Beauty Salon Feasibility Study in Kentucky

The smallest loans on the list

Kentucky beauty salon lending is small in every measure. The median loan is $60,000, only 0.60x the class's national figure, and half of all loans fall from $27,700 to $200,000. Salons in the state drew 57 approvals over FY2017 to FY2026, worth $9.6 million, and every one used SBA 7(a): the count of SBA 504 loans is 0. The class ranks 9 of 39 among Kentucky's classes, the state stands 34 of 54 on volume, and a location quotient of 0.85x shows a share slightly below the national share. No metric stands apart from both the state record and the national salon record.

Who lends and where

U.S. Bank, National Association leads with 12 loans worth $447,200, then Community Trust Bank, Inc. with 9 worth $655,500 and PNC Bank, National Association with 5 worth $995,700. A $60,000 median means these are mostly microloans for equipment, chairs and leasehold work, and an owner can usually expect lighter documentation than for a building project. Franchise brands account for 12.3% of the loans, which is high for a personal-service class. Jefferson County has 19 loans and Fayette 8, followed by Boone and Kenton with 4 each, so Louisville and Lexington carry much of the activity.

Volume, cancellations and the withheld rate

Annual approvals were 2 loans in FY2020 and 11 in FY2024, with the dollar total rising to $2.6 million in FY2025. Of Kentucky salon loans approved FY2017 through FY2024, no fewer than 7.3% were cancelled, with a ceiling of 9.8% once undisbursed loans are added. Kentucky's loss rate stays off the page; with fewer than 30 loans funded, a percentage would rest on too few cases. We neither give it a number nor describe it as zero.

What a Kentucky salon study should test

A salon study should be disciplined about the owner's own productivity, because revenue depends on stylists, chair rental arrangements and repeat clients. Test the trade area, rival salons nearby, and the lease against a ticket near $60,000. Show debt service coverage using a conservative chair-fill schedule, and keep working capital for the months before a client book forms. If the project buys an existing salon, the appraisal will look at retained clientele and equipment value, so the study should show how stylists and clients stay through the transition. For franchise units, include royalty and brand fund charges in the cash flow.