As
@BannerPenguin says, you need to get a good contract drawn up in the event that one of you wants to leave the partnership.
This is a common occurrence when one of the joint owners wants to start a family and take extended maternity leave or return part-time and the other partner feels the burden of running the business on their own for an extended period but receiving half the profits.
Also, if the second owner can’t afford to buy out the friend and has to close the business.
Sadly, lots of good friendships are ruined by going into business together because they didn’t consider that their personal circumstances might change.
You both need to share the same work ethic, high standards and be willing to talk things through and compromise when you have a difference of opinion. That doesn’t mean the same person always conceding! Building a successful salon business isn’t just a matter of being good at doing treatments. You need to be equally good at overseeing the business side of things.
Will you be offering the same services or one doing beauty and the other hair? I would suggest that ideally, you need to be able to bring complementary skills to the table so perhaps one is good at dealing with people and the other is great with finance/marketing.
Most new businesses can’t afford to take a wage (or much of one) for the first 2 years. Have you sat down and drawn up a financial plan?
You’ll need a cushion of savings to cover the essential bills during the quieter months. If Brexit goes ahead, a lot of people will be tightening their belts and luxury purchases such as Beauty treatments are likely to be early casualties.
