San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology

What San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology does

The San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology (SFIEC) is a privately held postsecondary educational institution founded in 2002 and operating from a single South of Market facility at 1067 Folsom Street in San Francisco. It is independently owned but operates as a Paul Mitchell Partner School, delivering the same curriculum, culture, systems, and training methodology used by corporate Paul Mitchell Schools. The school offers five state-approved programs preparing students for California licensure: Cosmetology (1,000 hours), Barbering (1,000 hours), Hairstyling (600 hours), Esthetics (600 hours), and Nail Technology (400 hours). Class sizes are deliberately capped between 14 and 20 students per cohort to support personalized instruction. SFIEC is accredited by NACCAS (six-year term granted January 19, 2022), approved by the U.S. Department of Education to disburse Title IV financial aid (Federal School Code #041413), approved by the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE), and approved by the California State Approving Agency for Veterans. The institution is led by Owner/Dean Melissa Gallipeau, with Yuto Navarrete as Operations Leader.

SFIEC's core curriculum is built around the Paul Mitchell Schools proprietary system, which combines a Multiple Intelligence learning approach adapted from Howard Gardner's Harvard framework with the proprietary Paul Mitchell Cutting System taught through hands-on demonstration and interactive media. Students progress through state-required technical curricula while also developing business-building skills, professional portfolio work, and exposure to national competitions and industry events such as the London Alternative Hair Show. The school complements classroom instruction with a functioning public salon and spa, where students perform hair, barber, skin, waxing, makeup, and nail services under Certified Instructor supervision. Guest service appointments are scheduled through the Mindbody platform and by phone, operating Wednesday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

SFIEC operates a dual revenue model. The primary stream is tuition and fees for its five programs, supplemented by Federal Student Aid, Federal Grants, and Title IV loans for qualifying students. A secondary, smaller revenue stream is generated by the public salon and spa, where services are priced per unit. Recruitment is event-driven: prospective students book campus or virtual tours via Calendly, request information through the Paul Mitchell Schools network, and engage with SFIEC's social presence on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Yelp. The 2022 NACCAS-reported outcomes show an 86.16% graduation rate, a 74.36% placement rate, an 89.47% licensure rate, and a 0% three-year cohort default rate — outcomes that the institution uses in BPPE-published Performance Fact Sheets. There is no evidence of multi-location operations, online program delivery at scale, or any AI/ML-driven product capability.

Name

San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology

Legal name

San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology, Inc.

Website

https://sfiec.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Short description

San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology is a privately held, NACCAS-accredited Paul Mitchell Partner School in San Francisco offering five state-approved cosmetology, barbering, hairstyling, esthetics, and nail technology programs to aspiring beauty professionals preparing for California licensure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Educational Programs: Revenue generated from tuition for cosmetology, barbering, esthetics, and nail technology programs. Financial aid available through federal student assistance programs authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act.
2. Salon and Spa Services: Revenue from comprehensive guest services offered to the public, including hair, skin, waxing, makeup, and nail services. All services performed by students under Certified Instructor supervision.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology is a Paul Mitchell Partner School that delivers state-approved training programs in Cosmetology (1,000 hours), Barbering (1,000 hours), Hairstyling (600 hours), Esthetics (600 hours), and Nail Technology (400 hours) to prepare students for California licensure. It also operates a public salon and spa clinic at its South of Market facility, where students provide hair, barber, skin, waxing, makeup, and nail services under certified instructor supervision.

Product overview

San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology (SFIEC) is a Paul Mitchell Partner School offering a portfolio of five educational programs in Cosmetology (1000 hours), Barbering (1000 hours), Hairstyling (600 hours), Esthetics (600 hours), and Nail Technology (400 hours). All programs are approved by the California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology and prepare students for state licensing exams. Additionally, the school operates a public salon and spa offering hair, barber, skin, waxing, makeup, and nail services performed by students under instructor supervision.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cosmetology Program
• Barbering Program 1,000-hour California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology approved barbering course covering basic barbering skills, health and safety standards, sanitation habits, and business building skills to prepare graduates for the California licensing exam.
• Hairstyling Program 600-hour course covering hairstyling services, customer service, personal appearance, retail skills, business ethics, sanitation, state laws and regulations, and job interviewing skills.
• Esthetics Program 600-hour California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology approved course covering basic skin theory, waxing, skin treatments, health and safety standards, and professionalism to prepare graduates for the California licensing exam.
• Nail Technology Program 400-hour course covering all aspects of nail technology including practical training and technical instruction to prepare graduates for licensing exams.
• Guest Salon and Spa Services Full menu of salon and spa services including hair, barber, skin, waxing, makeup, and nail services performed by students under Certified Instructor supervision at the South of Market facility.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Paul Mitchell SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSFIEC is a Paul Mitchell Partner School, independently owned and operated. The school uses the same curriculum, culture, systems and training as corporate Paul Mitchell Schools. The Paul Mitchell network provides student recruitment support through their website and brand recognition in the beauty industry.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Paul Mitchell Schools (Corporate): Corporate-owned Paul Mitchell Schools run on the same brand, curriculum, and systems as SFIEC but are owned by Paul Mitchell co-founders rather than independent partners, making them the closest direct comparables on student-facing value proposition.
• Aveda Institute: Aveda-affiliated beauty schools operate on the same brand-partner model with curriculum and product access tied to a major professional beauty brand, competing for the same type of brand-conscious, future-professional students.
• Cinta Aveda Institute: Independently owned Aveda partner school with programs in cosmetology and esthetics in the San Francisco Bay Area, making it one of SFIEC's most direct local competitors for student enrollment and clinic-floor clientele.
• Bellus Academy: Private multi-program beauty school offering cosmetology, esthetics, barbering, and makeup programs with similar small-class, premium-brand positioning and Title IV approval—comparable scale and operating model.
• Ogle School: Texas-based family-owned chain of beauty schools offering similar cosmetology, esthetics, and nail programs under a comparable Title IV-supported tuition model with student clinic services—a relevant benchmark for unit economics.
• Xenon International Academy: Private postsecondary beauty school offering a similar program mix with Title IV-approved tuition, providing a closely comparable size and operating profile for single-campus benchmarking.

Broad incumbents

• Empire Beauty School: Largest US chain of cosmetology and esthetics schools, offering Title IV-approved programs at multiple nationwide locations—a direct competitive benchmark on scale, multi-unit economics, and student acquisition efficiency.
• Tricoci University of Beauty Culture: Larger multi-location beauty school based in the Midwest offering cosmetology, esthetics, and barbering programs—comparable curriculum but with multi-unit geographic reach that single-campus operators lack.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sfiec
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/SFIECpmae?feature=watch
• Facebookfacebook.com/SFIEC
• Instagraminstagram.com/sfiec/?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/san-francisco-institute-of-esthetics-and-cosmetology

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology