Salon Business, Laws, and Rules
Scope and licensure
Law questions test whether you know who may do what and which agency regulates which piece. State boards license practitioners and salons, set sanitation and scope-of-practice rules, and conduct inspections. OSHA governs workplace safety, including bloodborne pathogens and hazard communication. The FDA oversees cosmetics and labeling but does not approve cosmetics before sale, and it treats claims that alter body function as drug claims. The FTC polices advertising and endorsement claims. Follow your state board's current rule for specifics such as display of license and renewal deadlines rather than relying on memory.
Running the business
Know the employment models - employee versus booth renter or independent contractor, with the control and tax differences that follow - plus record keeping, client records, informed consent, insurance, and pricing. Retail math shows up repeatedly: markup, profit, and break-even, and the difference between gross and net income.
Traps
Believing the FDA 'approves' cosmetics; diagnosing a client's scalp or skin condition in writing; making drug-like claims for a product; assuming a booth renter is an employee because the salon sets the schedule; treating a license as permanent without renewal; and confusing gross with net.
Rule of thumb
Separate 'service' from 'diagnosis' and 'cosmetic' from 'drug' - those two lines answer most law and consumer-protection questions. Worked example: a product costs 8 dollars and the salon sells it for 12 dollars. Markup is the difference (4 dollars); markup percentage on cost is 4 / 8 = 50 percent, while gross profit margin on the retail price is 4 / 12 = about 33 percent.