Popular mall, strip mall chain quietly closed 443 locations in 2025

In many ways, buying a big-name franchise represents living the American dream.

As the purchaser, you get access to a big-name brand that everyone knows, and, in theory, customers should flow in. With a good franchised brand, you ideally get all the training you need, while the corporation handles advertising and makes sure customers show up.

"Being a franchise owner means adopting a business model that has been tested and perfected over time. As part of a larger network, franchisees receive ongoing support and training from the franchisor, which covers aspects such as management, staffing, marketing, and day-to-day operations. The franchise system usually has well-established supply chains, which can lead to cost savings and operational efficiencies," Entrepreneur shared.

That sounds great, but buying a franchise comes with risks.

"A downside to being in a more extensive franchise system is that if one franchisee creates negative publicity, it can affect your profits," FindLaw.com reported.

Franchise operators also have non-negotiable costs over which non-franchised businesses might have more control.

"Just because you signed a franchise agreement and paid the initial startup costs does not mean you stopped paying the franchise. You will have to pay ongoing fees to the franchisor," the legal website shared. These include:

• Advertising funds
• Ongoing fees
• Ongoing costs such as mandatory purchases of new inventory, furniture, or remodeling costs when corporate requires it
• Royalty fees to use the trademarks, licenses, and manuals

Franchises can be a path to financial success, but even companies with a successful franchise model have individual franchisees that fail.

That's something Regis, the owner of Supercuts, Cost Cutters, and Roosters, has proven, as it has closed at least 100 locations every year since 2020, including 443 so far in 2025.

Supercuts closures since 2020: what we know

• In the fiscal year 2020, Regis reported closing 102 Supercuts salons.
  Source: Regis annual report
• In 2021, the number of closed Supercuts franchise salons spiked with 273 salons shut down.
  Source: CloudFront
• By 2022, closure activity slowed, but was still substantial as 156 franchised Supercuts salons closed.
• In 2023, Regis data show 196 franchised Supercuts salons closed.
  Source: CloudFront
• As of September 30, 2023, total franchised Supercuts salons stood at 2,060, down from 2,264 at the beginning of the period, reflecting the net closures.
• There have also been closures of company-owned Supercuts salons, not just franchises (e.g., in 2021, 54 company-owned salons were shut down).
  Source: CloudFront
• The decline is part of a broader structural shift by Regis — consolidating and slimming down its brands, and focusing more on an asset-light franchising model.
• Even as some locations close, the chain continues to exist, and in 2024, it launched a loyalty program across 1,900 salons, indicating a strategy to stabilize and retain customers.
  Source: Regis press release
• Regis has closed 443 franchises so far in 2025.
  Source: Regis earnings call transcript

Regis closed 443 franchised salons in 2025

Regis, it should be noted, has a very healthy business.

"Total first quarter revenue was $59 million, an increase of 28% or $12.9 million compared to the prior year. This increase was primarily driven by increased revenue from company-owned salons resulting from the acquisition of Align in December of 2024, as well as an increase in same-store sales of 0.9%," CFO Kersten Zupfer shared during the company's first-quarter earnings call.

Despite that, Regis still closed hundreds of locations during the quarter.

"The 443 net franchise closures year-over-year, excluding the Align salons that converted to company-owned, primarily involved underperforming stores that had significantly lower trailing 12-month sales volumes than our top-performing locations," she shared.

Comparing revenue for stores that closed versus ones the company kept open, the difference was stark.

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"The performance gap between these closed stores and our highest-performing units was approximately $350,000, underscoring the strong potential within our system and highlighting the opportunity we have to further enhance profitability margins and cash flow generation as we continue executing our transformation strategy," she said.

Zupfer does expect that the worst is behind the company.

"We continue to believe fiscal year 2025 was the last year of closures in this order of magnitude," she added.

Startup costs to buy a Supercuts franchise

• Total initial investment to open a new Supercuts salon is typically $185,000-$318,000.
  Source: International Franchise Association
• This investment covers build-out/leasehold improvements, equipment, inventory, initial operating expenses, signage, computer/point-of-sale (ePOS) setup, training, initial advertising, etc.
  Source: Sharpsheets
• The initial (or “development/franchise”) fee paid to the franchisor is quoted at $39,500 for a standard store.
  Source: Entrepreneur
• Some financing and liquidity requirements are typical. For example, some sources indicate a minimum of $75,000 in liquid cash (or higher, depending on net worth) is required to qualify.
  Source: Franchise.com
• Additional startup costs might include three months’ working capital, rent deposit, grand‑opening advertising, licenses/permits, etc. These vary by location and lease terms.
  Source: Sharpsheets

Ongoing costs a fees to operate a Supercuts

• Once operating, a Supercuts franchisee pays royalty fees, typically 6% of gross sales monthly.
• There is also typically an advertising / ad‑royalty fee (national/regional marketing contribution), which is often cited as being around 5% of gross sales, depending on location and agreement terms.
• Operating costs for the business may include: lease/rent for the salon space (often in strip malls or retail centers), utilities, labor (stylists, staff), inventory (hair‑care products), permits/licenses, ongoing maintenance, marketing, and other overhead. (These vary widely depending on location.)
• According to one recent summary (2025), after costs, a single-store owner might net roughly $39,700 to $51,100 per year, though that depends heavily on local demand, costs, and efficient operations.
  Source: Entrepreneur

Supercuts operator shares why he bought in

Gary Robins, an experienced franchise operator, owns over 60 Supercuts locations. He shared why he decided to invest in the brand in an interview with Leasecake.

"So I was looking at 20 different businesses. If you’d asked me to rank them from one to 20 I would have ranked hair salons number 21. I had no intention whatsoever of getting into the hair salon business, but as I ran this criteria over and over, and then narrowed it down to 5 and Supercuts (no pun intended) made the cut," he said.

Robins, who previously operated a video rental business and a travel franchise, was confident in his selection methodology.

"It was really an objective analysis. There were business owners that were open and sharing, and the leadership team that I met at Supercuts shared my values and culture, which was important, because it’s easier to get divorced than it is to get out of your franchise agreement," he added.

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