Ruling on opening a barbershop for men

There is nothing wrong with
opening barbershops for men or engaging in this profession, so long as one
avoids haraam things such as shaving beards, removing any part of the
eyebrows or cutting the hair in styles that resemble kaafirs. See question
no. 34722 and
1189. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may
Allaah have mercy on him) was asked: Someone is saying that he has a
relative who owns a hair salon that is rented out to an agent and he advised
him that this work is haraam, and that the money earned is haraam, and that
it is not permissible to shave Muslims’ beards. He said: I do not take
anything from the agent except the rent for the store, one hundred and fifty
riyals, and the people are free to shave their beards, and I do not force
them to have them shaved by him. 

He replied: 

If he writes and posts a
notice in this salon saying that it is not allowed to shave beards, and if
anyone who asks to have his beard shaved, he refuses to do that, then there
is nothing wrong with seeking provision from Allaah. But if he will shave
the heads and beards of anyone who asks, then it is not permissible, and he
should change this salon into something better. The one who gives up
something for the sake of Allaah, Allaah will compensate him with something
better than it. To sum up:  

Opening salons and
barbershops is subject to further discussion. If the person will refuse to
shave that which it is haraam to shave, there is nothing wrong with it, as
it is a means of earning a living. But if he will shave whatever the
customer asks him to shave, even if it is haraam, then it is not
permissible. End quote from Liqa’ al-Baab il-Maftooh (79/13). 

He (may Allaah have mercy
on him) was also asked: I have some stores and I want to rent them out to
some salons and barbershops. Is there anything wrong with that? 

He replied: There is
something wrong with that if you rent the stores to barbers as it is well
known that barbers usually shave everything; they shave heads and beards and
they may shave beards more than heads as this is the norm. Based on this, it
is not permissible to rent out stores to barbers unless you stipulate that
they should not shave beards; in that case there is nothing wrong with it.
If it is proven that he shaved beards in this store then the landlord of the
store will have the right to cancel the contract, because the renter agreed
to a valid condition but did not fulfil it. This is the answer to renting
out stores to barbers, i.e., it is not permissible to rent them to them
unless it is stipulated that they should not do anything haraam in them such
as shaving beards, because renting to them is helping them in doing this
haraam action, and Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “do not
help one another in sin and transgression” [al-Maa’idah 5:2]. The fact
that it is haraam to rent to them is also indicated by the fact that the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “When Allaah
forbids a thing, He also forbids its price” and the rent is the price that
the renter gets for use of it. 

End quote from Fataawa
Noor ‘ala al-Darb. 

And Allaah knows best.