How to Start a Beard Product Business

A beard product business offers personal grooming products for those with beards or planning to grow beards. Products usually include oils, balms, cleansers and waxes. The products are designed to help beards look and feel as good as possible. They also aid in styling and can improve the condition of the skin underneath. A beard product business may sell directly to consumers and/or offer products through third-party resellers.

Ready to turn your business idea into a reality? Tailor Brands is our top recommendation because it guides you through every step of the formation process with hands-on support — from paperwork and compliance to devising a detailed plan to help you achieve your business goals.

Tailor Brands ($0 + State Fees)

Start a beard product business by following these 10 steps:

  1. Plan your Beard Product Business
  2. Form your Beard Product Business into a Legal Entity
  3. Register your Beard Product Business for Taxes
  4. Open a Business Bank Account & Credit Card
  5. Set up Accounting for your Beard Product Business
  6. Get the Necessary Permits & Licenses for your Beard Product Business
  7. Get Beard Product Business Insurance
  8. Define your Beard Product Business Brand
  9. Create your Beard Product Business Website
  10. Set up your Business Phone System

We have put together this simple guide to starting your beard product business. These steps will ensure that your new business is well planned out, registered properly and legally compliant.

Exploring your options? Check out other small business ideas.

STEP 1: Plan your business

A clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you map out the specifics of your business and discover some unknowns. A few important topics to consider are:

Luckily we have done a lot of this research for you.

What will you name your business?

Choosing the right name is very important. Read our detailed guide on how to name your business. We recommend checking if the business name you choose is available as a web domain and securing it early so no one else can take it.

What are the costs involved in opening a beard product business?

The startup costs for a beard product business can vary a lot depending on what kind of operation you are starting. One major beard product company, Beardbrand, claims to have started with $30, while another sample business plan for a men’s grooming estimated starting costs at approximately $1.5 million. You can experiment with making your own beard oils and setting up at an Etsy shop for under $100. You can also start your own manufacturing facility to make a range of products and spend a million dollars or more.

What are the ongoing expenses for a beard product business?

The ongoing expenses for your company will depend on its size. As mentioned above, you could experiment with product creation and small-batch sales for $100-$200 a month. However, if you are operating a company with multiple staff and manufacturing costs, it could cost you more like $100,000 a month – which is why you need financing if you are starting a brick-and-mortar business.

Who is the target market?

The target market for beard product companies is obvious at first glance – men with beards. But there are subsets in this overall market that can have different priorities. Rural or urban? Blue-collar or white-collar? Ease of growing beards or difficulty? As you can see, you can narrow down your market to make it easier to focus your resources effectively.

How does a beard product business make money?

A beard product business makes money by selling beard products to consumers and/or retailers. Some businesses focus on direct-to-consumer sales, while others will focus on selling products through retailers like drug stores, supermarkets, and so on. These companies may also seek to sell products to salons and barbershops.

How much can you charge customers?

A high-quality beard product can sell for anywhere between $15-$40 or more. Beardbrand sells beard oil for $29, while Husky Beard sells beard oil for $20. These are considered relatively high-end products. The founder of Husky Beard recommends aiming for 400% ROI.

How much profit can a beard product business make?

The founder of Husky Beard says he makes an average of $12,000 a month. Beardbrand is estimated to earn around $200,000 a year. Of course, when you are just starting out, you are likely to make far less. But if you find a winning strategy like these two businesses did, it is reasonable to expect to earn something similar.

How can you make your business more profitable?

To make your beard product business more profitable, you need to reduce costs, increase sales, or both. Ideally, both. Cost reduction tends to come from increasing the scale of your operation. When you are making products in your bedroom, they may cost you $5 or more a bottle to get right. But when you have a manufacturing facility, you can drive that down to a few dollars.

Increasing sales is the most obvious answer to becoming more profitable – which often comes down to good branding. Companies like Beardbrand have built a name for themselves in social media, blogging, and other channels. To differentiate your beard product business, work hard on finding your brand identity and getting your name out there to potential customers.

Want a more guided approach? Access TRUiC’s free Small Business Startup Guide – a step-by-step course for turning your business idea into reality. Get started today!

