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Union County, NJ — Beauty salons Saturation

How many beauty salons exist per person present — residents plus daytime workers — by ZIP code, compared with the U.S. average. Establishment data: Census ZBP 2023. Population: ACS 2024 5-year. 30 ZIP codes analyzed.

Includes: Hair salons · Beauty salons · Blow-dry & styling bars · Makeup & skincare studios. Counted together because official statistics use one 812112 code.

Measured density: High density — 1.58× the U.S. rate (between 1.58× and 1.68× once withheld ZIP cells are counted)

Why a range: Census does not publish a ZIP-by-industry count when that ZIP has 0–2 businesses. 11 ZIP cells in this county are withheld, 7 of them with residents. Each could hold 0, 1, or 2 businesses: counting them all as 0 gives the low end, counting them all as 2 gives the high end — the data cannot say where the truth sits. The density range uses only the populated cells, since ZIPs without residents are excluded from per-person rates. How ranges work

Range spans the U.S. rate   Union County beauty salons — 158–168% of the U.S. rate

232 beauty salons are counted in Union County — 3.3 per 10,000 people present (residents + daytime workers), 158% of the U.S. rate of 2.1.

On the comparable ZIP set (ZIPs with a published count in every year), the total has risen 12% between 2015 and 2023 (193 → 216). That set is smaller than today's county total. 2020–2021 were pandemic-distorted, and Census rounds counts, so small moves are within noise.

Measured supply density is highest in 07033 (Kenilworth), 07066 (Clark), 07090 (Westfield) — well above the national rate. On measured density alone, the lowest-density residential ZIPs with a published count are 07202 (Elizabeth), 07205 (Hillside), 07208 (Elizabeth).

BLS QCEW puts the latest county-wide count (2026 Q1) at 210 establishments, the freshest available signal.

Measured density: Union County sits at 158% of the U.S. rate for beauty salons. 7 ZIPs with population have no published count (each 0–2 businesses), so the true per-capita rate is between 158% and 168% of the U.S. rate. Why. The highest measured density is in 07033 and 07066; the lowest measured density is in 07202 and 07205.

This is a supply-side read: it counts existing beauty salons and the people present, not foot traffic, income, rent, or whether locals want more. Treat low density as a question to check, not an answer.

Beauty salons
232–254
published count; upper bound counts each withheld ZIP cell as 2 (11 cells) (2023)
Per 10,000 present
3.3
residents + daytime workers
U.S. average
2.1
per 10,000 present
County index
1.58×
vs. U.S.
Latest quarter (QCEW)
210
2026 Q1 — county total
Residents
602,051
26 ZIPs with data
Workers
207,358
jobs located in county

Is the area growing?

Population
594,160
Census PEP, July 1 2024
Change since 2020
+3.6%
+20,480 people
Net migration 2024
+9,410
international +13,284, domestic −3,874
Jobs located here
245,615
LODES 2022, +1.0% since 2019

Union County had an estimated 594,160 residents on July 1, 2024 — 3.6% more than in 2020 (+20,480). In the latest year it gained 12,080 people: births minus deaths +2,624, international migration +13,284, domestic migration −3,874. Components are published separately and may not sum exactly.

245,615 jobs were located in the county in 2022 (+1.0% since 2019), and 268,105 employed residents lived there (+0.7% since 2019). LODES counts wage and salary jobs covered by unemployment insurance plus federal jobs; it excludes the self-employed and military, and counts jobs rather than unique people. 2019→2022 spans the pandemic, so read it as one change, not a trend.

Population and migration say whether the customer base is growing. They do not say whether people want another business of this type. Definitions and limits →  ·  Full county detail →

ZIP gaining residents
2015–19 → 2020–24
Change
07206 Elizabethport
+18.3%
07027 Garwood
+12.6%
07083 Union
+5.5%
ZIP losing residents
2015–19 → 2020–24
Change
07081 Springfield
−1.4%
07066 Clark
−0.7%

ACS 5-year estimates for 2015–2019 and 2020–2024. Only ZIPs with at least 2,000 residents in both windows and a change larger than the survey margin of error (90%) are listed — small ZIPs move a lot on paper without a real signal.

