Cosmetology has always been one of the most in-demand job types around the world, creating multiple ways to earn money passively or simply enjoy as a full-time career. One of my best friends is a hairdresser, and these best side hustle methods made her the most famous nail artist and hairdresser in Oklahoma (at least to me).
Sell Hair Products and Receive Commission ($10 per sale)
To a majority of hairdressers I have actually gone to (even with Barbers), they all do something similar which is selling hair products. Usually as a hairdresser you will get a small commission for every product you sell.
For example, I went to a barber shop called Asgard and they sold me a pomade that was branded by their shop. I bought the pomade for $25, but the barber received about $10 of that sale. Ultimately bringing in a decent $10 bonus per sale.
Depending on if you work independently or with a chain, you could either find a product brand to sponsor, or you could try to upsell the products your employer already provides.
If your clients come in regularly, they probably trust you enough for you to recommend some products to them. Just gain some client trust, and that should raise the possibility of your next sale.
Create a Small E-Commerce Store ($25 per sale)
If you are sponsoring products, or maybe you have your own products you would like to sell, it's easy and fast to create a small e-commerce business as a hairdresser. These stores are easy to access for everyone, and makes your products more visible to clients.
To get started, I talked to my local barber who has set up their online store. They used Squarespace to help them build a user-friendly website that is also nice for mobile users. This site not only includes appointments, but also products and location services.
Here are some sample images of what they were able to create.
I searched and found a few other ways you can build your store for cheap and fast:
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Squarespace: Overall good for small businesses, with premade templates and affordable price.
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Wix: Similar to Squarespace, but a bit pricier for arguably better website premakes.
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Shopify: More product focused, and extremely fast to set up (1 day set up).
Simply use these sites and you can set up a store super quick, they have all of the steps to help business owners, which is way better than trying to do it all yourself.
Rent out Your Hairdresser Chair ($500-$1,200/Month)
Maybe you will be gone for a long summer or perhaps you only work as a hairdresser part-time. The good news is that you can easily rent out your chair to someone else while you are not working!
Tons of hairdressers do this, I even had one who had her own room with decoration and she would rent out her space for over $1,000 a month to get in some extra passive income. It especially helps pay off rent if you are renting out your space from a bigger business.
There are two ways you can rent out your space or salon chair, though. Each way requires a different approach, and have different requirements.
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1
Owning a salon and renting a chair: If you own a salon and wish to rent out a chair to a new hairdresser, you will need to create a contract including expenses, regulations, and tax information.
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2
Renting out your own individual salon chair: Depending on where you rent will determine how legal this really is. You may need permission from the owner before allowing another hairdresser to use your space.
A lot can come with renting out your chair as well, which you would need to watch out for. Including how much you should charge, the risks in renting out your chair, and how it overall works.
How does renting out your salon chair work?
How you rent out your chair all really depends on your preferences and what would work best for you. There are three main ways hairdressers like to rent out their chair, which can be one of either:
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A percentage agreement: Rather than charging rent, you take a cut of the renters earnings, usually from 40-60%. This can be rather expensive for the renter, so it really depends on the kind of renters you are looking for.
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A fixed rent: a more popular way to go about this, it is what tends to be most agreed upon and fair among both the owner and the renter.
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Mix and match: You could charge the renter both a rental fee, plus an obligation to sell your products to discount the rent for a better price, or to continue using the salon chair.
Once you find a way you would like to rent out your chair, follow up with colleagues or on social media and make a post about renting out your space. The earlier you do this, the quicker you can start earning.
Create a Beauty Blog ($15-$50)
If you are rather shy or maybe prefer to write about your hairdresser experiences, blogs are a perfect option. Hundreds of thousands of users are researching every day about hair products, tips and tricks, and overall inspiration. You could be their next inspo with a well organized beauty blog.
Earlier I mentioned creating an e-commerce store, which if you choose to go down a simple route, I totally get it. But I have seen many e-comm stores include blogs which help not only with reach, but also with affiliate bonuses (including the affiliates bonus you could get with Freecash).
