Phenix Salon Suites franchise unit economics
Phenix Salon Suites franchisees build private salon suites and let them to independent beauty professionals, with the typical location running 27 to 42 suites. The 190 locations reporting financials for 2025 averaged $448,801 of sales and $135,174 of adjusted profit, a 30.12% margin, against a median of $399,907 and $112,920. The royalty is 34 cents a square foot a month, so the brand charge is set by the size of the box.
- Primary source
- Phenix Salon Suites Franchising, LLC, 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document
- Items read
- Items 5 and 6 for fees; Item 7 for cost to open; Item 19 for sales and any profit figure; Item 20 for the location count
- Population
- 190 of 369 locations
- Our calculations
- Marked on the page with an asterisk. Method
- Last reviewed
- 26 September 2026
Disclosure-based. Not a forecast, not an offer to sell a franchise, and not advice.
The royalty here is 34 cents a square foot a month, so the brand charge is set by the size of the box. With the brand fee that is 40 cents, or $31,200 a year on a 6,500 square foot salon, 6.95% of the $448,801 a location averaged in 2025, and every dollar of it owed whether the suites are let or standing empty.
- The royalty is charged on floor space, so an empty suite costs the same as a full one. 34 cents a square foot a month plus a 6-cent brand fee is $31,200 a year on 6,500 square feet *, 6.95% of the average location’s revenue and 17.6% of the lowest-selling’s.
- Building costs above 90% is worth 5.8 points of share of sales kept on the same size of box. 44.6% against 38.8% among locations over 6,500 square feet opened 2021 to 2024, $308,992 of adjusted profit against $220,378, on $693,173 of revenue against $568,628.
- The $1,000 a month advertising requirement lifts at 90% occupancy cost, and the average location sits at 88%. $12,000 a year *, which is 2.67% of the average location’s revenue and 6.77% of the lowest-selling’s.
- The franchisor took back 25 locations in three years while openings fell from 37 to 17. Company-owned outlets went 16 to 49 while franchised went 322 to 369 *. The brand now runs 11.7% of the system itself.
- 230 signed agreements are waiting to open against the 17 that opened in 2025. At that pace the pipeline runs 13.5 years *, and 16 openings are projected for the coming year.
How much does a Phenix Salon Suites franchise make?
The average Phenix Salon Suites unit reported $448,801 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $399,907. The brand’s disclosure document puts the profit line at 30.1% of revenue. Fees come off the top first, at about 7% of sales across royalty, brand fund and the rest of the stack. Revenue is not income. Rent, wages, cost of goods and the franchise fees all come out before an owner is paid. The figures for the highest-selling and lowest-selling businesses are below.
Revenue and profit
$448,801 of revenue, $135,174 of adjusted profit.
Revenue and adjusted profit arrive split by salon size and by half, so there is a margin at every point in the range.
| Group | Locations | Average revenue | Median revenue | Highest | Lowest | Average adjusted profit | Median adjusted profit | Margin on the averages * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All reporting locations | 190 | $448,801 | $399,907 | $1,146,025 | $177,204 | $135,174 | $112,920 | 30.12% |
| Over 6,500 square feet | 64 | $549,260 | $507,534 | $1,146,025 | $258,924 | $177,085 | $168,472 | 32.24% |
| 6,500 square feet or less | 126 | $397,774 | $389,237 | $862,378 | $177,204 | $113,886 | $112,731 | 28.63% |
| Top half | 95 | $543,621 | n/a | n/a | n/a | $194,348 | n/a | 35.75% |
| Bottom half | 95 | $323,915 | n/a | n/a | n/a | $57,239 | n/a | 17.67% |
Every revenue and profit figure is as the brand reported it and the margin column is marked *.
The top half earns 3.40 times the bottom half’s profit on 1.68 times the revenue. $194,348 against $57,239 *, a margin of 35.75% against 17.67%.
The bigger box earns a 3.61-point better margin. 32.24% over 6,500 square feet against 28.63% at or below it *, on 1.38 times the revenue and 1.55 times the profit.
Where the 190 sit.
| Annual sales | Locations | Share | Running share from the bottom * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below $200,000 | 1 | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| $200,001 to $300,000 | 24 | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| $300,001 to $400,000 | 58 | 30.5% | 43.7% |
| $400,001 to $500,000 | 55 | 28.9% | 72.6% |
| Above $500,000 | 52 | 27.4% | 100% |
Counts and shares are as the brand reported it and the running column is marked *.
83 of the 190 bill below $400,000. 43.7% of the reporting system *, and only one location in the whole group billed under $200,000.
