Yesterday I needed a haircut, but because my wife had taken my car I had to cycle about 1 mile to the salon. I looked for the website and tried to find the salon online but failed to find a website and even a telephone number so I had to go on the off-chance they could fit me in.
When I arrived at the salon there were 5 staff members in the salon and only 3 clients. When I asked if I could get a cut, it took two of them to decide they could fit me in now!
A Salon Not Hungry for Business!
Eventually one of the ladies told me that they could fit me in at two o’clock (three hours time) bearing in mind that there were 5 stylists and only 3 clients in the salon, feeling bemused, I said I could not come back at two.
One of the ladies told me “you should have phoned in before you came” – I said, I tried to find your website to get your number but I could not find it! In unison all five stylists started to laugh and one of them said “what do we need a website for? ”
Frustrated – I cycled back home and telephoned for a taxi to take me into town where I had my choice of various salons and barbers in a small area.
The barbershop was empty, except for the shop owner and a baby in a pushchair.
The Barbour asked me to take a seat in the barbers chair. The chair was littered with the last clients hair and the floor was almost completely obscured by hair from what looked like a whole weeks worth of client clippings.
Finally a Haircut
The Barbour asked how I would like my hair cutting as he gowned me up with a dirty cutting gown. After I explained he took a very large water spray from the styling shelf, I swear this water spray looked like the kind of thing you would use in the garden!
He sprayed so much water into my hair it began to run down my face like a torrent of tears. The water was dripping off my nose and my chin, and onto the cutting gown even soaking through and into my shirt.
I thought he was going to pass me a towel, but instead he started my cut with the SuperTaper’s. Although the water had stopped running there was still a lot of it hanging in my eyebrows and stubble and it was quite uncomfortable.
Under normal circumstances I would have complained, however every time I enter a salon as I client I keep quiet and let the staff lead. All part of my market research.
When the barber finished the cut, he did not show me the back of my head in the back mirror and he did not ask me if I wanted any styling product on my hair! He simply removed the cutting gown and answered “a tenner” in reply to my question of how much do I owe you?
Barbershop on the edge of oblivion
The cut was actually very good – I am happy with it. But the customer care, hygiene and complacent manner was appalling.
So my question to you all is this: As an industry are we losing our professional edge or, have we already lost it, has it gone?
OK, before I get a torrent of emails and comments telling me that your salon is not like that, I know yours is better, but there are many which are as complacent as the two discussed in this blog. It is these salons that are giving our industry a bad name.
If you are a salon owner, is this how your staff behave when you are on holiday?