Brits set to spend £3.1bn on pre-Christmas beauty and hair treatments

Despite the rising cost of living, Brits are set to spend £58.80 a head on beauty and hair appointments in the run up to Christmas, according to new stats.

The research from wholesaler Capital Hair and Beauty found that UK consumers will spend an average of £58.80 on beauty and hair treatment spend this festive season.

Most said they won’t be cutting back, with almost half (44%) planning to spend the same amount as in previous year and almost a quarter (23%) expecting to spend more.  


Residents of Northern Ireland expected to splash out the most, with those in Lisburn expecting to splash out at £171.50 a head, followed by Belfast residents at £85.20.

Meanwhile, those in Swansea residents are expected to spend the least at £30.90. 

The research surveyed 2,000 consumers from 49 UK towns and cities to learn more about the nation’s intentions for hair and beauty bookings in the lead up to Christmas 2022. 


Other cities that made the top five spenders were London at £83.90, Leicester (£80.20), and Warrington (£79.70).

Joining Swansea in the bottom five spenders were Dudley at £31.20, St Albans (£33.40), Wrexham (£34.80) and Kingston upon Hull (£35.40).

Top 10 towns and cities	Planned spend on festive treatments
Belfast	£171.50
London	£83.90
Leicester	£80.20
Warrington	£79.70
Portsmouth	£74.30
Oxford	£74.20
Northampton	£69.20
Glasgow	£69.00
Blackpool	£66.60
Middlesbrough	£66.60

Which towns will increase their Christmas beauty spend the most?

Sunderland had the highest number of residents who are planning to spend more than they had done in previous years (60%).    

Town/City	% of consumers who plan to spend more on appointments this festive season
Sunderland	60%
Peterborough	39%
Middlesbrough	35%
Edinburgh	33%
Kingston upon Hull	31%

However, in Newport, more than half (57%) of consumers said they’ll be spending less than they have in recent years. 

Town/City	% of consumers who plan to spend less
Newport	57%
Plymouth	53%
Walsall	47%
Coventry	43%
Carlisle	43%

Which beauty treatments will be most popular in the lead up to Christmas?

While hair services top many clients' pre-Christmas essentials list, many beauty treatments also made the top 10, witheyebrow shaping coming in at number five, massage at number nine, and gel manicures and hair removal at joint tenth. 

Top 10 hair and beauty treatments in the lead up to Christmas 2022	% of UK consumers booking in for these services
Wash, cut and blow dry	47%
A trim	36%
Blow dry	12%
Full head colour	12%
Eyebrow shaping	12%
Hair curled/waved	11%
Hair styled for an event	11%
Massage	11%
Shaved head	10%
Gel manicure	10%
Hair removal/waxing	10%

 

In fact, that stats who that a quarter of UK women (25%) will be treating themselves to a gel or acrylic manicure this December, and 5% of UK men will also be booking in for some type of manicure.

Samantha Shamplina-Burkwood​, marketing manager at Capital Hair and Beauty commented: “It’s great to see that as we approach the Christmas season, we’re still prioritising looking and feeling our best and booking in with our favourite hair and beauty professionals.  

We found that a large number of Brits are getting their appointments booked early this year, however, for those of us that like to leave it to the last minute it’s important to remember to be flexible with the times and days we ask at our salons for to increase the chances of us getting booked in before Christmas or any festive events we’re heading to this year.”