STEP 2: Form a legal entity

One crucial aspect that cannot be overlooked when starting your beard product business is the importance of establishing a solid business foundation. While sole proprietorships and partnerships are the most common entity types for small businesses, they’re a far less stable and advantageous option than LLCs.

This is because unincorporated business structures (i.e., sole proprietorships and partnerships) expose you as an owner to personal liability for your business’s debts and legal actions, while LLCs protect you by keeping your personal assets separate from your business’s liabilities.

In practice, this means that if your beard product business were to face a lawsuit or incur any debts, your savings, home, and other personal assets could not be used to cover these costs. On top of this, forming your business as an LLC also helps it to appear more legitimate and trustworthy.

Ready to turn your business idea into a reality? Tailor Brands is our top recommendation because it guides you through every step of the formation process with hands-on support — from paperwork and compliance to devising a detailed plan to help you achieve your business goals.

Tailor Brands ($0 + State Fees)

Note: If you’re interested in more information before getting started, we recommend having a look at our state-specific How to Start an LLC guide (DIY) or our in-depth Best LLC Services review (for those opting for a professional service).

STEP 3: Register for taxes

You will need to register for a variety of state and federal taxes before you can open for business.

In order to register for taxes you will need to apply for an EIN. It’s really easy and free!

You can acquire your EIN through the IRS website. If you would like to learn more about EINs, read our article, What is an EIN?

There are specific state taxes that might apply to your business. Learn more about state sales tax and franchise taxes in our state sales tax guides.

STEP 4: Open a business bank account & credit card

Using dedicated business banking and credit accounts is essential for personal asset protection.

When your personal and business accounts are mixed, your personal assets (your home, car, and other valuables) are at risk in the event your business is sued. In business law, this is referred to as piercing your corporate veil.

Open a business bank account

Besides being a requirement when applying for business loans, opening a business bank account:

  • Separates your personal assets from your company’s assets, which is necessary for personal asset protection.
  • Makes accounting and tax filing easier.

Recommended: Read our Best Banks for Small Business review to find the best national bank or credit union.

Get a business credit card

Getting a business credit card helps you:

Recommended: Apply for an easy approval business credit card from BILL and build your business credit quickly.

STEP 5: Set up business accounting

Recording your various expenses and sources of income is critical to understanding the financial performance of your business. Keeping accurate and detailed accounts also greatly simplifies your annual tax filing.

Make LLC accounting easy with our LLC Expenses Cheat Sheet.

STEP 6: Obtain necessary permits and licenses

Failure to acquire necessary permits and licenses can result in hefty fines, or even cause your business to be shut down.

STEP 7: Get business insurance

Just as with licenses and permits, your business needs insurance in order to operate safely and lawfully. Business Insurance protects your company’s financial wellbeing in the event of a covered loss.

There are several types of insurance policies created for different types of businesses with different risks. If you’re unsure of the types of risks that your business may face, begin with General Liability Insurance. This is the most common coverage that small businesses need, so it’s a great place to start for your business.

Another notable insurance policy that many businesses need is Workers’ Compensation Insurance. If your business will have employees, it’s a good chance that your state will require you to carry Workers’ Compensation Coverage.

STEP 8: Define your brand

Your brand is what your company stands for, as well as how your business is perceived by the public. A strong brand will help your business stand out from competitors.

If you already have a logo, you can also add it to a QR code with our Free QR Code Generator. Choose from 13 QR code types to create a code for your business cards and publications, or to help spread awareness for your new website.

How to promote & market a beard product business

Find your target market, your niche, and determine what marketing channels are most likely to reach them. For example, the urban, white-collar beard product market may be reached through advertising on a hiking website, while the rural, blue-collar market may be more easily reached through advertising on a hunting website. The more you can target your products to the right people, the better.  

How to keep customers coming back

The quality of your products is extremely important when you are selling to a narrow niche like beard enthusiasts. Men have had beards forever, but beard products are relatively new. The customers who go out of their way to purchase these products will often be testing whether they want to use them regularly or not. You may only get one chance to convince them. So, ensure that any product with your name on it is the best you can make it.

STEP 9: Create your business website

After defining your brand and creating your logo the next step is to create a website for your business.

