Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · Wisconsin
Hair salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area
How the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for hair salons: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #372 of 538 scored small-town markets
#9 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 98
- 19 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 25
- −16.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $35.3M
- On personal care products and services · $1,013 a household
- Spending per listing
- $360K
- 16% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 28.1
- 20% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 86,505
- +0.3% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
The site report maps the hair salons on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 98 hair salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. 19 of them (19%) are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. That comes to 28.1 for every 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 23.4.
At $1,013 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area spend about $35.3M a year on personal care products and services. Spread across 98 hair salons, that is $360K per salon, 16% below the U.S. figure of $430K. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which hair salons share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area in 2023, down 16.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,395 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts list 155 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $149K has gone to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area grew 0.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for hair salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area is 41 (lower middle), #372 of 538 scored small-town markets and #9 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin.
How the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area compares
The same measures for Wisconsin and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all personal care products and services by the hair salons counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Watertown-Fort Atkinson area | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 28.1 | 25.3 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $360K | $399K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,395 | 1,557 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −16.7% | −6.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.3% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $1,013 | $1,007 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $83,750 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 25−16.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 134
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 155Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9819 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 82The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $149K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 86,505+0.3% since 2020
- Households
- 34,873
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 557 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 155
- Median household income
- $83,750+26.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,082
- Median home value
- $274,100
- Jobs located here
- 34,853
- Daytime population
- 76,557Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the hair salons on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardHair salons across Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Wisconsin for hair salons, numbered among those based in Wisconsin (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area marked.
Top small-town markets in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Menomonie, WI | 72 | 29 | 16.6 | $585K | +1.7% | #44 of 538 |
| 2Shawano, WI | 67 | 27 | 14.5 | $631K | +1.4% | #76 of 538 |
| 3Beaver Dam, WI | 62 | 70 | 19.5 | $498K | −0.3% | #131 of 538 |
| 4Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI | 58 | 91 | 21.1 | $494K | +0.8% | #171 of 538 |
| 5Marinette, WI-MI | 57 | 54 | 18.4 | $480K | +0.3% | #186 of 538 |
| 6Sparta, WI | 57 | 40 | 21.9 | $430K | +0.6% | #189 of 538 |
| 7Stevens Point-Plover, WI | 53 | 71 | 23.9 | $412K | +2.2% | #247 of 538 |
| 8Manitowoc, WI | 50 | 77 | 21.9 | $429K | +0.4% | #277 of 538 |
| 9Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI | 41 | 98 | 28.1 | $360K | +0.3% | #372 of 538 |
| Iron Mountain, MI-WI | 40 | 31 | 22.0 | $409K | +0.4% | #379 of 538 |
Other business types in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
- Salons, barbers and spas50
- Hair salons41
- Barbershops83
- Nail salons68
- Spas and skin care69
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area?
There are 98 hair salons on map listings in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area as of September 2026. 19 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023, down 16.7% from 2019. Official counts also show 155 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area spend on personal care products and services?
About $35.3M a year, or $1,013 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 98 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $360K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 34,873 households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Watertown-Fort Atkinson area has 28.1 hair salons per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $360K, 16% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area would have about 82, against 98 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,395 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. The official count fell 16.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area growing?
Population estimates put the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area at 86,505 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 34,873 households. The median household income in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area is $83,750 a year, 4% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.3% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Watertown-Fort Atkinson area scores 41 for hair salons (lower middle), #372 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. It maps the hair salons on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for hair salons · All 56 business types in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.