6 Tips for Adding a Salt Room to Your Spa or Salon Business

You might be ready to get into the salt therapy business, but do you know all the steps in adding a salt room to your spa or salon business?

If you don’t, that’s okay. We’ve put together the basic information to get you started on your salt therapy expansion. From the planning stages to building and marketing your new service offerings, we’ve got you covered.

Top Tips to Add Salt Therapy to Your Business

Knowing what to do first is essential when expanding your business to include new services, regardless of the specifics. At this stage, you may already have a business plan and the beginnings of a marketing plan for your new venture, so we’ll focus only on the steps you might not know.

As discussed later in this article, the construction timeline may be prohibitive. Therefore it’s necessary to get started as soon as possible on the phases you will need to complete before hiring a contractor. Whether adding to your existing spa or launching a new business, the following tips will help you organize what needs to be done so you can begin. 

Here are our top six tips to add salt therapy to salon or spa businesses.

#1 What Are the Best Steps to Building a Salt Room?

Halotherapy can be a lucrative addition to any holistic health business. Following the initial start-up and set-up costs, salt therapy is a cost-effective treatment with minimal ongoing overhead and maintenance expenses.

Assuming you are aware of the upside to this fast-growing movement, here are the best steps to get you started building a salt room:

• Identify A Location (existing or new)
• Determine Your Budget for the Build
• Design Your Salt Cave
• Establish a Timeframe With Your Builders
• Purchase Necessary Equipment, Furniture, and Decor

We’ll explore some of these steps in detail in the following sections. If you want more hands-on help during the early stages, contact SALT Chambe to set up a consulatation and risk-free, custom quote.

#2 How Long Does it Take to Build a Salt Room?

Building a salt room spa from start to finish includes multiple phases: design, planning and budgeting, construction, and installation. Each stage is crucial for optimizing your time and financial commitment.

Planning and Design Phase

The planning and design phase can take four to six weeks. During this phase, you’ll want to focus on the following:

• Determine the location and size of your salt room
• Decide on a halogenerator for the space
• Consider HVAC and soundproofing requirements
• Choose design and decor options

This process can take longer without professional help. Working with salt room specialists like SALT Chamber can help ensure your plan is thorough and that you stick to your schedule.

Budgeting Phase

Budgeting for a salt room is nuanced because you need to consider more than the construction costs alone. The budget process should include consultation fees, equipment fees, installation costs, as well as costs for furniture, fixtures, and decor.

While maintenance fees for a salt room are low and won’t start until your facility is up and running, the budgeting phase is an excellent time to plan for these expected expenses. Budgeting is an important part of the build timeline, though it won’t take as long as other phases.

Construction and Installation Phase

Once you’ve established your budget and begun the design phase, we suggest finding and hiring a contractor as soon as possible. The lead time for a salt room build can be up to a year as salt therapy becomes more popular in the United States.

Since constructing a salt room is different from other forms of construction, hiring a contractor experienced in this niche is essential. If you cannot find a general contractor with salt room construction experience, SALT Chamber can work with them. 

#3 What is Needed for a Salt Room?

Among the tips to add salt therapy to your business are some basic requirements. Aside from building materials like Himalayan salt bricks and salt panels, a few considerations exist when designing your salt room.

The following components are prerequisites for opening a salt therapy room to the public:

• Halogenerator – This device grinds and crushes pure-grade sodium chloride into aerosolized salt and disperses it in the salt room, salt cave, or SALT Booth®. Without a halogenerator, there is no halotherapy.

• HaloSalt™ – Only 99.99% pure-grade sodium chloride (salt) can be used with halogenerators. HaloSalt™ costs $25 for a 10-pound container and is sufficient for hundreds of sessions.

• Furniture – Relaxing loungers, zero-gravity or Adirondack chairs, and salt benches or beds can add to your client’s comfort and relaxation during a halotherapy session. If you plan to promote the benefits to children, consider incorporating a saltbox or small table and chairs.

• Decor and Fixtures – Personal preference determines your decor and fixtures in the salt therapy room. Himalayan salt panels or bricks, backlighting, and stereo systems can add to the ambiance in the halotherapy room.

Whether you convert an existing space or complete a ground-up build, room modifications for technical and environmental concerns are required. In addition to a general contractor, you will want to consult with an HVAC technician to ensure environmental control measures are taken.

