A mega pandemic comeback: Sola opens 100-chair salon in northeast Minneapolis

A “mall” dedicated to beauty opened Saturday in northeast Minneapolis, bringing the likes of hairstylists, aestheticians and tattoo artists into one 29,000-square-foot warehouse.

The opening of Sola Salon Studios, the 101-stall building touted in a news release as “the largest salon in the Midwest,” marks the latest expansion for the national franchise. Like at all Sola salons, the facility on NE. 2nd Street next to Fulton’s brewery leases out various spaces to independent beauty professionals who specialize in nail, hair, massage and more.

Many Sola salons around the Twin Cities are part of strip malls. This new outpost looks more like a small-scale shopping center all on its own.

Most traditional salons average eight chairs, said Erin Elgin, who oversees 14 Sola Salons in the Twin Cities. More than 75 service providers have signed leases at the new site, and the space holds 114 chairs with a few multichair studios. The current makeup of leased studios is roughly 80% hair stylists and barbers and 20% everything else, Elgin said.

“We keep our rents at a price point so that anybody can come in,” Elgin said. “You walk through, and you see people at all different stages in their career and the diversity of service providers all under one roof.”

Another of Elgin’s locations in Eden Prairie started as 37 studios but has since expanded to 72, something people thought was “crazy to do,” she said. But the buildout of that space helped shape her vision for the location in Northeast.

“The whole expansion was sold out before we opened,” Elgin said of Eden Prairie. “That told me, ‘Well, if it’s already sold out before it opens, we can go even bigger in the right spot.”

The setup offers service providers a middle ground between traditional salons and owning their own brick-and-mortars. Tenants pay an all-inclusive weekly rent ranging from about $250 to $450 per week based on square footage and the number of exterior windows. That figure includes utilities and on-site support from Sola as well as access to amenities like a fitness center; a yoga and meditation space; and a podcast and content-creation studio. An in-house beauty supply store is also available for any licensed professional, not just those leasing space at Sola.

Each studio comes with standard sinks, cabinetry and salon chairs. But tenants can choose to have Sola install personalized fixtures and decorations. Every lease includes three hours of moving and decorating help.

Leases run two years, but Elgin said they are “easy-out” contracts. That lease flexibility and additional support attracted aesthetician Ally Kanzenbach, owner of House of Koz,, who said the Sola model gives her professional and creative freedom without the overhead of managing a storefront.

“In my previous suites, I’ve had to be responsible for the installation. And it gets expensive when you’re doing that,” Kanzenbach said. “I don’t have experience putting screws on the wall. I don’t know where the electricity is. When everything is combined and taken care of for you, it alleviates so much stress.”

The personal care industry endured major upheaval recently, when the pandemic shuttered salons for three months in 2020 and allowed for operating at just 25% capacity in the months after reopening.

Sola waived all rents for the entirety of the shutdown, Elgin said, which resulted in an $800,000 loss. The franchises also led a statewide lobbying effort to allow independent service providers to qualify for unemployment benefits.

While some qualified for that help, many who didn’t made the decision to leave the profession, Elgin said. And many providers still struggle with mental health challenges stemming from the stress of that, she added.

Sola’s business model actually boosted its recovery, as the typical single-chair studio in a fully enclosed space helped customers and service providers feel more comfortable returning to work. That, in turn, increased demand for the spaces, Elgin said.

Even years removed from the pandemic, Sola is still prioritizing affordability for providers. Twin Cities-area Sola locations haven’t raised rent in nine years, according to a company Instagram post. Rising operational costs — such as labor, rent and insurance — are a “pressure point” for the industry, said Rob Goggins, president of Great Clips, in an email.

“Salon brands that adapted quickly and stayed close to their customers during and after the pandemic are growing today,” he wrote.

Beyond the financial aspects, hairstylist Erin Stewart, who leased a four-chair suite in Northeast with friends, said the sense of camaraderie is what drew her to Sola. Clients might come in for a haircut and discover an aesthetician or tattoo artist down the hall. And tenants often run promotions together or refer clients to each other.

Elgin said that kind of collaboration is common in Sola settings.

“I really enjoy the buzz of a salon,” Stewart said. “Being able to thrive off each other’s energy in our own space was important to me.”