Mentor

What Mentor does

Mentor Group (曼都集团) is a privately held, family-founded Chinese-heritage hairdressing and beauty services conglomerate established in October 1966 in Taipei, Taiwan by President 赖孝义 (Lai Xiaoyi). Operating under the primary legal entity 上海曼都美容美发有限公司 (Shanghai Mandu Beauty & Hairdressing Co., Ltd.), the group has expanded to over 400 physical salon stores serving 9+ million customer visits annually across Taiwan, Vancouver, Toronto and mainland Chinese provinces including Shanghai, Beijing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian and Guangdong. The business model is direct-to-consumer physical retail, with services spanning haircuts, styling, coloring, perming, scalp and hair care, supported by stored-value cards and membership programs that drive repeat visits from the primary demographic of women aged 25-45 in the middle-to-upper income bracket.

The group's core technology is a standardized in-house training and certification system operated through 叠专学院 (Diesmon Academy), established in 2004, which mandates that all stylists across the chain complete professional assessment before serving customers. This academy maintains international technique partnerships with Vidal Sassoon Academy, TONI&GUY and Asian-Pacific training institutions. The company runs 11 wholly-owned sub-brands (曼都发型, 曼都佳人, AirPlus, 贝丝, 电线, M&Y, Benson, 桔剪, 悠匠, 和悟, 彼丝格) plus 3 partner brands (前卫, 超人气, 歌狄造型), each targeting a distinct price tier and aesthetic segment from premium appointment-based Air Plus to community-workshop 桔剪. The group also partners with L'Oréal's Kérastase brand for premium in-salon hair care product treatments.

Revenue is generated primarily through in-salon service fees paid at the point of consumption or through stored-value membership cards, with no subscription/SAAS revenue stream and no disclosed digital product. The company maintains a mall-storefront distribution model in shopping centers and commercial complexes across first-tier and second-tier Chinese cities, supplemented by an overseas presence in Taiwan and Canada. The corporate structure is wholly family-owned with no external institutional investors, no public listing, and no disclosed M&A activity, and the founding President remains identified as the group's leader as of the 2026 60th anniversary.

Name

Mentor

Legal name

上海曼都美容美发有限公司

Website

https://mentorgroupco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1966

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Mentor Group (曼都集团) is a privately held, family-founded Chinese-heritage hairdressing and beauty services conglomerate operating 400+ salon stores across China, Taiwan and Canada, serving 9+ million customer visits annually through 11 wholly-owned and 3 partner brands targeting middle-to-upper-income women aged 25-45.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hair Salon Services

NAICS

Beauty Salons (812112), Hair, Nail, and Skin Care Services (81211), Cosmetology and Barber Schools (611511)

akta.pro primary industry

Women's Hair Salons (HSALAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Salon Business, Management & Retail Training (HSALANAK), Salon & Spa Management / Operations (EDAOALAK), Professional/Salon Haircare (Backbar & Retail) (CRABABAK), Salon Retail & Backbar Consumables (Disposables, Capes, Towels, Sanitizers) (CRABALAJ)

Keywords

• Professional hair styling
• Hair salon services
• Beauty salon chain
• Hair coloring services
• Scalp care treatments

Headquarters

HQ city

Shanghai

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices16 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hairdressing and Beauty Services: Direct consumer service revenue from haircuts, styling, coloring, perming, and scalp/hair care treatments at salon locations. Membership and stored-value card programs drive repeat visits.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Mentor Group operates a multi-brand chain of physical hair salons delivering professional hair cutting, coloring, perming, blow-drying, and scalp/hair care services directly to consumers. The business spans 400+ storefronts across 11 sub-brands targeting different price tiers and customer segments, supported by an in-house training academy (叠专学院) that certifies all stylists before they work in stores.

