SBA 7(a) Beauty Salon Feasibility Study in New Hampshire

New Hampshire salons: the smallest loans in this group of cells

New Hampshire's 7(a) salon lending is defined by modest size. SBA approved 76 loans from FY2017 to FY2026, worth $9.7 million in all, and the median loan of $59,250 is just 0.68x of the usual size for salons elsewhere. Half of New Hampshire loans sit between $28,000 and $125,000. Salons rank 5 of 39 among New Hampshire's lending classes, a high place for a small-ticket business, while the state stands 27 among states by count. Franchised salons are 7.9% of the loans. This is a cell of independent stylists and small shops buying chairs, a refit or a lease buy-out, not a place for large real estate financing.

New Hampshire banks and counties

The biggest holder is TD Bank, National Association with 21 loans, yet they total only $987,000, so its notes average very little. Eastern Bank holds 9 for $673,500 and Primary Bank 5 for $493,500. SBA lists the current holder, which may differ from the original lender. Rockingham County has 36 loans and Hillsborough 22; Merrimack follows with 6 and Carroll with 5. Annual dollars were $2.2 million in FY2019 and $2.5 million in FY2026, against $319,000 in FY2020.

Low cancellation, mixed loss picture

New Hampshire cancellations are comparatively few, at 6.5% whether counted as a floor or a ceiling. Charge-offs split: across the 45 loans of the early funded cohort, 4.4% are charged off so far, but 0.00% were charged off within five years. Any loss therefore came after year five, and open loans leave the figure free to climb.

Testing a New Hampshire salon

With loans this small, the study's most useful work is to size the request honestly. List chairs, stations, shampoo bowls, retail inventory and finish work, then compare the total with the observed band. Demand analysis should rest on the real catchment: for the southern counties, competition is dense and rent matters; for Carroll or Coos, a salon may be the only one for miles and seasonal visitors matter. Stylist retention and booth-rental arrangements explain much of the revenue risk, so the proposal should state who owns the clientele. Cash flow must cover the payment through a slow opening and a month with staff turnover. Because a salon holds little hard collateral, the owner's equity, lease length and personal track record weigh heavily with a lender and should be documented plainly. A request well above $125,000 needs an explanation of what justifies it.