Blushes

What Blushes does

Blushes, trading as The Blushes Collective, is a private UK-owned hair and beauty salon group founded in 1986 and headquartered in Cheltenham. The company operates seven wholly-owned salons — Cheltenham (original flagship and headquarters), Nailsworth, Worcester, Oxford, Cirencester, Solihull, and Tetbury — offering a full range of hair services (cutting, styling, colouring including balayage and creative colour, highlights, hair extensions via Beauty Works, bridal hair) plus beauty treatments (HydraFacial, HD Brows, facials, nails, waxing, Kerastraight smoothing, Olaplex treatments). The Oct 2022 Tetbury location was added through acquisition of Creative Hairdressing, taking the group from four to seven salons.

The core operating model is a stylist co-working collective: freelance hairdressers and colourists rent space inside Blushes' premium salon environments under a shared creative ethos, enabling 1:1 client experiences and personalised consultations. The proprietary Hair ID methodology is a booklet-based consultation that assesses skin tone, undertones, eye colour, hair type, and scalp to design bespoke looks, complemented by repeat-visit services such as Balayage Uplift and a specialist Curly Cut Package. Operations are powered by Zenoti for online booking, client profiles, and payments (with card storage GDPR-compliant), alongside Klarna and Pay L8R for consumer financing, and Google Analytics for site traffic insight.

Revenue is generated on a per-appointment basis across service categories (hair and beauty), with ancillary retail of premium professional products including L'Oréal Professional (the dominant colour brand except at Tetbury which also uses Redken), Kérastase, Olaplex, Color Wow, and Beauty Works. Multi-session discounts (e.g., HydraFacial course of six) and course packages drive retention. The addressable customers are individual consumers across routine maintenance, transformative colour/extension work, and special-event styling (notably bridal); secondary B2B-style relationships include a stylist talent pipeline via the in-house Training Academy launched in 2021. The stated marketing mix combines organic content (The Blushes Journal), social media (Instagram @blusheshair, Facebook), email/newsletter, SEO, guest-artist and local community partnerships, and charity initiatives such as the Big Blushes Ramble supporting FareShare UK.

Name

Blushes

Legal name

Blushes

Website

https://blushes.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Blushes is a private UK hair and beauty salon collective operating seven owned premium salons across the Cotswolds, Oxford, Worcester, and Solihull, offering hair styling, colouring, extensions, bridal services, and beauty treatments under a co-working model for freelance stylists.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hair and Beauty Salon Services

NAICS

Beauty Salons (812112)

akta.pro primary industry

Hair Coloring & Highlights Services (HSALAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Personal Color Analysis & Style Consulting (HSACAJAD)

Keywords

• Hair salon services
• Bridal hair styling
• Professional hair colouring
• Hair extensions services
• Co-working salon model

Headquarters

HQ city

Cheltenham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hair and Beauty Services: Blushes generates the majority of its revenue from paid hair and beauty service appointments across its 7 UK salon locations. Services include cuts, colouring, highlights, balayage, treatments, styling, hair extensions, bridal hair, and beauty treatments. Revenue is generated on a per-appointment basis, with colour costs separated from stylist time for transparency.
2. Retail Product Sales: Blushes retails premium professional hair care products including L'Oréal, Kérastase, Olaplex, and Color Wow, allowing clients to purchase salon-recommended products for home use. This creates ancillary revenue per transaction.
3. HydraFacial Treatments: Specialist HydraFacial skin treatments are offered as individual sessions starting at £99 or as a course of 6 treatments at a discounted rate, providing a premium treatment revenue stream.
4. Klarna Payment Processing: Blushes has partnered with Klarna to offer flexible payment options, allowing clients to pay for services in 3 interest-free instalments or up to 30 days later, facilitating higher-value bookings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Blushes (The Blushes Collective) operates a network of 7 premium hair and beauty salons across the UK, offering professional hair services including cutting, styling, colouring, balayage, extensions, bridal hair, plus beauty treatments such as HydraFacial, HD Brows, nails and waxing. The business uses a co-working model where freelance stylists and colourists work under a shared ethos to deliver personalised 1:1 client experiences. Services are supported by a proprietary Hair ID consultation methodology and exclusive product partnerships with L'Oréal, Kérastase, Olaplex, and Beauty Works.