While creating a website is an essential step, some may fear that it’s out of their reach because they don’t have any website-building experience. While this may have been a reasonable fear back in 2015, web technology has seen huge advancements in the past few years that makes the lives of small business owners much simpler.

Here are the main reasons why you shouldn’t delay building your website:

  • All legitimate businesses have websites – full stop. The size or industry of your business does not matter when it comes to getting your business online.
  • Social media accounts like Facebook pages or LinkedIn business profiles are not a replacement for a business website that you own.
  • Website builder tools like the GoDaddy Website Builder have made creating a basic website extremely simple. You don’t need to hire a web developer or designer to create a website that you can be proud of.

Recommended: Get started today using our recommended website builder or check out our review of the Best Website Builders.

Other popular website builders are: WordPressWIXWeeblySquarespace, and Shopify.

STEP 10: Set up your business phone system

Getting a phone set up for your business is one of the best ways to help keep your personal life and business life separate and private. That’s not the only benefit; it also helps you make your business more automated, gives your business legitimacy, and makes it easier for potential customers to find and contact you.

There are many services available to entrepreneurs who want to set up a business phone system. We’ve reviewed the top companies and rated them based on price, features, and ease of use. Check out our review of the Best Business Phone Systems 2024 to find the best phone service for your small business.

Recommended Business Phone Service: Phone.com

Phone.com is our top choice for small business phone numbers because of all the features it offers for small businesses and it’s fair pricing.

Is this Business Right For You?

This business is right for anyone with a passion for beards. While you may first imagine that you have to possess a great beard to sell design and sell beard products, that’s not necessarily true. Some beard product businesses are founded by individuals who never manage to grow an impressive beard – but they do know how to make beards healthy and help beard growers look and feel their best.

Want to know if you are cut out to be an entrepreneur?

Take our Entrepreneurship Quiz to find out!

Entrepreneurship Quiz

What happens during a typical day at a beard product business?

A typical day at a beard product business may focus on product design, product sales, team management, finances, or a combination of these. Product design includes designing and testing various beard products. Product sales includes marketing beard products and selling those products. Managers/owners make sure all teams are on track with their tasks and that the business has enough financing to operate.

What are some skills and experiences that will help you build a successful beard product business?

Skills and experience that can help build a successful beard product business include cosmetic design experience, product design experience and sales skills. You are likely to have to juggle multiple roles, particularly when you are starting out. Those roles include developing beard products that set your business apart as well as convincing others to buy those products. You can learn these skills as you go, but it will certainly help if you already have some applicable experience.

What is the growth potential for a beard product business?

The growth potential for a beard products business is significant. Beard products have been growing in popularity for some time now – as has the market for men’s grooming in general – and shows no signs of slowing down. Statista indicates that the global male grooming market in 2018 was around $60 billion and expects it to grow to over $81 billion by 2024.

Take the Next Step

Find a business mentor

One of the greatest resources an entrepreneur can have is quality mentorship. As you start planning your business, connect with a free business resource near you to get the help you need.

Having a support network in place to turn to during tough times is a major factor of success for new business owners.

Learn from other business owners

Want to learn more about starting a business from entrepreneurs themselves? Visit Startup Savant’s startup founder series to gain entrepreneurial insights, lessons, and advice from founders themselves.

Resources to Help Women in Business

There are many resources out there specifically for women entrepreneurs. We’ve gathered necessary and useful information to help you succeed both professionally and personally:

  • Funding
  • Events
  • Guides
  • Support

If you’re a woman looking for some guidance in entrepreneurship, check out this great new series Women in Business created by the women of our partner Startup Savant.

What are some insider tips for jump starting a beard product business?

The founder of Beardbrand recommends figuring out what you enjoy doing the most with your business and outsourcing the rest of the work. For him, it was blogging about and building the company’s brand. For you, it might be designing products or finding investors. Whatever your passion is, it will be easier to do your job well if you are highly motivated. You can leave the other tasks which you are not as likely to do well to others.

How and when to build a team

You can only do so much on your own. While you could start off making some oils and selling them online, if you want to grow your business you will need help. If you are questioning whether you need to hire someone, just pay attention to your schedule. When you are working 12 hour days and unable to keep up with customer demand, you have to spread the load out sooner rather than later – otherwise you risk burnout.

Useful Links

Further Reading