The median is 89.1% of the average. $399,907 against $448,801 *, and 82 locations, or 43.2%, reach the average, a tighter distribution than most filings of this size show.
Top performers
What separates the top Phenix Salon Suites performers
Phenix Salon Suites splits its locations into groups instead of publishing one average. The best group averaged $543,621 a year. The worst averaged $323,915. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees. The middle location sold $399,907. The average was $448,801. More than half the system is below the number the brand quotes.
Decided before you open
- Trade area and site.A 1.7× gap between bands is not an operating gap. Catchment, daytime population and what sits next door set the ceiling before the first customer arrives.
- Capacity, fixed at build.Locations run 2,500 to 3,000 square feet. What you can sell is set by the build, and the build does not change after opening.
- What you spend to open.Opening costs $535,229 to $3,074,038, a 5.7× range inside one brand. The high end usually buys more capacity, so the cheapest build is not always the cheapest route to the top band.
- Lease economics.Occupancy cost ran 88.0% of sales in this filing. The rent does not fall when sales do, so the same lease is a far heavier line at the bottom of the system than at the top. That is how a weak site compounds into a weak profit line.
Live operating levers
- Occupancy, the line that does not flex.Rent and building costs take 88.0% of sales, against 30.1% kept at the end. Sales per square foot and the hours the space is earning are the only two ways to move it, since the rent itself is fixed at signing. Small movements here move the result more than anything else, because nothing else in the structure is that large.
- Suites rented, the operating driver.This model bills on suites rented. The suites are built once and then let, so the business is how many are occupied and how long each tenant stays. It is worth watching every week, because by the time it turns up in a monthly close the quarter is half gone.
- Fees, and where the minimum bites.Fees run about 7.0% of sales. A minimum sits underneath the percentage, so the low-volume location pays the higher effective rate. The brand charges the weakest locations the most. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum and know which side of it you are on, because the answer changes what an extra dollar of sales is worth.
Context you underwrite around
- The reporting screen.190 of 369 locations are behind these figures. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded, as are locations under the brand’s current size standard, so the numbers describe locations that cleared that screen, not the system as a whole.
Building costs and suites
Thirteen points of occupancy cost, $124,545 of revenue.
Among locations over 6,500 square feet that opened between 2021 and 2024, eleven ran at 90% occupancy cost or better. All 24 of that size and vintage make up the comparison. Same box, same age, different fill.
| Measure | Building costs 90% and above, 11 locations | All occupancy cost rates, 24 locations | Difference * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average sales | $693,173 | $568,628 | +$124,545 |
| Median sales | $620,385 | $542,684 | +$77,701 |
| Lowest sales | $518,571 | $258,924 | +$259,647 |
| Average adjusted profit | $308,992 | $220,378 | +$88,614 |
| Median adjusted profit | $272,181 | $226,915 | +$45,266 |
| Lowest adjusted profit | $153,920 | −$80,169 | +$234,089 |
| Average share of sales kept | 44.6% | 38.8% | +5.8 points |
| Lowest share of sales kept | 21.7% | −29.6% | +51.3 points |
| Average occupancy cost | 96% | 83% | +13 points |
| Lowest occupancy cost | 90% | 41% | +49 points |
Both columns are as the brand reported it and the difference column is marked *.
Each occupancy cost point is worth about $9,580 of revenue in this size class. $124,545 across 13 points *, and 71.2% of it reaches adjusted profit.
The lowest-selling high-occupancy cost location earns $153,920 where the wider group’s lowest-selling loses $80,169. A $234,089 gap at the bottom of each set *, against a $124,545 gap at the averages, filling the suites matters most to the locations doing worst.
Suites, and how many are let.
| Measure | Building costs | Suites | Filled suites * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average of 294 locations | 88% | 35 | 30.8 |
| Median | 91% | 32 | 29.1 |
| Average of the top half | 97% | 42 | 40.7 |
| Average of the bottom half | 77% | 27 | 20.8 |
| Highest | 100% | 99 | n/a |
| Lowest | 41% | 14 | n/a |
Building costs and suite counts are as the brand reported it and the filled-suite column is marked *, multiplying the two.
The top half runs 1.96 times as many filled suites as the bottom half. 40.7 against 20.8 *, bigger boxes and fuller ones, compounding.
The average location has four suites standing empty. 35 suites at 88% *, and the bottom half has six.
What the fees come to
A brand charge measured in square feet.