Product overview

Blushes is a multi-location hair and beauty salon collective offering a comprehensive range of services across 7 UK locations. The core offering centers on hair services (Hair ID consultations, styling, colouring, extensions, and wedding hair) supplemented by beauty treatments including HydraFacial, HD Brows, and nail services. The business operates under a co-working model that enables personalized, one-to-one client experiences. Services use premium product brands including L'Oréal (colour), Kérastase, Olaplex, and Beauty Works (extensions).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hair ID Consultation A bespoke consultation that assesses skin tone, eye colour, hair type, and scalp health to curate a personalised look and home care guide for individual consumers seeking tailored hair services.
• Hair Styling Professional hair cutting and styling services including cuts, blow-drys, and special occasion styling for individual men and women clients.
• Hair Colouring Full range of colouring services including balayage, ombré, highlights, lowlights, full and half head foils, toner, creative colour, and colour correction using L'Oréal products for individual clients.
• Hair Extensions Professional hair extension services using Beauty Works products including Nano Bonds, Clip-ins, Slimline Tapes, Wefts, Ponytails, and Stick Tip bonds for individual clients, with complimentary consultations.
• Wedding Hair Bridal and special event hair styling services including updos, braids, chignons, and wedding party styling for brides, bridal parties, and event clients.
• Beauty Services Comprehensive beauty treatments including nails, waxing, facials, eyebrow treatments, and HD Brows for individual consumers.
• HydraFacial Treatments Exclusive facial treatment using patented technology and serums to cleanse, hydrate, and revitalise skin, offered as individual sessions starting at £99 or as a discounted course of 6 treatments.
• HD Brows High-definition eyebrow treatment combining waxing, tinting, threading, and tweezing for perfectly shaped and coloured eyebrows, starting from £25.
• Kerastraight Treatment A smoothing treatment designed to address hair challenges and provide long-lasting straightening results for individual clients.
• Balayage Uplift A bespoke top-up service where colourists work with clients to brighten, tone, or accentuate areas between full balayage colour appointments.
• Curly Cut Package A dedicated curly hair specialist service including a detailed curl consultation, custom home care and styling guide, and a salon-size take-home product for the first two visits.
• Premium Hair Care Retail Retail sale of premium professional hair care products including L'Oréal, Kérastase, Olaplex, and Color Wow for at-home maintenance by clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Skin improvements visible after 4 HydraFacial treatments for brown spots and pigmentation
• +3 more outcomes

