5 Ways to Make Your Salon More Eco-Friendly

Turns out it is easy to be green, and sustainability can help you stand out from the competition.

From energy efficient light bulbs to water conservation to offering natural products, becoming a sustainable salon doesn’t need to break the bank. In fact, it can provide a financial boost.

More than nine in 10 (93 percent) of salon customers are concerned about a salon’s impact on the environment, according to Salon Today. This means making your salon more eco-friendly, and advertising that fact, can help you bring in new, loyal customers.

“Being a sustainable business can set a salon apart and make it unique,” Salon Today states. “Existing clients love knowing their beauty waste is being sustainably recovered and recycled, while the salon, spa or barbershop can attract new environmentally minded customers.”

Here are five ways to make your salon more sustainable:

1. Use and sell sustainable hair products

One important way to appeal to customers who care about the environment: use and sell sustainable products. Customers who care about the earth tend to be aware of chemicals and what they’re putting in, and on, their bodies. So going green with your product line is an important step in the right direction. Your definition of sustainability may vary from another salon’s, but many sustainable salons seek out product lines that are: all natural, organic, vegan and not tested on animals. Some salons, like Casa Prana Sustainable Salon, in North Carolina, even create their own product lines. “We are a wasteful industry, and we knew there was a better way,” Casa Prana owner Rebecca Oazem told Salon Today.

2. Lower salon energy and water use

You can take a variety of steps that, together, may significantly lower the amount of resources your salon uses. For example, consider: installing energy-efficient lighting, turning off curling irons and other appliances when not in use, installing tinted windows and adjusting your thermostat by a few degrees. Also consider using an energy efficient washer and dryer for your salon towels, capes and other laundry.

3. Reduce, reuse, recycle

The salon industry traditionally generates mountains of waste. A few shocking stats from Green Circle Salons, an organization dedicated to recycling beauty waste: the beauty industry sends 877 pounds of beauty waste per minute into landfills, and salons throw away 110,000 pounds of metal per day. Salons can work with Green Circle Salons to recycle their waste. For example, Green Circle collects hair clippings that may then be: composted, turned into bio-composite plastic, used in research or used for humanitarian purposes like soaking up oil spills.

4. Decorate sustainably

Make sure to extend your eco-friendliness to the decor you use in your salon. This will help make your salon greener and will send a message to your clients as well. Eco-friendly salon decor ideas include: decorating with natural, sustainably sourced materials like wood and stone; using thrifted or secondhand furniture, or new furniture made from recycled materials; using natural, eco-friendly paint; and decorating with plants, which also help to refresh the air in your salon naturally.

5. Get customers to help pay the cost

Worried about the cost of being an eco-friendly salon? Most salon customers (80 percent) say they are willing to pay a little more to patronize a beauty business that aligns with their values. That’s why many eco-friendly salons have started building a small sustainability fee into the cost of each visit. A number of salons add a $2 or $2.50 “eco fee” to the total cost of each visit to the salon, Salon Today reports.

Need some more inspiration? Check out these eight eco-friendly salons around the world to see how they distinguish their businesses with a focus on sustainability.