There are many bloggers out there that primarily focu on beauty productts, and it is a rather successful side hustle. A couple good examples would be Cosmo Salon Studios or Mens Care
Here is a sample image of how Cosmo Salon has their blog.
While blogs typically require a small investment, you can easily promote your favorite products on your blog and earn money by applying affiliate links, guest posting, and much more. Typically, you can earn from $15-$50 an hour for a well-monetized blog.
In the beginning it will require a lot of planning, so it may feel like more than a part time until you have all of your ducks in a row.
Create a Beauty YouTube Channel ($12-$35/Hour)
If you are comfortable being on camera, creating a Youtube channel is a great way to boost your hairdresser career. Personal brand is very important if you want to be successful even as a part time cosmetologist. Providing tips and tricks through Youtube is a great way to show off your skills and boost clientel and earn passive income.
Videos are overall better for hairdressers, as there are many technics that are clearly done in person, which typically require visual examples. There are many great hairdressers, like Matt Beck who already post guides, reviews, etc that receive hundreds of thousands of views.
There are some free training courses on how to get started on Youtube as a cosmetologist.
There are many ways to get paid on Youtube, and being a hairdresser is not an option to dismiss! There are lots of different kinds of categories you could make videos about, like reviews on hair products, how to guides on particular styles, techniques, etc.
Becoming a beauty influencer on social media is very similar to creating videos on Youtube. However, most Tiktok and Instagram influencers within the hairdresser niche tend to get much more views compared to Youtube. Nail art, hair styling, hair cuts, they are all easy to post about or inspire others with.
I have seen many of my favorite barbors also livestream them cutting hair, providing video results of their work, and creating memes about their services. All of these types of videos not only increase your views and make you more and more famous, but it also brings more clients to you, so you do not have to scramble to find clients every day.
Hairdressing can excellate as a career very quickly if you do well on socials, which is one reason millions of other hairdressers also prefer it. Not only is being a hairdresser a great side hustle, but it can also be a great foundation as a stable income.
Sell Gift Certificates ($30-$80)
If you already have a strong foundation of clientele, but you would like to expand further or provide them with an opportunity to receive more, gift certificates are a great way to go. These expecially work during the holidays when your clients family or friends are wanting to give a good gift to them.
You just need to promote these gift certificates to your clients, and they will do the rest!
Typically you earn an extra $50 to $300 depending on the time of year, however keep in mind that if its for your regular clients, you arent really earning more money. The goal of gift certificates, is to provid an incentive to keep your egulars coming to you more often and for a longer term.
Keep in mind: It is beneficial for finding more clients who may have been gifted your certificate and want to try something new.
Teach Cosmetology Online or Face to Face ($15-$30)
You can easily find platforms where you can teach cosmetology or hairdressing online or even face to face. Having a cosmetology license means you not only have the ability to be a hairdresser or nail artist, but it also means you can teach others if thats what you enjoy.
Here are a few sources I found where you could learn more about teaching cosmetology:
If you are new to the idea of teaching hairdressing school, you are not alone! Many hairdressers also want to take on teaching others how to succeed in this type of work. One method I know that has helped is many barbors and hairdressers that I have known host one on one classes at their own salon.
Hosting not only is a great way to make a little extra money, but its only takes maybe one extra hour in your day.
Giveaway Free Products for Loyal Clients ($30-$200)
I have seen many hairdressers create their own loyalty programs to overall help with customer retention and incentivizes the client experience. Usually, free stuff means cool hairdresser.
Whether you create a points system that helps them eventually earn a free hair dryer or expensive hair product, or maybe even make an incentive where "first time cuts receive extra points towards X reward".
Loyalty programs, if done well, can help you gain much more clientele and overall boost your daily income from $30 to $200 a day. Creating a program is a great side hustle as it, in the end, will boost your overall visability and quality of service.
Speaking of loyalty programs, if you want to earn extra money on the side, but don't want to think about hair for the rest of the day, you can easily make money through Freecash. I personally really enjoy the platform, you can easily play during breaks between clients, or wind down after a long day at the salon.
