How to Start an Aesthetic Business in Burnaby: Licences, Fraser Health Approval, Market Data

Planning to open a med spa, a laser clinic, a skin and esthetics studio or a laser hair removal or tattoo removal business in Burnaby? This guide is written for owners and founders. Burnaby sits between Vancouver and the Tri-Cities, with dense residential towers around Metrotown, Brentwood, Lougheed and Edmonds, and its client base is young, multilingual and largely born outside Canada. Read on for a profile of those clients, a count of the businesses already competing for them, the equipment to lead with, a budget outline, and what the City of Burnaby, Fraser Health and WorkSafeBC expect from you.

Is Burnaby a good place to start an aesthetic business?

Burnaby suits a skin- and laser-focused business: 249,125 residents in 2021, up 7.0% since 2016, with about one in four aged 20 to 34 and half born outside Canada. Opening requires a zoning check and City business licence, Fraser Health approval for a personal service establishment, a WorkSafeBC-compliant laser program and Health Canada-licensed devices.

Each figure and requirement below links to the office that publishes it. If no official number exists, the guide explains how to work it out yourself.

What does Burnaby’s population look like?

Source: the 2021 Census Profile for the City of Burnaby, with population change from Statistics Canada’s table 98-10-0002-01 (Census day May 11, 2021; income for calendar 2020).

Turning that into a menu (planning guidance only):

• Young professionals are a core segment. Roughly 24.4% of residents are 20 to 34, and the late-twenties and early-thirties bands are the largest adult bands in the table. Hair removal packages, tattoo removal and preventive skin programs fit this group.
• Pigment and tone concerns rank high. With Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean as the leading non-official mother tongues and more than two-thirds of residents identifying as a visible minority, demand for sun-spot, pigment and uneven-tone treatment is worth planning around, along with device settings and training for medium skin types.
• Language is part of service quality. With half the population born outside Canada, consultations and written aftercare in more than one language can set a new clinic apart.
• Watch price sensitivity. The 2020 median household income was $83,000. Membership pricing and package plans can widen your reach without discounting single sessions.

How much competition is there in Burnaby?

From Statistics Canada’s Canadian Business Counts (table 33-10-1176-01, June 2026), City of Burnaby locations with employees:

NAICS 8121, Personal care services, groups hair salons, esthetics and other personal care services, a category whose examples include depilatory salons and day spas. Read the 191 as the size of the wider beauty trade, not as a number of laser providers; no official laser count is published. Statistics Canada counts each location separately, leaves out owner-only businesses at city level, and warns against treating the figures as a time series.

A practical competitor scan for Burnaby: search “laser hair removal Metrotown”, “pico laser Burnaby”, “med spa Brentwood” and “skin clinic Lougheed”, then check what devices each clinic names, what its packages cost, and how many reviews it has. Compare at least two station areas before you choose.

Which business model should you open in Burnaby?

Your model shapes the licence description, the service list Fraser Health reviews and the staff you hire.

1. Skin and esthetics studio: facials, peels, waxing and skin-quality programs.
2. Single-service laser studio: hair removal or tattoo removal, sold in courses.
3. Pigment and skin-tone clinic: picosecond and light-based platforms for spots, uneven tone, redness and texture.
4. Medical aesthetics practice: laser and skin services alongside injectables delivered by regulated health professionals.

Laser services usually lead revenue per room in each model, because clients commit to a series and one platform can serve several indications.

Which laser platforms should a Burnaby clinic start with?

BC’s Guidelines for Personal Service Establishments say laser devices for cosmetic treatments “must comply with Health Canada requirements under the Radiation Emitting Devices Act and the Medical Devices Regulations”, and Fraser Health will not accept a medical device in a personal service establishment unless it is licensed for sale in Canada. Ask every supplier for the licence number and exact licence name, check it in MDALL (how to verify), and compare training, warranty and service terms in writing.

Pro 1 Laser sells its platforms manufacturer-direct. Clinical training comes with every system, each carries an 18-month warranty, and lease-to-own programs are available on approved credit:

• Pro 1 Pico, MDL 114765: a picosecond platform for pigment and tone work, tattoo and PMU removal and skin rejuvenation, well matched to a pigment-led Burnaby menu. From $999/month OAC.
• DPL Elite, MDL 112071: narrowband DPL light for spots, redness, acne and overall skin clarity. From $499/month OAC.
• DioLase Titanium, MDL 111503: a three-wavelength diode for hair removal across large and small areas. From $599/month OAC.
• Alexa CO₂ Aesthetic, MDL 114909: fractional and ablative CO₂ resurfacing for acne scars and texture. From $799/month OAC.
• Canadian Cryo, MDL 114775 (licence name Canadian CryoSculpt): localized CO₂ cryotherapy for therapeutic and rehabilitation use by qualified medical providers. Priced by quote.

Configuration and term change the monthly figure; see the financing page for current programs.

What should you budget to open in Burnaby?

Burnaby’s published rules give you the structure of the licensing costs rather than the amounts, so build the rest from quotes:

• City licensing — a non-refundable application fee, then a first-year licence fee that varies by business type, renewed annually. Look up both in the City’s 2026 business licence fee schedule, and clear any open permits on the property first so you do not lose the application fee.
• Equipment — lease-to-own on approved credit, from $499/month (DPL Elite) to $999/month (Pro 1 Pico); the figure moves with configuration and term.
• Insurance — liability cover that names laser services.
• Fit-out and safety — scaled floor plans for Fraser Health, the controlled laser room, signage and eyewear with the right optical density for each wavelength.
• Client materials — multilingual consent and aftercare forms for a client base this diverse.

