Boulevard Brings In $11M For Beauty Biz Software Development

Boulevard, a provider of back-office management software for the spa and salon industry, has raised $11 million in a Series A funding round from investors, including Index Ventures and Bonfire Ventures. As part of the deal, Index Ventures Principal Damir Becirovic, as well as Co-founder and Managing Director Jim Andelman of Bonfire Ventures, will both take seats on the company’s board of directors.

Founded in 2016 by Matt Danna and Sean Stavropoulos, Boulevard now has more than 50 full-time employees, and is processing over $100 million in customer payments. This latest round of funding will be used to hire new staff in all departments.

U.S. salons and barbershops make up a $315 billion industry, with almost 3 million small businesses and 4 million independent aestheticians. Los Angeles-based Boulevard’s software toolkit enables salons and spas to take care of booking and scheduling, payroll, commissions, inventory management, payments and customer management.

According to the company website, Boulevard is transforming business management for premium beauty service brands through its proprietary Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS). It is “the only management tool built specifically for appointment-based businesses that delivers ease of use with style and sophistication.”

Clients include Chris McMillan the Salon, Ken Paves Salon, MèCHE Salon, Sev Laser, Spoke & Weal and TONI&GUY. Users have reported results that include a 16 percent increase in services booked, an 18 percent boost in retail revenue, a 24 percent rise in tips and an 81 percent decrease in no-shows or late cancellations within the first six months.

“Competitors in the space have been trying to shoehorn a product that was built for yoga and pilates studios into the beauty industry, but the two have completely different needs,” said Becirovic. “Boulevard was built specifically for personal care businesses, and is a high-tech solution for a high-touch market where no one else comes close.”