Great Clips

Great Clips is a national hair salon brand that operates through a franchise model across the United States and Canada. The company focuses on walk‑in haircuts for men, women, and children, offering a straightforward service that fits into everyday routines. Most locations are in neighborhood strip centers, community shopping centers, and power centers, typically near grocery stores, drugstores, and other daily‑needs retailers.

The brand started in 1982 when two entrepreneurs opened the first Great Clips salon near the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. From the beginning, the idea was simple: provide clean, convenient haircuts without appointments, at a consistent price point. That early focus on accessibility and efficiency helped the concept grow quickly. Within a year, the company began franchising, and by 1997 it had reached 1,000 locations, a sign that the model worked well in a wide range of markets.

As of June 2024, Great Clips has more than 4,400 franchised salons in the U.S. and Canada. The system is made up entirely of franchisee‑owned locations, with no corporate‑owned stores. The brand has built a strong presence in suburban and secondary markets, often adding new salons in established trade areas where there is already a mix of retail and service tenants. Growth has been steady, with new locations filling in gaps in existing markets rather than expanding into new countries.

Over the past several years, Great Clips has continued to refine its real estate strategy, focusing on infill opportunities in neighborhoods where residents already shop and run errands. The company’s headquarters oversees site selection, franchise development, and facilities support, which helps maintain consistency across locations while still allowing franchisees to adapt to local conditions. This structure supports a reliable pipeline of small‑format salon spaces in retail centers.

The brand’s core offering remains haircuts and basic haircare, supported by a walk‑in model and a mobile app that lets customers check wait times and reserve a spot. Many locations also sell retail haircare products, but the main draw is the haircut itself. Because the service is frequent and routine, Great Clips tends to attract regular customers, which in turn supports steady foot traffic for the centers where it’s located.

Great Clips has been in the market for over four decades and remains one of the largest salon brands in North America. Its long operating history, franchise‑based growth, and focus on neighborhood retail make it a familiar, low‑friction tenant in many shopping centers.