To better understand how confident beauty professionals and beauty schools feel about their businesses, the Professional Beauty Association (PBA), in partnership with PBA Business Member Pivot Point International, created the Pro Beauty Pulse.
This monthly index tracks industry sentiment across W-2 beauty professionals, independent professionals, salon owners, and beauty school leaders. We also include data from The KIM Report, providing real-world salon performance results to complement sentiment insights.
PERCEPTION VS. REALITY
The charts above reflect sentiment collected in August, when industry professionals were asked to assess their business conditions for July.
The data below, sourced from The KIM Report, shows actual industry performance for July.
Viewed together, these offer a comparison of how salon industry perceptions compare to salon industry results.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
From June to July, salon performance was essentially flat. Revenue declined slightly, while a lower average service ticket offset modest increases in services and visits. Retail revenue improved, and color revenue increased slightly.
Compared with July 2025, salon revenue continued to grow, although at a slower pace than in June. Higher pricing remained the primary driver, while service volume increased modestly and client counts and visits were essentially unchanged. Color remained a relatively bright spot, with gains in both revenue and
services.
Through July, salon revenue remained ahead of 2025. However, growth continued to come largely from higher prices, while services, clients and visits remained slightly below last year. Retail continued to struggle, with declines in both revenue
and units, while color posted modest gains in revenue and service volume.
Overall, July was stable but not particularly strong. Revenue remained ahead of last year, but growth continued to depend more on higher prices than increased client traffic or service volume.
The KIM Report aggregates data from more than 10,000 salons and solopreneurs, each with 24 consecutive months on the same software platform to ensure data consistency and reliability.
JUNE TO JULY: July was essentially flat compared with June, with salon revenue declining (-0.35%). Services (+0.62%) and visits (+0.94%) increased, but the average service ticket declined (-1.35%), offsetting those gains. Retail revenue increased (+1.27%), and color revenue was up slightly (+0.24%).
YEAR OVER YEAR: Compared with July 2025, salon revenue increased (+1.90%). That was slower than June’s 4.97% year-over-year growth. Higher pricing continues to drive much of the increase, with the average service ticket up (+3.05%). Service volume increased slightly (+0.76%), while clients and visits were essentially flat. Color remained a bright spot, with revenue up (+3.25%) and services up (+1.56%).
YEAR TO DATE: Through July, salon revenue is ahead of 2025 (+1.62%). The story remains largely unchanged: higher prices are driving growth, while services, clients and visits remain slightly below last year. Retail continues to lag, with revenue (-3.07%) and units down (-5.09%). Color revenue is up (+1.78%), and service volume is up (+0.40%) vs. 2025.
OVERALL: July was stable, but not particularly strong. Revenue remains ahead of last year, but growth continues to depend more on higher prices than on increased client traffic or service volume.
STAY INFORMED
Explore more insights in The KIM Report, your source for real-world data and monthly performance trends shaping the professional beauty market.
