Sola Salons Closes Q1 With Franchise Growth and Technology Innovations

Sola Salons, the leading salon suites franchise with over 730 locations nationwide, has marked another strong quarter of growth, celebrating accelerated franchise growth, new technology implementations and enhanced training initiatives that bolster its position as the number one player in the space.

• We’re seeing stronger franchise sales numbers, and this growth is driven by more marketing, an improved sales process and a general excitement about the industry and business model, said Bob Bell, chief financial officer at Radiance Holdings, Sola Salons’ parent company.

In the first quarter, Sola Salons opened four new locations in Rhode Island, California, Nevada and Arizona, and it awarded another 10 new licenses in Florida, California, South Carolina and New York.

Franchise Support

The leadership team remains committed to upholding the highest franchisee support standards and maintaining its strong position in the industry. One of the ways it did this in the first quarter was with the launch of a new customer relationship management system that will be rolling out nationally in the coming months.

• The new CRM will help nurture leads throughout the pipeline and give our operators better technology to help them capture and communicate with their leads throughout the process, said Daryl Hurst, chief operating officer and president of Sola Salons.

Bell emphasized that this commitment to technology remains one of the key priorities of the Sola Salons leadership team as they continue to innovate and ensure franchisees have the tools they need to manage lead flow and maintain a portfolio of happy salon professionals within their locations.

Diversity and Innovation

Sola Salons is celebrating the diversity of the model and the entrepreneurs it supports. With a new “Faces of Sola” campaign, Sola Salons is spotlighting key entrepreneurs throughout the system while highlighting the range of services offered across its locations. While hair services remain important, Sola has evolved to include many other beauty and wellness services, creating even more flexibility and longevity throughout the system.

• We’re continuing to innovate and focus on evolving in all facets of the business, said Hurst. As the biggest player in the game, we’re always striving to improve. If we’re not, someone else will be, and we intend to hold firm in our market share.

Looking toward the remainder of 2025, Sola Salons is focused on maintaining a balance between technology and innovation and its focus on the people-first approach that has been so crucial to its success to this point.

• Technology and hardcore four-wall operations need to be married, said Bell. Those are the intangibles that our team is leaning into, and with this, we’re well-positioned for sustained growth in the competitive market.

Sola Salons was established in 2004 with the opening of its first location in Denver, Colorado. Now with more than 735 locations open in the U.S. and Canada, Sola is proud to offer 20,000+ independent beauty professionals the freedom and benefits of salon ownership without the risk and overhead of opening a traditional salon.