British Beauty Council Launches Oh Hello Beauty Campaign

The British Beauty Council has launched a national campaign to encourage people back to hair and beauty services and help get businesses back on their feet

More than 7,000 salons in the UK have gone out of business since March last year following the forced closures in light of the pandemic. The British Beauty Council fears that more businesses will suffer the same fate unless people start returning for treatments.

7,000 UK salons have now gone out of business during the pandemic. Image | Shutterstock

While salons were able to reopen on 12 April 2021, they continue to run at 30% less capacity due to Covid-19 restrictions, resulting in more than three million fewer appointments than would have been otherwise.

Millie Kendall, chief executive of The British Beauty Council, commented: “We need to support the high street and city centre premises-based businesses. The personal care sector has not only struggled with the many months of closure and the on-going costs related to keeping their businesses alive – they are also not yet seeing the numbers of clients coming back to salons and stores that they had pre-Covid.

“We need to bring the joy back to beauty by encouraging clients to come back to experience the array of services we offer – most of these require immense skill and can’t always be replicated at home.”

The UK’s £30bn beauty industry was one of the sectors most heavily impacted by coronavirus measures, with hair and beauty salons closed for 140 days of lockdown. The sector employs more than 600,000 of which more than 80% are women. Full-time equivalent employment numbers are down 21% on 2019 as staff hours were cut and redundancies made despite the furlough scheme. At £30bn, the beauty industry contributes more to the UK economy than pubs, which contribute £23bn a year.

Images from the OH HELLO BEAUTY campaign

The campaign features colourful, bold illustrations that celebrate just how fabulous beauty is, how it can make you feel positive and uplifted, and a reminder that the industry is open and ready for business. The copy lines read: “The beauty industry is ready for you now” and the hashtag #OHHELLOBEAUTY.

Salons and stores can get involved by doing the following:

Head to the British Beauty Council website
Download your Oh Hello Beauty campaign posters and social media assets
Print your posters out in either A2 or A3
Place facing outwards to the street in your salon window
Use the social media assets on your Facebook and Instagram accounts, tagging @britishbeautycouncil and #OhHelloBeauty
Use the Gifs and Stickers available via Instagram Stories to help spread the word.
Get your clients involved! Ask them to post pictures of themselves after a visit to you, using #OhHelloBeauty