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

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• KlarnacoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023Blushes has partnered with Klarna to offer flexible payment options at ALL Blushes locations. Clients can pay for services in 3 interest-free payments or up to 30 days later. The partnership enables clients to manage payments through the Klarna app and helps make premium services more accessible.
• ZenoticoreTechnology or IntegrationBlushes uses Zenoti booking and management software for online reservations, client profile management, and appointment scheduling. Card details are securely stored in the Zenoti system in compliance with GDPR. The platform powers the online booking experience across all locations.
• Creative Hairdressing (Tetbury)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBlushes Collective acquired Creative Hairdressing in Tetbury as its seventh location in August 2022. The acquisition brought an established client base and nearly 40 years of community history to the Blushes Collective.
• Cheltenham Wellbeing Festival / The WellbookminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlushes collaborated with the Cheltenham Wellbeing Festival on The Wellbook Resilience Issue, featuring their Marketing Director Gee writing about self-care fundamentals. This collaboration enriches Blushes' content marketing and community engagement.
• L'Oréal Professional ProductscoreTechnology or IntegrationBlushes works exclusively with L'Oréal for colour services across all locations except Tetbury (which also uses Redken). L'Oréal's Metal Detox Treatment range and professional products underpin the colouring and treatment services. The partnership with Kérastase (a L'Oréal subsidiary) provides premium haircare products.
• HydraFacialcoreTechnology or IntegrationBlushes Cheltenham offers HydraFacial treatments, an exclusive skin treatment using patented technology and formulations for cleansing, hydrating, and revitalising facial skin. Treatments include Britenol for pigmentation, Acne Peel Protocol, and HydraFacial Skin Health for Life.
• Beauty WorkscoreTechnology or IntegrationBlushes exclusively uses Beauty Works hair extensions (Slimline Tapes, Nano Bonds, clip-ins, wefts, ponytails, stick tips). Beauty Works is the 'celebrity choice' for hair extensions, offering natural-looking, long-lasting results with award-winning quality (Best European Hair Extensions, Hair Awards 2019).
• Bitter Lemon CreativeminorOthersBitter Lemon Creative designed and maintains the Blushes website. Founder David Drakeley is also a regular content contributor to The Blushes Journal blog.
• Born Wild TeaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBorn Wild Tea, a Cheltenham-based specialty loose-leaf tea company, partnered with Blushes for a Guest Artist feature on their blog. Born Wild Tea and sister company Fire & Flow offer Blushes clients a 10% discount (code BLUSHES10) on first online orders.
• British Polo GinminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlushes partnered with British Polo Gin, a local Cotswold gin producer, offering clients an exclusive discount (£5 off Strawberry & Rose gin with complimentary miniature and tonics) using code 'BLUSHES' at checkout.
• Pay L8RminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlushes offers a Pay L8R payment scheme allowing clients to spread treatment costs over 3, 6, 9, or 12 months, making higher-value services like HydraFacial courses more accessible.
• FareShare UKminorOthersBlushes partnered with FareShare UK, a charity redistributing surplus food to those in need, for The Big Blushes Ramble — a team-wide charity walk across its salon locations to raise over £1,000 to fight hunger and food wastage.
• MB Style ConsultancyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBlushes collaborated with Michelle Blake-O'Brien of MB Style Consultancy on colour matching and wardrobe advice content, developing a process that identifies which colours work best for clients' skin tones — integrated into the Hair ID consultation offering.
• The Kings Head Hotel (Cirencester)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlushes Cirencester partnered with The Kings Head Hotel to offer clients a locally sourced lunch menu during longer salon appointments, enhancing the overall client experience.
• Junglist AtelierminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBlushes featured Junglist Atelier, a plant shop and biophilia-focused business near their Cheltenham and Nailsworth locations, in a Guest Artist blog feature supporting local independent businesses.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Daniel Galvin Salons: Daniel Galvin is a high-end London colour specialist where Blushes' Tetbury lead stylist previously trained. It competes at the top of the colour market and is a natural comparison for Blushes' balayage and creative colour services.
• Rush Hair: Rush is a UK-wide premium hair salon group operating in similar high-street locations, with comparable colouring, extensions, and bridal services. It is a direct competitor for the same mid-to-premium consumer segment Blushes targets.
• Hershesons: Hershesons is a London-anchored premium hair salon group known for celebrity stylists, colouring, and blow-dry bars. It competes with Blushes for affluent clients seeking premium colour and styling, and shares the editorial/award positioning that Blushes pursues.
• Headmasters: Headmasters is a multi-location premium hair salon group in the South of England with comparable pricing, colouring, and bridal offerings. It overlaps with Blushes' Oxford and London-approach catchment.
• Toni&Guy: Toni&Guy is the UK's largest premium hair salon chain and the previous holder of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing Salon Group of the Year award that Blushes won in 2021. Both compete for premium hair colour, styling, and bridal clients across multiple UK regions.
• John Frieda Salons: John Frieda Salons are UK premium salons with strong colour and styling reputations. They compete directly for the same premium clientele as Blushes and share a brand-led, marketing-intensive go-to-market approach.
• Jo Hansford Salons: Jo Hansford is a London-based premium colour specialist with multiple locations, offering balayage and bespoke colour services. It is comparable to Blushes for its premium positioning, colouring focus, and editorial-led brand presence.
• Richard Ward Hair & Metrospa: Richard Ward is a Chelsea-based premium salon combining hair, beauty, and spa services. Its integrated hair-plus-beauty model closely mirrors Blushes' strategy of pairing L'Oréal colour with HydraFacial and brow services.
• Trevor Sorbie Salons: Trevor Sorbie operates branded UK salons specialising in cutting, colour correction, and bridal hair. The brand's premium and bridal focus makes it a close peer to Blushes' colouring and Wedding Hair service lines.

Emerging players

• Josh Wood Colour Atelier: Josh Wood is a London colour specialist with a strong balayage and creative colour reputation, plus a product line. It overlaps with Blushes' colouring and editorial positioning and represents the kind of premium colour-focused competitor gaining share in the same consumer segment.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/blusheshair
• Instagraminstagram.com/blusheshair

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries7 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 Blushes