One agreement covering the backwash units, dryers, trolleys and treatment kit a salon needs, rather than a dozen small purchases on the card.
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Yes, and a whole-salon package is usually easier to fund than individual items. Salon equipment is classified as a soft asset, so the agreement is written on the strength of the business rather than on what the kit would fetch at auction. Hire purchase is the most common structure because owners want to keep the equipment. Used and ex-display equipment from trade suppliers is acceptable. The point that trips people up is scope: anything plumbed, wired or fixed into a leased unit behaves as a fixture, so funders treat that part of the package as effectively unsecured and underwrite accordingly.
Used kit: Yes, second-hand and ex-display salon equipment is fundable through trade suppliers, though funders will want the invoice to itemise what is being bought.
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Business asset finance is quoted on a flat rate, so that is what this shows — with the equivalent APR underneath, because the two are not the same number. A quick guide only; your actual rate depends on the asset, term, deposit and lender.
Representative example: on Hire Purchase, borrowing £25,000 over 48 months at a 6.0% flat rate (equivalent to 11.5% APR representative), you would repay around £646 a month; total amount repayable approximately £31,000, of which £6,000 is the cost of finance. This calculator is for illustration only — it is not a quote or an offer of finance, and the rate and repayments you are offered will depend on the asset, term, deposit and your circumstances. CW Asset Finance is a credit broker, not a lender, and may receive a commission from the lender that funds your agreement. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval. CW Asset Finance is an Appointed Representative of Rural Finance Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 630701).
Hair and beauty is one of the clearest examples of why an asset-led sales pitch is misleading. Backwash units, dryers, steamers and trolleys have thin resale value, and a plumbed backwash in a rented shop is not coming out in any economically sensible way. Funders know this, which is why they read the accounts, the bank statements and the director’s credit file first and the equipment schedule second. A personal guarantee is close to universal. The practical consequences are worth knowing in advance: the funder pool is narrower than for hard assets, new starts are genuinely difficult, and a realistic package with a sensible total placed with a funder that likes the sector will beat a scattergun approach every time.
Examples of the machines we are asked to fund. This is not an exhaustive list — if what you are buying is not here, it does not mean we cannot fund it. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.
| Machine | What it is |
|---|---|
| REM Elegance backwash unit | Backwash basin and reclining chair |
| Takara Belmont Yume backwash | Premium shampoo and massage backwash |
| REM salon reception desk | Salon reception and retail furniture |
| REM styling stations and mirrors | Wall mounted styling units |
| Ceriotti hood dryers | Freestanding hood hair dryers |
| Takara Belmont styling units | Salon styling station furniture |
| Salon Ambience trolleys and stools | Salon trolleys, stools and sundries |
| Gamma & Bross salon furniture | Complete salon furniture package |
| Maletti salon furniture | Italian salon fit-out furniture |
| Wella colour bar and processing units | Colour bar and technical work area |
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The typical applicant is an owner two or three years into a lease whose equipment is all ageing at the same rate, or someone buying an existing salon as a going concern and discovering the seller is taking the trolleys and dryers. Salons adding a beauty room to a hair business are the other frequent case, where a treatment couch, steamer and stock cabinet all arrive together.
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Bought on hire purchase, business plant and machinery normally qualifies for capital allowances on the full cost even though you pay for it monthly, which is a large part of why hire purchase is the common structure. On a finance lease you generally set the rentals against profit instead. The rules change between budgets and your position depends on how you trade, so treat this as the direction of travel and get your accountant to confirm the detail before you commit.
Often yes, where the supplier invoices it as part of the package. Be aware that the installed element carries no recovery value for the funder, so a package that is mostly labour and pipework rather than equipment can meet resistance. Splitting the invoice clearly between goods and works helps underwriters see what they are funding.
Almost never. Small individual agreements attract minimum charges, multiply the paperwork and rarely reach a funder’s threshold. A single agreement covering the whole refresh is simpler to administer and looks more considered to an underwriter, who can see a coherent plan rather than a string of reactive purchases.
Funders treat it as a soft asset sector with high failure rates among new entrants, which is not the same as blanket high risk. An established salon with consistent takings is straightforward. The difficulty concentrates in the first eighteen months of trading, where there is no record and nothing worth recovering.
Expect a supplier quotation or pro forma, recent business bank statements, your latest filed accounts if you have them, and identification for the directors. Funders may also ask about the lease on the premises, particularly where the equipment is being fixed in. Having all of it ready shortens the process considerably.
Rarely, and you should be cautious of anyone who says otherwise. Refinance works where an asset has demonstrable resale value, which most salon equipment does not. A funder is unlikely to advance against used backwashes and trolleys. Where a business needs working capital, a different facility is usually the honest answer.
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Not an offer of finance. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval.
Tell us what you’re looking to fund and Conor will come back to you personally — usually the same day.
Prefer to talk? Call 07581 364281 · serving Leeds, York, Harrogate, Wakefield, Selby, Tadcaster & across North & West Yorkshire.
A decline from one lender reflects that lender’s appetite, not the whole market’s.