slipping.

Rather than asking, ‘Do I need another member of staff?’, ask: ‘Can the business properly support someone else?’. I recommend a simple exercise. Firstly, calculate the monthly cost of employing a new team member, including:

• Wage.

• Pension.

• Holiday pay.

• Employer contributions.

• Training.

• Products.

• Software.

• Uniform.

Over the next two months, move that money into a savings account. If the salon can comfortably operate without needing to dip into those savings, there’s a strong chance you can afford to recruit. Across those weeks, you’ve also created a buffer for a new hire.

Recruitment is marketing

Modern recruitment works exactly like attracting premium clients. If your salon culture appears exciting and positive, your team looks supported and your education is strong, people want to be part of it. Some salons offer team experiences, education trips, incentives, flexible working and progression plans.

Recruitment is no longer about filling a gap; it’s about building a business people are proud to belong to.

ABOUT RICHARD MCCABE

Richard is a salon owner turned coach, dedicated to transforming time-poor business owners into confident, profitable leaders. After building successful salons in the UK and Australia, he began sharing the systems that supported this growth. This evolved into the launch of his brand, Lifestyle Salon Coach. More recently,

Richard created SAAMM (Salon AI Automated

Management Machine), ‘a digital manager for salons’.

Scratch readers can benefit from an AI chatbot for just £10 per week. Visit lifestylesaloncoach.org/scratch for more information.

lifestylesaloncoach.org/homepage /LifestyleSalonCoach @lifestyle_salon_coach