London's beauty industry set to lose 16 million pounds per week under Tier 4 restrictions

Tier 4 government restrictions could force London’s buoyant beauty salons to lose over 16 million pounds per week.

The figures were announced by the National Hair & Beauty Federation, which counts 7,015 hairdressing, barbering and beauty business in London, who collectively earned 841.5 million pounds in 2018.

Richard Lambert, chief executive of the NHBF said: “The impact of these restrictions at such short notice is devastating for our appointment-based industry. As well as a Saturday evening spent calling clients these hair and beauty salon and barbershop owners are now about to lose the biggest trading week of the year, which they were relying on to help recoup some of the money lost throughout the year.”

“This isn’t an industry that can switch to online sales or a takeaway service and it hasn’t received the same support given to the arts, leisure or hospitality sectors. Without urgent financial assistance from the government many hair, beauty and barber businesses will sadly never recover.”

The beauty industry, like many retailers, has suffered immeasurably with salon closures, layoffs and an estimated 30-35 percent shrinkage in annual revenue, according to a McKinsey report. While DIY beauty has surged - in the UK online sales of prestige-brand nail polish saw double-digit growth every week from when lockdown began in March through to May - traditional hairdressers and barbers are not able to sell their services online.