Sola Salons doesn't run a salon itself — it builds and operates a facility of private, lockable studio suites that independent hairstylists, estheticians, and other beauty professionals each rent and run as their own separate businesses. Buying or selling a Sola Salons location is really a transfer of a real-estate-style operation: the building lease, the suite build-out, and the existing roster of independent suite-licence agreements, not a staff of employees or a single service menu. It's still a small, newer network in Canada, so an Ontario resale is likely to be one of a limited number changing hands so far.
Sola Salons resales follow the franchisor's own approval process on top of the usual purchase mechanics — here's how the two run together.
Getting approved
The offer sets price and structure, with conditions built in for franchisor consent, landlord consent, and continuity of the facility's existing suite-licensee agreements.
1–2 weeks†The franchisor reviews the incoming operator before consenting to the transfer of that specific facility.
2–4 weeks, typically†A franchise disclosure document may still be required even where the deal is framed as a private resale — Ontario courts read the resale exemption narrowly, so this gets confirmed early rather than assumed.
assessed early†Getting to closing
The landlord's consent to assign the building lease is confirmed alongside a review of whether each independent professional's suite-licence agreement assigns to the new owner or needs to be re-signed.
2–6 weeks†The incoming owner typically completes brand-standard facility-operations training — access systems, billing, and suite turnover — before or around closing.
1–2 weeks†Funds, keys, access-system credentials, and suite-licensee records change hands.
1 day, once conditions are met†CFA Look For A Franchise listing confirms an active Canadian franchise network, CFA member since 2021, 5 Canadian units
Ontario locations among its small but growing Canadian salon-suite network (provincial breakdown not published)
This is the first real decision in a Sola Salons resale — and it changes what you're buying, what you're taking on, and how the franchise agreement moves.
| Question | Asset purchase | Share purchase |
|---|---|---|
| What you buy | The facility's leasehold improvements, access and security systems, and the benefit of existing suite-licensee agreements, subject to franchisor consent. | The shares of the operating company — every facility it holds, and everything it owes. |
| Franchisor consent & ROFR | Required for the specific facility changing hands. | Required for the change of control itself, across every facility the corporation operates. |
| The facility lease | Needs landlord consent to assign — often a larger commercial space built out to the suite-studio layout. | Usually stays in place unless the lease has its own change-of-control clause. |
| Suite-licensee agreements | Independent professionals' individual licence or rental agreements are reviewed for assignment or re-signing, since they — not employees — generate the recurring revenue. | Generally continue with the corporation, since the licensor entity doesn't change. |
| Occupancy | Diligence focuses on how many suites are actually occupied and paying versus listed as available, since occupancy drives cash flow more than any single service line. | Assessed the same way at the corporate level, across every facility. |
| Tax angle | Buyer gets a stepped-up cost base on the assets purchased. | Seller may access the lifetime capital gains exemption on qualifying shares. |
The facility's leasehold improvements, access and security systems, and the benefit of existing suite-licensee agreements, subject to franchisor consent.
The shares of the operating company — every facility it holds, and everything it owes.
Required for the specific facility changing hands.
Required for the change of control itself, across every facility the corporation operates.
Needs landlord consent to assign — often a larger commercial space built out to the suite-studio layout.
Usually stays in place unless the lease has its own change-of-control clause.
Independent professionals' individual licence or rental agreements are reviewed for assignment or re-signing, since they — not employees — generate the recurring revenue.
Generally continue with the corporation, since the licensor entity doesn't change.
Diligence focuses on how many suites are actually occupied and paying versus listed as available, since occupancy drives cash flow more than any single service line.
Assessed the same way at the corporate level, across every facility.
Buyer gets a stepped-up cost base on the assets purchased.
Seller may access the lifetime capital gains exemption on qualifying shares.
We tell you which structure fits — before you sign anything.
No open-ended hourly surprises — the cost is confirmed in writing before any work begins.
| Type of work | Fee | How it's confirmed |
|---|---|---|
| Straightforward purchase or sale | Starting from $3,388.87 Our charges · taxes included | Confirmed in writing once we see the agreement. |
| Larger or more complex deal | Quoted to scope | Short call → fixed written quote before any work begins. |
| Searches, filings & third-party fees | At cost | Itemized on your invoice, not marked up. |
A single Sola Salons facility changing hands between one buyer and one seller, with a stable roster of suite licensees already in place.
Start my file →A multi-facility operator, or a resale where suite occupancy is well below capacity and needs to be priced into the deal before terms are final.
Book a consultation →Not sure which you are? That's our job to figure out, not yours. As a rough guide, most deals under a couple of million dollars are the first kind — above that, you're usually in Mergers & Acquisitions territory.
Generally no — as the facility operator, you're licensing suite space to independent, individually licensed professionals rather than personally providing services, so the requirements that apply to you are different from those that apply to a working stylist or esthetician.
No — they're independent operators who rent or licence their own suite and run their own separate business inside it. What you're really buying is the facility, the lease, and the existing roster of suite-licence agreements, not an employee team.
It centres on occupancy — how many suites are actually generating recurring licence revenue versus sitting vacant — rather than a client list or a service menu, since the professionals inside each suite own their own client relationships.
It can mean fewer comparable transactions to benchmark against, though the legal mechanics — franchisor consent, the lease, and disclosure — work the same way regardless of network size.
Not necessarily. Ontario courts have read the resale-disclosure exemption narrowly, and franchisor involvement in matching buyer to seller can still trigger a full disclosure requirement — we confirm whether it applies before you rely on it.
Related
Where we close franchise resale deals
Treadstone Law is an independent law firm. We act for buyers and sellers of franchise businesses. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or retained by Sola Salons or its franchisor.
Tell us about your Sola Salons resale — we'll point you the right way and confirm the cost in writing before any work begins.