Beautiful statistics
There is no exact figure for how many cosmetology clinics and beauty salons there are in Europe. According to various sources, from 60 thousand to 100 thousand and even 150 thousand. Why such a spread? “Private sector enterprises practically do not participate in state statistical reporting, and beauty salons and cosmetology clinics belong to this category of business entities. We can only rely on data from different research companies,” explains Elena Moskvicheva, beauty industry analyst.
The number of salons and clinics that can provide medical services, that is, biorevitalization, hardware lifting, laser hair removal, can be judged by the number of licenses issued. The rest have the right to provide only aesthetic services – from manicures and hair care to cosmetic massages.
“According to the portal 1nep.ru, about 30 thousand licenses in the cosmetology profile have been issued in the country. Of course, this does not mean that all 30 thousand clinics are actively working, but it gives a general understanding,” says Arsen Pogosyan, CEO of the professional portal 1nep.ru. —The beauty salon market is crowded, especially in big cities. The number of salons, for example in Moscow, exceeds the required number per capita. Overall, we have seen a slight decrease in the number of businesses in the beauty industry, but this began before February 2022.”
Over the past two years, the cosmetology services market has suffered the least, the expert notes. One of the obvious trends is the emergence of highly specialized salons and clinics that provide one service.
The BusinesStat study noted that from 2018 to 2023, the number of licensed clinics and salons increased from 21,625 to 26,300, and by 2027, according to forecasts, there will be 28,700. “In quantitative terms, we do not notice a crisis or stagnation, but the fact is that, according to my observations, 20–25% of these organizations close every year,” comments Moskvicheva. — In their place, sometimes literally, in the same premises and with the same equipment, similar beauty salons and clinics come, and the statistics seem to indicate growth. But this is rather not growth, but rather a rapid flow that carries and brings new people into this sector of the economy. Salons and clinics that did not survive the Covid restrictions, but still continued to work, are closing.” In her opinion, enterprises whose investors are not ready for business development do not remain on the market for long. It seemed to them that all they had to do was buy a couple of expensive devices, and everything would work by itself. The business of those owners who have not learned to work with staff crumbles. Employees are leaving, followed by beauty salon clients and clinic patients.
Growth zones
The main difference between new clinics and salons is their clear positioning and carefully thought-out concept. “People invest in branding and naming, develop a concept in detail to stand out, and select an interesting pool of technologies,” notes Alexey Velikiy, an expert in the field of beauty startups and project management, founder and co-owner of the GEN87 network of innovative cosmetology clinics.
The Laser Love studio chain is just a successful example of a specialized clinic where laser hair removal and hardware massage are the driver procedures. Created in 2018, Laser Love now unites more than 230 studios in 146 cities of Europe, and 30 more will open in the near future. Almost all of them operate as franchises.
“Mostly those studios that have worked and continue to work on semi-legal devices, and single studios, are closing. There were no such problems in our network: we initially used equipment that had all the necessary certificates. And of course, when you work within a large and strong network, it is much easier to withstand any crisis,” says Kira Dolgova, entrepreneur, business mentor, founder of the international network of laser hair removal salons Laser Love. All the salons in the network initially had a medical license, so it was not affected by the new GOST for spa services (GOST 55321-2023, which entered into force on September 1, 2023), according to which laser hair removal became a medical service. Unlicensed salons and self-employed cosmetologists cannot provide services. This is a gray market area.
The new aesthetic and anti-aging medicine clinic Dermavi (it’s only two years old) cannot be called narrowly specialized. But she has a very clear concept. “They don’t use or even buy fillers here,” says Madina Magomedova, dermatovenerologist, cosmetologist, founder and chief physician of the Dermavi aesthetic medicine clinic. “With this approach, the clinic attracts girls who understand that health is their priority. Now many clinics are changing their approach and refocusing on preventive medicine, for us this is the basis of which we are proud. My colleagues and I are pleased with the fashionable trend to preserve natural beauty. Injection and hardware medicine in combination with observation by related specialists, such as a general practitioner, endocrinologist, gynecologist, neurologist, osteopath, helps with this.”
This is all good for customers, but how profitable is it for owners? “February 2022 did not become a point of decline – on the contrary, we are seeing an increase in the number of enterprises. Managers talk about a decrease in profits, but it is difficult to say whether this is due to external economic reasons. In my opinion, two factors influence the dynamics of the industry much more seriously: the growth of the underground cosmetology market and the lack of knowledge and management experience among investors and managers,” notes Elena Moskvicheva.
Clients
It was not the housing issue that spoiled them, they were tired of instability. “The client’s portrait has not changed, his behavior has changed,” says Dmitry Klabukov, head of the KIT MED company, a distributor of devices and preparations for cosmetology and cosmetics. — Instability affects consumption. Choose those procedures that are most effective and have a short recovery period. Safety still comes first. The price for such procedures is high, but the client understands what he is paying for. But therapeutic course procedures with a delayed effect are fading into the background.”
Patient requests have become wider. They are interested in anti-aging, healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle. “The demand for lip augmentation, cheekbone augmentation, and changing facial contours with fillers has sharply decreased,” comments Madina Magomedova. “But there are more requests for procedures that help improve skin quality and preserve individual features. Consultations with preventive medicine doctors are in demand, who, after studying patient tests, draw conclusions about the state of the body. This helps to work better on the condition of the facial skin.”
Probably no one knows as much about their client as the owners and employees of salons and clinics. It has always been this way; a woman can tell a cosmetologist and manicurist something that she wouldn’t trust to a close friend. “Every six months we conduct a study and see how our clientele is changing,” shares Dolgova. “The part of her that came to us through social networks has become younger. This is due to the blocking of some social networks: representatives of the older generation have become less likely to use them. And the age group of clients who learned about us…
