The rules of Salon Retail have changed – it’s time we stopped pretending otherwise

By Lilliane Caron, Founder and Managing Director, Caronlab Australia

I read Tamara Reid’s Inside Industry Report over my morning coffee – by lunchtime, I had scrapped months of planning to start our sales plan from scratch.

It showed the figures confirm what many of us have been experiencing. Clients are spreading out their appointments, the beauty industry is becoming more competitive and the growth of retailers like Amazon, Mecca, Sephora and Adore Beauty is changing the way clients shop for beauty products.

“Salon retail is the under-used lever”, says Tamara. “Beauty products keep growing, the Australian beauty and personal care market is forecast to grow ~5.6% in 2026 – even as services flatten.”

“Consumers under pressure don’t quit beauty; they trade the format”.

So, how does the average Therapist compete with the price, convenience and resources of giant beauty retailers? “You will not out-discount Adore or Amazon. You can out-diagnose them”, says Tamara. “The era of true salon and clinic exclusivity has ended; what remains is professional advantage – diagnosis, personalisation and trust – which has to be actively merchandised rather than assumed.”

This really stuck with me and it made me question the entire way I had been looking at Salon Retail. It was the start of August, our team was putting the finishing touches on our September Sale, but it no longer felt like enough. We had been planning on putting one of our Retail lines on sale, to help Therapists get their shelves stocked and ready before peak season hit, but I realised having the product accessible was only part of the issue that Therapists were facing.

In the era of online shopping, accessibility is assumed and every product is available at the click of a button. That’s not something the average Salon or Solo Therapist can compete with – it’s not something Caronlab can compete with either. We’ve been playing a game we’re destined to lose – so we decided it was time to rewrite the rules.

We needed to offer Therapists more than accessible products – we needed to provide them with the tools to engage clients and the education on how to turn them into retail customers.

“Salon exclusivity is over. Salon advantage isn’t – but it now has to be earned, not assumed”.

So, what does this look like in the treatment room? “Intimacy sells product”, says Tamara. “Prescriptive retail – recommended in the chair, linked to the service result”. When a client shops online, there are multiple brands fighting for their attention, all claiming similar benefits and results. The average Therapist can’t compete in that market, but what they can do is offer intimacy, expertise and an experience clients will return for time and time again.

What those online retailers will never have is the relationship, the friendship, the trust. Really listening to and connecting with your client doesn’t just build loyalty, but it makes you a better Therapist. It provides you with the broader context to understand what external factors may impact your clients’ Salon results, whether it’s stress causing tension, lifestyle factors impacting skin health or even upcoming events that you can help your clients prepare for.

I know selling in the treatment room can be intimidating. There’s nothing worse than holding a client captive in the chair for 30 minutes while you run through an irrelevant, scripted sales pitch. Instead, we need to take advantage of what we do have, Retail products created by Therapists, for Therapists, specifically designed to work alongside any of your professional services. Products that can be naturally incorporated into your client experience and linked to their results, driving demand before they even reach the checkout.

Where online competitors are screaming into a void, fighting to be heard, you have your clients’ direct, undivided attention. Some would call that kind of access priceless, but I disagree. It has a value and it’s time we stopped pretending otherwise. That value is your Salon markup, what your clients pay for your years of experience and expertise. This trust can’t be bought. It can only be earnt and it’s your gap in a growing market.

“Salon retail and hybrid channel strategies matter more than ever”.

The opportunity to engage clients and create demand for your Retail Range isn’t exclusive to the treatment room. Reinforce your Retail Range across every point of your clients’ journey and every channel you use to communicate with them. This includes content on social media, your booking software and every stage of your clients’ in-person experience.

When your clients are visiting you in-person, use this to your advantage to create a sensory experience that no online retailer can compete with. Have a Scented Candle burning when your client walks through the door. Have Hand Cream available in your waiting area for clients to apply before their service begins. Treat your bathroom not as an amenity, but an opportunity to organically introduce your clients to a Hand Wash you retail.

Take advantage of Marketing Materials like Retail Display Units and Shelf Wobblers to educate clients on your Retail Range’s general selling points, so you can focus your service on providing them with personalised, prescriptive Retail recommendations.

How many times a day do we have the “have you done your Christmas shopping?” conversation over the holiday period? Have personalised Gift Tags available alongside your Retail Range so you can deliver the solution your clients have been searching for, instead of the sales pitch they’ve been avoiding.

Social media is the perfect opportunity to show your clients how your Retail Range can exist outside your professional environment. That might be an aesthetic reel showing the ambience a Scented Soy Candle can create in their home, or a video showing how Nourishing Body Scrub works into the skin with water to provide long-lasting smoothness after a Wax.

“This divergence between products (+5–6%) and professional services (−0.3%) is the single most important number pair in this report”.

“The growth is in what clients take home, not just what’s done in the chair”, says Tamara. “Consumers under pressure don’t quit beauty; they trade the format. They stretch the colour appointment and buy the bond-repair masque”. The way clients invest in beauty is changing, so Caronlab needs to change the way we’re supporting Therapists and investing back into the industry.

What we’ve created is a ready-made Salon Retail setup. Bundles of our best-selling Retail products with everything needed for your Retail display, including Counter Display Units, Shelf Wobblers and Ready-to-Use Gift Tags, Pre-Made Social Media Content and Professional Product Photography.

These Bundles contain products that can be incorporated into treatments and linked to real service results, sold as prescriptive Pre and Post Care, or positioned as a convenient gift giving solution. Bundled at a price point and quantity that’s accessible to established Salons and Solo Therapists alike. It’s a solution that doesn’t just stock your shelf, but supports you to connect with your clients at every point of their journey, across every channel.

We know your expertise and experience are worth investing in. It’s time we show your clients that too.

With thanks to Tamara Reid and the Inside Industry team. All industry figures in this piece are from The State of Professional Beauty, H1 2026, which is available to download and an incredibly worthwhile read.