More than 2,000 salon owners have signed an open letter calling on Chancellor John Healey to cut VAT on hair and beauty services from 20% to 10% in this week's Budget.
Marcus Perkins, who has run M&M Spa in Quarry Bank near Brierley Hill for 22 years, is among those backing the campaign. He says rising costs are making it increasingly difficult for salons to employ staff and invest in apprenticeships.
"Seeing salons close on the high street is very scary," Perkins said. "I'm very scared myself. Luckily it hasn't happened yet but who knows what the future holds?"
Training the next generation
Perkins has trained more than a dozen young people over the past two decades. This year alone, he spent about £2,000 on courses and travel costs to support the training of 21-year-old stylist Trearna Hart.
Hart said many of her peers had struggled to establish careers after leaving college and felt fortunate to find an employer willing to invest in her development.
"At the rate it's going we're not going to have many salons left open and there's no-one going to be able to do hair," Hart said.
Rising pressures on traditional salons
Salon owners say they have been affected by increases in wage, pension and National Insurance costs. The government's changes to employers' National Insurance contributions and increases to the minimum wage have been defended by ministers as part of wider efforts to improve pay, support public services and drive economic growth.
The British Hair Consortium (BHC), which backs the open letter, argues that a VAT reduction would help businesses take on more staff, invest in training and keep more salons trading on the high street.
Perkins believes the change would make a significant difference to his business. "We can grow the business and employ more people," he said.
The sector has seen growing numbers of stylists move into self-employed arrangements, with hairdressers often renting a chair within a salon rather than being directly employed. Perkins argues that traditional salons that employ and train staff are increasingly competing against models centred on self-employed workers, creating an "unlevel playing field" because employer-run salons shoulder the costs of training future hairdressers.
The BHC has claimed apprenticeship numbers have fallen sharply and warned the trend could worsen if pressures on employer-run salons continue.
Customer impact
Research from the British Beauty Council has highlighted the role hair and beauty businesses play in supporting local high streets, encouraging spending and providing opportunities for social connection.
Dorothy Senior, who has visited M&M for hair and beauty treatments for the past 20 years, said the salon was about much more than appearances.
"Every time I come in I go home feeling so much better," she said. "It isn't just having nails and hair done, it's the whole package."
A Treasury spokesperson said hair and beauty businesses played an important role in supporting jobs, apprenticeships and thriving high streets, and that the sector had benefited from reforms to business rates.