Nonemployer businesses (no paid employees)

Nonemployer businesses
1,000
no paid employees (2024)
Receipts
$30.7M
published gross receipts
Receipts per business
$31K
gross, not profit

Census Nonemployer Statistics counts businesses with no paid employees — a separate universe from the employer establishments counted above; a business is in one or the other, never both. They are not storefronts by definition: many are home-based, mobile, or part-time.

We show them beside the density index, not inside it. In categories such as nail and beauty salons, child care, and pet care, one-person businesses can outnumber employer establishments, so the employer-only count understates how many businesses exist. That is not evidence of higher demand.

Receipts are gross revenue reported for these businesses — not profit, and not the size of the local market. Census publishes this only at county level, so it is not shown on the ZIP map. See methodology.

Saturation map

Each ZIP area is shaded by its density of this business type per person present (residents + workers) vs. the U.S. average. Click any ZIP to zoom to its boundary, see its numbers, and switch to aerial imagery. Individual mapped shops appear as dots at street level — Show locations zooms you in to them (scroll or double-click to zoom).

Basemap:
Under 50% 50–100% 100–150% 150–250% 250%+ 0–2 (not published) / no data ZIP total (dot size) Mapped shop (OpenStreetMap, street level)

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles by OpenFreeMap.

White dots are ZIP totals from the official Census count — the bigger the dot, the more beauty salons in that ZIP. They are aggregated, not individual shops. Turquoise dots are individual locations mapped in OpenStreetMap, shown only at street level; they are crowd-sourced and indicative, may be incomplete, and do not equal the official counts. Only the official ZIP totals feed the saturation index.

Market trend — up 12% since 2015

Number of beauty salons in Union County across 2015–2023, on a consistent set of ZIP codes present in every year — so changes are real, not ZIP-boundary artifacts. 2015/2018 are pre-pandemic baselines; 2020/2021 are COVID-distorted.

193
2015
205
2018
195
2020
205
2021
214
2022
216
2023

Highest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
07033 Kenilworth
382%
07066 Clark
365%
07090 Westfield
358%
07016 Cranford
320%
07081 Springfield
264%
07922 Berkeley Heights
228%
07901 Summit
224%
07060 Plainfield
211%
07023 Fanwood
211%
07974 New Providence
188%
07076 Scotch Plains
178%
07201 Elizabeth
149%
07036 Linden
140%
07065 Rahway
138%
07083 Union
122%

Lowest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
07202 Elizabeth
91%
07205 Hillside
113%
07208 Elizabeth
113%
07083 Union
122%
07065 Rahway
138%
07036 Linden
140%
07201 Elizabeth
149%
07076 Scotch Plains
178%
07974 New Providence
188%
07023 Fanwood
211%
07060 Plainfield
211%
07901 Summit
224%
07922 Berkeley Heights
228%
07081 Springfield
264%
07016 Cranford
320%
Low measured density is not evidence of opportunity. A ZIP with few beauty salons may simply lack foot traffic, retail space, or demand. We rank only residential and mixed ZIPs here; employment hubs and visitor destinations are listed separately below. ZIPs where Census did not publish a count (0–2 businesses) are not ranked: they may be the least served of all, but the data cannot tell 0 from 1 or 2. Verify those locally.

All ZIP codes

Click a column header to sort. Index = beauty salons per 10,000 people present (residents + 0.5×workers) ÷ the U.S. average. 100% = exactly average.