Product overview

Mentor Group is a diversified hair styling and beauty service conglomerate operating multiple brands across different market segments. The core offerings include 曼都发型 (Mentor) as the flagship brand targeting middle-to-high-income women, AIR PLUS as a premium eco-friendly salon concept, and 桔剪 as an affordable community workshop format. The group also collaborates with partner brands including 前卫 (fashion-forward styling), 超人气 (popular salon chain), and 歌狄造型 (makeup and styling). Supporting operations include 叠专学院, an internal professional training institution. Together these brands span from mass market to premium segments, serving over 9 million customers annually across 400+ stores in Taiwan, Canada, and mainland China.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 曼都发型 (Mentor): Core hairdressing brand targeting 25-45 year-old middle-to-upper-class white-collar women. All stylists must pass professional training at the group's training school. Emphasises 'professionalism' and 'refined service', positioning as a convenient neighbourhood beauty destination.
• AirPlus
• 曼都佳人
• 贝丝
• 电线
• M&Y
• Benson
• 桔剪
• 悠匠
• 和悟
• 彼丝格
• 叠专学院 (Diesmon Academy)
• 前卫
• 超人气
• 歌狄造型 (Gedi Styling)

Products and services

• 曼都发型 (Mentor Hairdressing) Main hair styling brand offering professional cutting, coloring, perming, and scalp care services for 25-45 year-old middle-to-high-income white-collar women and housewives, with emphasis on 'professionalism' and 'refined service'.
• AIR PLUS Premium hair salon brand advocating environmental protection and natural coexistence principles, using eco-friendly health products with an appointment-based, no-prepaid-stored-value membership model and multi-nationality stylists.
• 桔剪 (JieJian)

Quantifiable outcome

• 400+ stores globally with over 900 million customer visits per year

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• 叠专学院 (Die Zhuan Academy)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner叠专学院 has been dedicated to providing quality hairdressing training courses for hairdressing enterprises since 2004. It serves multiple chain brands including Mentor, Air Plus, Benson, 悠匠, and 桔剪. The academy focuses on comprehensive stylist development covering technical skills (washing, cutting, blow-drying, dyeing, perming, hair care) as well as aesthetics, temperament, and business skills. Four core strengths: professionalism (10+ years teaching experience), global perspective (overseas faculty and trend updates), uniqueness (strong management consulting team), and flexibility (customized courses and overseas study programs).
• 曼都发型, AirPlus, Benson, 悠匠, 桔剪 (and other chain hairdressing brands)coreOthersMentor Group has developed 11 brands including 曼都发型, 曼都佳人, AirPlus, 贝丝, 电线, M&Y, Benson, 桔剪, 悠匠, 和悟, 彼丝格. These brands are served by the group's internal training institution 叠专学院 and share centralized management platforms, training systems, and brand development resources. Annual customer visits exceed 9 million across the ecosystem.
• Multiple hairdressing groups (overseas and cross-strait)minorOthersThe group states it has established partnerships with several hairdressing groups. Presence spans Taiwan, Vancouver, Toronto, Shanghai, Beijing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian, Guangdong. 赖孝义 founded the group in Taipei in 1966, expanding to international markets including Canada (Vancouver, Toronto).

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Kérastase (L'Oréal): Premium professional haircare brand partnered with Mentor Group — comparable as a salon-channel haircare product supplier and ecosystem partner enabling premium treatment services.
• Vidal Sassoon Academy: Internationally recognized hairdressing training and technique institution partnered with Mentor — comparable as a stylist education provider that shapes the talent pipeline Mentor relies on.

Direct peers

• Great Clips: Large US-based hair salon chain franchise model serving millions of customers annually — directly comparable in store-count scale and standardized service delivery, though in a different geography.
• TONI&GUY: Global premium hairdressing chain with whom Mentor has training partnerships; competes in the same premium stylist training ecosystem and Chinese tier-1 city locations.
• Yongqi Beauty (永琪美容美发): Large mainland Chinese hairdressing chain with hundreds of stores, operating a similar franchise/direct-store model targeting middle-class women — directly comparable in scale, customer profile, and service mix.
• Wenfeng Beauty (文峰美发美容): One of the largest mainland Chinese hairdressing and beauty chains, directly competing with Mentor's 曼都发型 brand in tier-1 and tier-2 cities with comparable multi-brand and mall-based storefront strategies.

Broad incumbents

• Supercuts: One of the largest US walk-in hair salon chains with thousands of locations — comparable as a high-volume, standardized chain model serving mass-market customers.
• Regis Corporation: US parent company of multiple salon brands (Supercuts, Cost Cutters, SmartStyle) — comparable in operating a multi-brand salon portfolio at scale, though primarily US-focused.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries11 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 Mentor