De Novo Salon
Customer Story
Creating Space to Grow: Inside De Novo Salon’s Next Chapter
Results
Team doubled: 6 to 12 employees
Revenue up $60K
Highlights
When faced with an unexpected relocation, Heather used funding to stay in control, protecting her team, rebuilding her space, and growing her business.
Heather turned a forced relocation into an opportunity to build a bigger, better salon.
She used flexible, staged funding to cover build-out, payroll, and expansion without slowing down.
She retained her team, increased capacity, and scaled the business on her own terms.
About the Business
Heather is the owner of de Novo, a one-stop shop for health, beauty, and wellness in the Orlando area. Hair, lashes, brows. The full set. But what really sets de Novo apart is the experience: a warm, “at home” space with a 70s-inspired, low-tech feel where clients can switch off and stay awhile.
Before funding, Heather ran a tight team of 6. After expanding, de Novo doubled headcount to 12, building a bigger salon around her vision and the community she’d built.
The Challenge: A hard deadline and a heavy fit-out
Heather didn’t choose expansion. Expansion chose her.
In 2024, her landlord sold the building and gave her 180 days to vacate. In a market packed with zoning restrictions and high rents, finding a new location was tough. And the options she could find needed a full build-out.
Build-outs are a brutal reality for salon owners. They demand heavy plumbing and high-grade electrics, and costs can swing wildly. Heather estimated her own build-out at around $60k, while friends in the industry have spent far more.
The bigger issue: traditional funding wasn’t built for her world.
Banks wanted lengthy reports, rigid processes, and generally viewed this industry as too risky. Heather needed speed, simplicity, and a way to keep moving without getting stuck in paperwork.
She had a choice: scale back to fit the moment, or use the move to build something bigger.
The Solution: Vagaro Capital powered by Liberis
Heather applied through Vagaro and accessed funding from Liberis to turn a forced move into a controlled plan.
She didn’t take funding “just in case”. She took it in stages, each round tied to a clear purpose:
$15k to help fund the build-out and get the new space ready
$13.5k to cover payroll, so the team stayed put during the disruption
$5k for cash flow, keeping day-to-day spending smooth while the business transitioned
$40k to fund expansion, once the new premises proved it could carry more
Even when a technical glitch hit at the worst possible time, the human support didn’t disappear.
“I was panicking, and Max got back to me straight away. I never waited more than an hour for a reply.”
And Heather valued the straight-talking clarity, especially knowing the cost upfront.
“I love that they spell it out. This is what you’re taking out, this is what you’ll pay in fees. It’s simple.”
She also called out the speed.
The application process is super easy. I think it takes like 5 minutes… and then I love that it’s in your account in two days.
Heather
Owner, De Novo Salon
The result: growth, expansion and a new lease on life
With funding in place, Heather moved from survival mode to building the business she actually wanted.
Team growth: increased from 6 staff to 12, hiring 6 new team members as a direct result of expansion.
Revenue uplift: Heather reported making $60,000 more than the previous year, even while being closed for 3 months.
Month-on-month growth example: January revenue increased from $24,000 to just over $32,000 year-on-year (a +$8,000 uplift for that month).
A completed, hire-ready space: funding helped finish the build-out so she could attract and retain talent.
More capacity, more clients: a bigger salon created room to grow bookings and clientele.
Less stress, better decisions: funding removed the constant pressure of “where is the money coming from?” so she could hire and invest confidently.
Would she do it again?
Yes, and she’s already thinking bigger.
Heather plans to grow further with business partners, including exploring second and third locations, and she expects eligibility to rise as performance grows, something she has seen with each advance she has been offered.