ZIPNeighborhood ResidentsWorkersBeauty salons Per 10kIndexStatus
07033Kenilworth 8,4018,350 10 8.0 382% Very high density
07066Clark 15,6228,254 15 7.6 365% Very high density
07090Westfield 31,1117,623 26 7.4 358% Very high density
07016Cranford 24,07412,018 20 6.6 320% Very high density
07081Springfield 17,1719,313 12 5.5 264% Very high density
07027Garwood 4,8851,950 3 5.1 246% High density
07922Berkeley Heights 12,1959,389 8 4.7 228% High density
07901Summit 24,31415,744 15 4.7 224% High density
07060Plainfield 48,3637,986 23 4.4 211% High density
07023Fanwood 7,7992,664 4 4.4 211% High density
07974New Providence 13,3499,051 7 3.9 188% High density
07076Scotch Plains 24,8434,333 10 3.7 178% High density
07201Elizabeth 28,46720,641 12 3.1 149% Above average
07036Linden 45,67118,847 16 2.9 140% Above average
07065Rahway 30,1099,639 10 2.9 138% Above average
07083Union 58,17025,709 18 2.5 122% Above average
07208Elizabeth 31,9374,279 8 2.3 113% Above average
07205Hillside 22,3496,553 6 2.3 113% Above average
07202Elizabeth 44,9685,457 9 1.9 91% Below average
07061Plainfield —93 0–2 — — Not published
07062Plainfield 15,3991,352 0–2 — — Not published
07063Plainfield 14,235934 0–2 — — Not published
07088Vauxhall 2,9012,526 0–2 — — Not published
07091Westfield —140 0–2 — — Not published
07092Mountainside 7,0494,937 0–2 — — Not published
07203Roselle 22,6463,369 0–2 — — Not published
07204Roselle Park 14,0931,352 0–2 — — Not published
07206Elizabethport 31,9305,088 0–2 — — Not published
07207Elizabeth —4,249 0–2 — — Not published
07902Summit —3,873 0–2 — — Not published

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

Find an actual space in Union

The numbers above tell you how the market looks. To find a specific storefront, these marketplaces list available retail space for lease.

LoopNet
Largest commercial marketplace
Browse Union retail space →
Crexi
Free listings + market data
Browse Union retail space →
CityFeet
Retail space for lease
Browse Union retail space →

Open vacancy data (actual empty units) is only published by some cities; where it exists we show it directly. Listings above are third-party.

Census withholds some ZIP-by-industry cells to protect small businesses. 0–2 means the cell was not published (Census publishes industry counts only at 3+ per ZIP), so the ZIP is left unranked rather than counted as zero. ~ means the count is estimated from the broader industry group and can be off by a business or two.

Follow Union County and beauty salons

When a data vintage changes or a section of this report is revised, we post it to a public update feed. No email address, no account, no tracking — and nothing is sent unless something actually changed.

Subscribe to updates (RSS) How these numbers are built →

Methodology & sources

Establishments. U.S. Census ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP 2023), NAICS 812112 — beauty salons. Counts establishments with paid employees. ZBP is published annually with a ~2-year lag.

Fresh county signal. BLS QCEW (quarterly) is newer than ZBP — 2026 Q1 shows 210 establishments county-wide for this industry. It cannot be broken down by ZIP.

Population. U.S. Census American Community Survey 2024 5-year ZCTA population (table B01003). Workers are the ZIP's total employment from the same 2023 ZBP file.

Demand ("people present"). Demand comes from residents and daytime workers: residents + 0.5 × workers. This is the single documented assumption in the model and can be tuned.

Index. index = (ZIP establishments ÷ ZIP demand × 10,000) ÷ the U.S. average for this industry (2.08 per 10,000 present). It is a supply-side density measure; it does not capture income, rent, tourism, or whether locals actually want more.

Read the full methodology →  ·  Data sources & vintages →

BizGapMap — free, no-login small-business saturation reports for major U.S. counties. Built entirely from public U.S. Census, BLS, and IRS data (ZBP 2023, ACS 2024 5-year, PEP 2024, LODES, QCEW, IRS SOI). No forecasts, no revenue guesses — withheld cells are marked, and the few derived counts are labelled as estimates.