Raising Your Prices Is Easy. Telling Customers Is the Hard Bit.

Who this is for

Salons, barbers, cleaners, gardeners, window cleaners, tutors, dog groomers — any service business where you're quoting a set price list to regular customers, rather than pricing each job individually. If you dread the "prices are going up" conversation more than the maths behind it, this is for you.

How much notice should I give?

Two to six weeks is the sweet spot. Enough time for regulars to see it coming and not feel ambushed, but not so long that it drags on and invites debate. Announce it, give a clear date, and let it land.

Will I lose clients?

Some owners assume a price rise means a mass walkout — in practice, churn from a modest, well-explained increase is far lower than feared. Do the maths: if you put a £25 service up by £2, you only need to keep roughly 92% of that revenue for the rise to break even on any lost custom. Regulars stick with people they trust, not the cheapest price in town — and most won't leave over a couple of pounds.

Should I grandfather regulars?

You can, but you don't have to. A simple, fair rule that works well: anyone with a booking already in the diary keeps their old price for that visit, and the new price applies from the effective date onward for everyone. That avoids the admin headache of tracking who's "old price" and who isn't, while still honouring commitments you've already made.