Beauty Salon Feasibility Study in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metro Area

Half the size of its national peers

Salon borrowers in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro area take out noticeably less than salon borrowers elsewhere. The midpoint loan of $50,000 amounts to 0.50x the class's national midpoint, and the bottom quarter of loans begins at just $25,000 while the top quarter starts at $262,500. Across FY2017 to FY2026 SBA approved 67 loans here, totalling $12.1 million. Against all 546 metro and micro areas, Portland stands 28th for salon loans, though the class is only 9 of 39 inside the area, and a location quotient of 0.81x puts salons below their national weight in Portland's lending.

An interstate metro

The area crosses the Columbia River, so the record includes Clark County in Washington with 12 loans alongside Multnomah County with 22, Washington County with 15, Clackamas County with 13 and Yamhill County with 5. Which side of the river a salon sits on matters for licensing and lease terms, but the SBA metro combines them according to the July 2023 area that holds the project county. Franchise share is 14.9%, so independent owners account for most of the activity, as the small tickets would suggest.

Columbia Bank leads the named holders

Columbia Bank (OR) is listed against 18 loans worth $832,000 and U.S. Bank, National Association against 11 loans worth $922,400. Washington Trust Bank shows 5 loans at $818,500, and Northeast Bank (ME) 5 at $193,300. The listing reflects the holder SBA currently reports, so a loan sold or transferred shows under its new holder. A borrower should read these as a list of institutions that have kept salon loans on their books in this metro, not as an invitation or a promise of terms. The program split is held back at the source for this cell.

Years, cancellations and a missing rate

Years that clear SBA's small-count rule are FY2017, with 8 loans and $2.7 million, FY2018 with 5 and $1.1 million, FY2022 with 5 and just $125,000, FY2023 with 10 and $2.4 million, and FY2024 with 12 and $2.2 million. Cancellation of approvals dated FY2017 through FY2024 was 12.0% or higher, and counting loans never fully disbursed as cancelled gives the same figure. That is a floor. SBA prints no charge-off figure, because the count underneath is thin, which is different from a rate of nothing.

Scoping a Portland-area salon study

A study for a salon in this market has to start with chair count and what a chair or a square foot costs in rent, because a $50,000 midpoint implies a lean build-out. It should test stylist supply and whether the plan relies on booth renters or employees, the pricing of nearby competitors, and appointment fill during slow months. Lease length against the build-out cost belongs in the analysis, since leasehold work is hard to recover. The appraisal will concentrate on the going concern's cash flow, and the payment should be covered even if the first year undershoots.