Bhopal: If you stepping into a parlour to take beauty treatments and spa services, first please check your wallet as salon services and beauty products have become costlier after the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Services including make-up, spa, facial, bleach, manicure, pedicure, haircut, dyeing et al have become costlier post GST and this is not just bothering women at large but has become a great concern for men as well.
Under GST, all salon services have been brought under slab of 28 per cent tax. Basic beauty products like make-up kits, aftershave lotions, perfumes, manicure-pedicure sets, cosmetics, skin care products, shampoos, hair dyes and wigs have become dearer. The rise in the prices of beauty products has also affected business of parlours badly.
Sneha Upadhyay, who has been running Shneha Skin Care, Salon and Spa in Ashoka Garden for eight years said, “GST has affected our business badly specially the business of small and medium parlours. Our turnover is down by 60 per cent. We are incurring great loss. Earlier, we never gave bills or take taka by bills while making purchases of the products. After the implementation of GST, we now have to pay 28 per cent on each product. Earlier, it was 14 per cent. It has just doubled,”
Upadhyay, who is associated in field of wellness and beauty for last 11 years further said, “We normally charge 500 for facial in which our costing charge is 100 and we get profit of Rs 400. But after GST, costing charge has increased. Now we will have to pay Rs 250 as costing charge. So if we don’t increase the rates then we will have to bear loss.” “Our clients specially those who do not have any knowledge of GST are not ready to listen anything and refuse to pay as per revised rates. They want all services on previous prices only,” she lamented.
“We hiked prices a bit from Rs 50 to 2000 on each products and services. The prices varied on products. Still the prices are not fixed because we didn’t get any guideline. We will decide after Rakshabandhan,” the beautician added.
Similarly, Geeta Gogade who has been running Lips Beauty Parlour at Rishipuram, near Awadhpuri said, “ thoda bahot to fark aaya hi hai. Our business is down. The rates of beauty products have increased. The customers too do not have clear idea about rates post GST but many are not visiting parlours thinking cosmetics products have become expensive. Still we are being lenient and providing our service and keeping rates flexible,” she said adding that “ with festive seasons are round the corner, we are hoping for good business.”
GST may affect parlour and salon which has yearly turnover of Rs 20 lakh and above. They will only have to pay GST. But the majority of such parlours are less in the city. Also if one takes into account the prices of products, they have been hiked yet. The companies of the cosmetic products are trying to adjust internally by not giving any discount on products to lessen the burden of beauticians.
– Dr. Sarita Shrivastava, president of Beauty parlour Association, Bhopal