#4 How Much Does it Cost to Build a Salt Room?

The cost of adding salt therapy to your business varies depending on your specific needs and wants for your salt room. Compared to adding other spa options, adding salt therapy to spa service offerings is relatively affordable, especially when you consider the return on investment.

Salt room spas are as unique as the facilities they go in, so don’t make the mistake of thinking they are one-size-fits-all. While this may make budgeting slightly more complex, it allows you to personalize your spa with a salt room that fits your needs and strategies.

Costs associated with adding salt therapy to your spa are as follows:

• Securing a new facility (if applicable)
• Expanding your existing facility
• Consultation fees
• Construction fees (including permits and licenses)
• Installation fees
• Equipment, furniture, fixtures, and decor purchases

Depending on the size of your salt room, what materials you choose for the build, and which decor, furniture, and equipment choices you make, building a salt room doesn’t have to break the bank.

#5 How Are Salt Rooms Built?

There are many ways to build a salt room. The style and design can incorporate the aesthetic of your existing spa business and other services offered. Salt rooms can accommodate one person or serve as group treatment spaces. You can transform an existing space into a salt room spa or build one from the ground up.

While it may seem simple, there are many factors to consider during the design and build phases. In addition to the obvious considerations such as equipment, decor, and furnishings, your contractor also needs to factor in the following:

• The floor’s structural strength
• Protecting exposed metal structures
• Environmental humidity and ventilation
• Appropriate sealing of wall openings and ceilings

When constructing a salt room spa, the walls and ceilings are often covered with Himalayan salt bricks or salt panels, which adds additional weight. Some salons also cover the floor with granulated pink Himalayan salt crystals to simulate a beach environment.

Enlisting the services of a specialized salt room builder like SALT Chamber will save you money in the long run since we know exactly what the build process entails.

#6 How Do You Market Your Spa with Salt Room Services?

The first step to successfully marketing your new service offering is to update your website and marketing materials. Beyond adding the new service, you may also want to provide some basic information about salt therapy. Explain the benefits of halotherapy and how customers should prepare for a session.

Next, promoting your new salt therapy treatment through online advertising, social media promotions, and traditional mediums (i.e., flyers and local newspapers) is a good idea. You can also pair salt therapy with existing services and offer discounts for first-time takers.

Combining salt therapy and massage allows you to increase the therapeutic benefit to your customers. Some wellness centers have incorporated salt therapy into yoga classes to help set them apart from the competition. It can be helpful to simplify online booking to include salt therapy as an add-on or upgrade to more familiar services.

Why Consider Adding Salt Therapy to Your Business?

Salt therapy rooms provide treatment that mimics a salt cave environment in a manufactured space. Treatment rooms can accommodate one person or a group. Salt’s natural anti-inflammatory and antibacterial healing benefits can also be incorporated into any existing spa services.

Halotherapy may assist your clients with the following:

• Enhance respiratory and skin health
• Accelerate skin rejuvenation
• Help detox the lungs
• Strengthen the immune system
• Boost athletic performance
• Reduce stress, anxiety, and fatigue
• Improve overall wellness in adults, children, and pets

Apart from the benefits to your customers, adding salt therapy to spa and salon businesses can grow your revenue.

Converting an empty or underutilized space in your facility into a salt therapy room increases your earnings per square foot. And with low labor and maintenance costs, halotherapy has enormous earning potential once the set-up and installation costs are spent.

Enhance Your Spa with Salt Room Services

Adding salt therapy to spa or salon offerings is a great way to add to your bottom line and improve the health of your community. Diversifying your services increases the benefit for your existing customers and may help attract new clients.

Respiratory and skin health have become increasingly important for people in recent years, so it’s no wonder halotherapy is growing in popularity. Now is the perfect time for adding salt therapy to your business if you don’t want this revenue-generating movement to leave you behind.

Learn the Top Tips for Adding a Salt Room to your Spa or Salon Business

No one has more experience and knowledge in this industry than SALT Chamber. Our experienced professionals understand all aspects of design and installation to help meet your goals. If you still have questions or want tips on how to successfully get into the salt therapy business, check out our free web class today.

The SALT Chamber design and installation team has the largest portfolio of completed salt room projects in the world. Contact SALT Chamber today to download our 32-page magazine price guide and learn how we can help make building your salt room a stress-free experience.