KOHORT Studio at 234 Bridge Road, Richmond offers chair and booth rental for independent hairdressers. For stylists based in the inner north, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Brunswick, Northcote, Richmond is a practical, well-connected base: ten to twenty minutes away, well served by public transport, and on a strong inner-east street with real foot traffic. This page is for hairdressers in the inner north thinking about what their next move looks like.

Why inner-north hairdressers are looking to Richmond

The inner north of Melbourne, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Northcote, Brunswick, is well stocked with salons, independent operators, and hairdressers at every stage of their careers. It is a competitive market. Finding a chair rental that suits the way you want to work, in a building that actually functions as a professional space, is harder than it looks.

Richmond is not a compromise. Bridge Road is a credible inner-east strip with solid foot traffic and good connections to the rest of the city. For a hairdresser who lives in Fitzroy or Collingwood and wants to build an independent practice, KOHORT at 234 Bridge Road is twenty minutes away by tram or a short train ride. That is not a long commute for a business base that makes sense.

A lot of the stylists who end up at KOHORT live in the inner north or inner east. The geography is part of the appeal, alongside the model.

Getting from the inner north to KOHORT Richmond

The connections between the inner north and Richmond are straightforward, and worth knowing properly before you decide whether the location works for you and your clients.

From Fitzroy: Brunswick Street and Smith Street run south and connect through Collingwood and Abbotsford to Richmond. The trip by tram or a short drive along Johnston Street and then south puts you on Bridge Road in fifteen to twenty minutes. Victoria Park Station in Collingwood is nearby if you prefer the train.

From Collingwood: Smith Street and Johnston Street place you directly adjacent to Abbotsford and Richmond via Victoria Street. Collingwood to Richmond is a short trip. Clients in Collingwood who follow you to a Bridge Road address are not going far.

From Northcote: High Street connects down through Fitzroy North toward the CBD corridor. Northcote Station and Croxton Station put you on the train network; from the city the ride out to Richmond or East Richmond is a few stops. The trip is around twenty to twenty-five minutes.

From Brunswick: Sydney Road and Lygon Street run south through Carlton toward the CBD. Jewell and Brunswick Stations connect you to the Upfield line and then across to Richmond via the city. The commute for your clients is longer from Brunswick, but clients who follow their hairdresser are generally willing to make a twenty-minute trip for someone they trust.

Richmond Station and East Richmond Station are both close to 234 Bridge Road, making the address reachable from multiple lines and directions.

What your inner-north clients experience coming to Bridge Road

One thing stylists in the inner north worry about is whether their existing clients will make the trip to a new address. The honest answer is that most loyal clients will follow their hairdresser. But it helps to know that the destination is easy to reach and easy to explain.

Bridge Road, Richmond is a known address. People in the inner north know the street from shopping and cafes. It is not an industrial park or a hard-to-find suburb. When you tell a Fitzroy client you are at 234 Bridge Road in Richmond, they know where that is. The trams run right past, there is street parking nearby, and it is a short trip from the city on the Richmond line.

The clients you may lose are the ones who were only booking with you because you were a five-minute walk away. In most cases, those are not your most loyal clients. The ones who come back every eight weeks and refer their friends will make the journey.

What booth rental at KOHORT includes

When you rent a chair or booth at KOHORT, here is the practical picture:

• Your own designated column, mirror, and storage at 234 Bridge Road, Richmond
• Backwash and basin access for colour rinsing and toning
• A colour bar setup with products including L'Oreal Metal Detox, Olaplex, K18 and Kérastase treatments for technical colour days
• Processing space for clients during longer colour appointments
• A clean, professional environment on a visible inner-east retail strip
• A community of seven independent stylists, all running their own books

Rates are flexible and depend on the days you want and the arrangement. We do not post a fixed price because it depends on your situation. The first step is a conversation. Get in touch via the join KOHORT page.

The community side of working at KOHORT

One of the things inner-north hairdressers sometimes miss when they go fully independent, whether that is working from a home studio or a very small space, is other hairdressers. The informal part of a salon day, talking through a tricky colour, getting a second opinion on a cut direction, knowing someone else is around when a client asks a question you want to think about, that disappears when you work entirely alone.

KOHORT has seven independent stylists on the floor, each running their own column. There is no management structure. Nobody is in charge of anyone else. But there is a genuine community of people who understand the work, share ideas without being competitive about it, and refer to each other when they are booked out. For an inner-north stylist moving from a salon environment to independence, that ongoing contact with other hairdressers is something worth preserving.

Read more about how KOHORT was built and what the culture actually looks like.

Who this works best for in the inner north

Chair rental at KOHORT suits inner-north hairdressers who:

• Have a developed client base and consistent bookings
• Are ready to stop sharing their earnings with a commission structure
• Want to build their own brand without taking on a lease
• Are comfortable with the independence of managing their own books, schedule and finances
• Want a professional, well-located base in inner Melbourne rather than working from home

If you are a colourist, the setup at KOHORT is specifically designed for colour-intensive work. See more on the colourist chair rental page. For a broader overview of the chair rental model and what it involves, read through the Melbourne chair rental page.

Frequently asked questions

Is KOHORT accessible from Fitzroy and Collingwood?

Yes. From Fitzroy, the trip to Bridge Road via Smith Street or Brunswick Street takes fifteen to twenty minutes by tram or car. From Collingwood, it is even shorter via Victoria Street and the Richmond corridor. Clients in both suburbs can follow you to a Bridge Road address without a significant journey.

Can clients from Northcote or Brunswick get to KOHORT by public transport?

Yes, though the commute is around twenty to twenty-five minutes from Northcote or Brunswick. The train from Northcote or Croxton Stations connects via the city to Richmond and East Richmond Stations, which are both close to 234 Bridge Road. For clients committed to their stylist, this is a reasonable trip.

Are there other co-working salons in the inner north I should compare?

There are. We are not going to tell you KOHORT is your only option. It is not. What we can tell you is what makes this space distinct: seven experienced independent stylists, genuine co-working culture, colour-specific infrastructure, and a Bridge Road address. Come and see it and make your own call.

What if most of my clients are in the inner north and far from Richmond?

That is a real consideration. Clients in Brunswick who drive to Northcote might find Bridge Road further than they like. For your closest inner-north clients it is worth having an honest conversation about the location before you move. Most stylists find the majority of their loyal clients follow them, but not every single one will, and that is worth factoring into your numbers.

Do I need to work full-time to rent a chair at KOHORT?

No. Many stylists at KOHORT work three or four days per week rather than five. The rental arrangement depends on availability and what days you want. It is flexible, which is part of why inner-north stylists with existing part-time practices find it suits them.

Can I keep my own brand identity if I rent at KOHORT?

Completely. Your name, your brand, your social media presence, and your client relationships are all yours. You work from 234 Bridge Road, Richmond as your address. What you call yourself and how you present your business is up to you.

How do I apply for booth rental at KOHORT from the inner north?

Start by visiting our join KOHORT page and getting in touch. We talk through your situation, your current location, and what you are looking for. If it makes sense for both sides, we show you the space and go from there.