Most franchises take a share of revenue. This one takes 34 cents a square foot a month as royalty and 6 cents as a national brand fee, both on the square footage in the lease and both able to rise 3% a year. So the charge is fixed the day the lease is signed.
| Salon size | Royalty a year | Brand fee a year | Together | Against $397,774, the smaller size class * | Against $549,260, the larger size class * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,500 square feet, the smallest Parlor | $10,200 | $1,800 | $12,000 | 3.02% | n/a |
| 3,000 square feet, the largest Parlor | $12,240 | $2,160 | $14,400 | 3.62% | n/a |
| 5,166 square feet, the smallest Standard | $21,077 | $3,720 | $24,797 | 6.23% | n/a |
| 6,500 square feet, the size split | $26,520 | $4,680 | $31,200 | 7.84% | 5.68% |
| 7,105 square feet, the average Standard | $28,988 | $5,116 | $34,104 | n/a | 6.21% |
| 10,000 square feet, the largest Standard | $40,800 | $7,200 | $48,000 | n/a | 8.74% |
The 34-cent royalty, the 6-cent brand fee and the square footages are as the brand reported it. Every dollar amount and share is marked *, at the rate times square feet times twelve months.
The advertising requirement is the one charge occupancy cost can switch off. $1,000 a month until 90% of suites are let, which is $12,000 a year *, 2.67% of the average location’s revenue, and the average location sits at 88%.
A 10,000 square foot salon pays $48,000 before it opens the door. Against $24,797 at 5,166 square feet *, 1.94 times the charge for 1.94 times the minimum, regardless of what either one bills.
All in, a 7,105 square foot location owes about $51,000 a year. $34,104 of brand charge, $12,000 of advertising, $2,400 for the platform and $2,400 for the publication and directory *, 9.3% of the $549,260 its size class averages.
Building the store
$178.60 to $227.40 a square foot, after the landlord pays.
The Standard format investment table is given at three sizes with landlord contributions shown separately. That makes the cost per square foot readable straight off the page.
| Line | 5,166 square feet | 7,105 square feet | 10,000 square feet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building work | $1,056,555 | $1,404,884 | $2,216,029 |
| Furniture, fixtures, equipment and signs | $63,488 | $97,488 | $129,670 |
| Initial franchise fee | $52,500 | $52,500 | $52,500 |
| Additional funds, three months | $0 | $77,332 | $400,000 |
| Licenses, permits and business formation | $0 | $20,738 | $56,573 |
| Rent security deposit | $9,000 | $17,416 | $32,730 |
| Mechanical and engineering plans | $10,500 | $17,556 | $33,589 |
| Architectural plans | $5,412 | $16,942 | $26,055 |
| Computer | $15,406 | $21,738 | $26,552 |
| Exterior signs | $5,815 | $11,340 | $18,564 |
| Initial marketing | $10,000 | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| Construction management fee | $6,500 | $6,500 | $6,500 |
| Professional fees | $1,312 | $6,888 | $22,081 |
| Utility deposits | $0 | $3,394 | $21,300 |
| Site evaluation fee | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
| Plan review fees | $0 | $7,000 | $7,000 |
| Insurance, first three months | $0 | $3,081 | $6,746 |
| Annual meeting registration | $1,699 | $1,699 | $1,699 |
| Training, two people | $1,100 | $1,100 | $1,100 |
| Phenix TV | $1,000 | $1,250 | $1,500 |
| Platform and first three months of service | $850 | $850 | $850 |
| Total estimated initial investment | $1,244,136 | $1,782,696 | $3,074,038 |
| Landlord contributions | −$321,608 | −$428,295 | −$800,000 |
| Adjusted estimated initial investment | $922,528 | $1,354,402 | $2,274,038 |
| Per square foot, adjusted | $178.60 | $190.60 | $227.40 |
| Landlord share of the total * | 25.85% | 24.03% | 26.02% |
| Adjusted cost against the size class average revenue * | 2.32× | 2.47× | 4.14× |
Every dollar figure, the landlord contribution line, the adjusted total and the per-square-foot line are as the brand reported it; the two bottom rows are marked *.
The landlord funds about a quarter of the build. 24.03% to 26.02% across the three sizes *, and it arrives against construction milestones.
Cost per square foot rises 27.3% from the smallest Standard build to the largest. $178.60 to $227.40 *, so the bigger box costs more a foot as well as more in total.
A 10,000 square foot build is 4.14 times its size class’s annual revenue. $2,274,038 against $549,260 *, against 2.32 times at 5,166 square feet.