To test the numbers against treatment revenue, use the ROI calculators for DioLase Titanium, Pro 1 Pico, DPL Elite and Alexa CO₂, and see the financing page for current programs.

How do you get a Burnaby business licence?

The City’s business licences page (checked October 12, 2026) states that “all businesses in Burnaby, whether commercial, home-based or a residential rental … require a valid business licence”, and that a business is any undertaking “including those who provide professional, personal or other services.” The steps it describes:

• Zoning first. Before you sign a lease or apply, confirm the location complies with the Burnaby Zoning Bylaw, which sets the activities allowed on each property. The City takes zoning questions at 604-294-7400.
• Check for open permits. The City suggests calling the building department (604-294-7130) so you do not lose your application fee: it cannot process a licence where the property has active or open permits.
• Fees. Every application carries a non-refundable application fee; once approved, you pay a first-year licence fee that varies by business type. The City publishes the full schedule of 2026 business licence fees by category.
• Renewal. Licences renew annually, and the City sends a reminder 30 days before the due date.
• One licence per site. The Inter-Municipal Business Licence does not let a health care business operate at several commercial locations; each Burnaby location needs its own licence.

Expanding into other cities? Our licensing and health directory for Canada’s 100 largest municipalities links each licence office and health authority.

What does Fraser Health require in Burnaby?

Burnaby falls under Fraser Health. Provincially, running a personal service establishment is a regulated activity under B.C. Reg. 161/2011, and section 18 of the Public Health Act puts the duty to prevent health hazards, and to train and equip staff adequately, on the operator.

Fraser Health turns that into a pre-opening application. Its open a personal service establishment page asks for an application form with floor plans, sent to your local health protection office before you open, along with your service list, major equipment, implements, chemicals and cleaning procedures. The application package explains why each piece matters:

• The service list decides whether the proposed layout is suitable, so include services you only intend to add later.
• The equipment list lets officers confirm that each device is approved and used for its intended purpose; they may ask for the manufacturer’s specifications.
• The floor plan should show service areas, cleaning and sanitation areas, chemical storage, laundry, washrooms, sinks, treatment beds and laser machines.
• Written approval should be in hand before construction, renovation or operation begins, and an initial inspection follows once the space is ready.

The provincial Guidelines for Personal Service Establishments (2017) list cosmetic laser services, tattoo removal and skin clinics among personal services, and are the design reference Fraser Health points applicants to.

Who can provide treatments in a Burnaby clinic?

Cosmetic laser treatments such as hair removal, tattoo removal and pigment correction are delivered in Burnaby as personal services within approved establishments. When you plan staffing:

• Fraser Health’s package says there is no provincial training or certification requirement for personal service operators, but it recommends training for every service and asks you to document it.
• If a planned service sits near the medical line, Fraser Health’s environmental health officer can tell you whether it is a personal service or must be performed by a regulated professional.
• Injectables and other medical procedures belong with physicians and nurses. A physician-directed clinic follows the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC’s laser safety standard, which limits ordering of medical (Class 3B or 4) laser procedures to BC College of Nurses and Midwives nurses and requires a medical director and a laser safety officer.

What does WorkSafeBC expect for laser safety?

Any Burnaby employer using lasers works under Part 7 of the WorkSafeBC OHS Regulation. Section 7.23 makes the standards binding for installation, operation and maintenance; for lasers it names ANSI Z136.1, ANSI Z136.3 and CSA Z386 “as amended from time to time”. Section 7.19(4) applies the same documents to exposure limits.

Build the program around four pieces:

1. A laser safety officer. The provincial laser hair removal guideline has management designate one for Class 3b and 4 lasers.
2. A controlled room: a closable door, a warning sign and no unprotected bystanders.
3. Eyewear with the right optical density for each wavelength.
4. Records: procedures, staff training, periodic safety audits and service logs.

CSA now lists CSA Z7001:24 as replacing Z386:20. For layout help, see our laser safety requirements guide.

What does a Burnaby treatment room need?

Built from the sources cited above; Fraser Health may add premises-specific conditions.

Burnaby opening checklist

Suggested timing; any deadline from the City or Fraser Health comes first.

1. Six months ahead: pick the model, sketch the menu, scan competitors around two or three station areas.
2. Before any lease: confirm zoning (604-294-7400), check for open permits (604-294-7130) and speak to a Fraser Health environmental health officer.
3. Five months ahead: incorporate or register, shortlist devices, check each MDL in MDALL, and arrange financing.
4. Four months ahead: commission scaled floor plans and submit the Fraser Health application; hold construction until written approval arrives.
5. Three months ahead: submit the City licence application and pay the application fee; appoint a laser safety officer; insure laser services.
6. Six to eight weeks ahead: install devices, train staff, and finalize multilingual consent and aftercare forms.
7. Final weeks: complete the Fraser Health initial inspection and pay the first-year licence fee.
8. Every year: renew the licence when the City’s 30-day reminder arrives.

Start with a clear plan

Burnaby’s young, internationally minded residents are a strong audience for skin and laser services. Lock in zoning, Fraser Health approval and verified devices before you open, and laser treatments can carry the business.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Requirements change; confirm them with the City of Burnaby and Fraser Health before you sign a lease. Sources were checked on October 11–12, 2026.