Openings down, buy-backs up. (Item 20)
| Year | Franchised at start | Opened | Reacquired by the brand | Ceased for other reasons | Franchised at end | Company-owned at end | Company share * | Transfers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 322 | 37 | 2 | 1 | 356 | 19 | 5.1% | 6 |
| 2024 | 356 | 25 | 12 | 2 | 367 | 32 | 8.0% | 3 |
| 2025 | 367 | 17 | 11 | 4 | 369 | 49 | 11.7% | 9 |
Every column apart from the company share is as the brand reported it. Start plus openings less reacquisitions and closures returns the filed year-end count in all three years.
Openings fell 54.1% across three years while buy-backs rose. 37, 25 and 17 against 2, 12 and 11 *, in 2025 the brand took back nearly two locations for every three that opened.
The signed pipeline is 62.3% of the operating franchised system. 230 agreements against 369 outlets *, and at the 2025 opening rate it would take 13.5 years to work through.
Questions we get asked
Questions owners ask.
What does a Phenix location bill?
The 190 locations reporting financials for 2025 averaged $448,801 with a median of $399,907, ranging from $177,204 to $1,146,025. Locations above 6,500 square feet averaged $549,260 and those at or below it $397,774. 43.7% billed under $400,000.
What does a location earn?
Adjusted profit averaged $135,174 with a median of $112,920, a 30.12% margin on the averages. The top half averaged $194,348 and the bottom half $57,239, or 35.75% against 17.67%. The highest reported was $554,518 and the lowest a loss of $106,790. Adjusted profit adds back owner management fees and several other owner-level items. So it sits above site profit for an owner drawing a salary.
What does the brand take?
A royalty of 34 cents a square foot a month and a national brand fee of 6 cents, both on leased square footage and both able to rise 3% a year. On 6,500 square feet that is $31,200 a year. Add $1,000 a month of required local advertising until 90% of suites are let, about $200 a month for the platform. $50 to $150 a month for the publication.
How full is a typical location?
Across 294 locations reporting occupancy cost, the average was 88% across 35 suites and the median 91% across 32. The top half averaged 97% across 42 suites and the bottom half 77% across 27, 40.7 filled suites against 20.8.
How much does occupancy cost matter?
Among locations over 6,500 square feet opened between 2021 and 2024, those at 90% occupancy cost or better averaged $693,173 of revenue and 44.6% share of sales kept against $568,628 and 38.8% for the whole group. That is $124,545 of revenue across 13 occupancy cost points, with 71.2% of it reaching profit.
What does it cost to open?
The Standard format runs $1,244,136 at 5,166 square feet to $3,074,038 at 10,000, less landlord contributions of $321,608 to $800,000. Leaves $922,528 to $2,274,038, or $178.60 to $227.40 a square foot. The Parlor format at 2,500 to 3,000 square feet runs $535,229 to $709,175 before contributions. The franchise fee is $52,500 for Standard and $35,000 for Parlor, with a $35,000 veteran rate.
Questions worth putting to Phenix Salon Suites
The filing answers what it answers. These are the gaps an owner or a buyer should close directly.
- Is the profit figure in Item 19 before or after owner pay, and how many locations sit below it?
- What separates the highest-selling locations from the lowest: trade area, years open, size, or the owner?
- How long does a new location take to reach the average you publish, and what does the build-up look like month by month?
- At what level of sales do the minimum charges stop applying and the percentage take over?
- How many Phenix Salon Suites locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Finance Diagnostic runs the same checks on your own numbers. It scores where you stand and compares you with Item 19 of your brand’s FDD. It works out what one location earns and spends, and builds a 13-week cash forecast. Checks whether you are ready to open another one. It is free and it runs in your browser.
Launch the diagnostic →What is your square footage costing?
A structured review of your unit economics, cash forecast. Reporting, built around revenue per suite-week, the brand charge per square foot against what each foot returns. Where your occupancy cost sits against the filed groups.
Request the reviewthe franchise library, all 243 brands · how franchise unit economics work · running the books across several locations · what Averan does for franchise owners
Phenix Salon Suites reads against the rest of the salon suites group: IMAGE Studios · MY SALON Suite · Salons by JC · Sola Salon Studios. The salon suites guide compares all of them on the same figures.
Questions owners ask next
The figures above raise these, and each one is answered on its own page.
- At what level of sales does a minimum fee stop costing me more than the percentage?How royalty, ad fund and minimums actually work on a monthly statement.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?A 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?Usually it is a revenue problem wearing a payroll costume.
- What does this location earn on the money I put into it?Payback period and cash-on-cash return for one unit.
- How much of Item 19 can I rely on?What a financial performance representation does and does not tell you.