First of all... this is not directed to any one person, as there have been repeat offenders over the last 24 years of my career. So speaking for all hairdressers, I am going to clear the air for some misconceptions and some things that we deal with on a daily basis that may be overlooked from a clients point of view. Again, this is not to hurt feelings or point fingers, just a friendly reminder, so if you read this and you are a hairdresser , or love one, please feel free to re post this blog or link it.
We are not on salary, nor do we get a paycheck, unless you show up for your appointment we don't get paid. If you forget your money, or a check at the grocery store, you can't leave with your cart full of groceries and pay when you remember or it is convenient for you, or when your account has enough money. Please remember... we pay to work where we work, whether you show up and pay us or not. We purchase supplies to do your hair, and pay use tax on the equipment we need to do our jobs. We get paid daily, therefore, many of us pay our bills daily, depend on that money for gas and groceries, because believe it or not, this is how we pay our bills as well and keep food in our families mouths and a roof over our heads. We are also in a 35% tax bracket and pay multiple business, state and board licenses to continue to work, as well as travel and payments for ongoing education. Did you know that one pair of shears can cost anywhere from $350-$600... Many of us have more than one pair... just like with a carpenter, each tool does a variety of things. Chances our, we have confirmed your appointment, have done the math and figured that we can put that rent check through... yes, you shouldn't count your eggs before they hatch, but you also shouldn't go receive any sort of business service or transaction and feel that it is not a priority to pay. Recently I had a client forget to pay, which put me in an uncomfortable position to where I had to ask her a couple of times when she could pay me... In the meantime, my account went over by a mere $8.68, which made my rent and power bill bounce. After said and done, 5 boxes of color and bank fees, not to mention my time.... it actually cost me around $50 to do her hair....
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Ongoing Education is not free and is an important part of staying ahead of the game.
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Most of us are booked, you cannot text or call us at the last minute and say "I can't make it today, just move me to the same time tomorrow." We may not have that open, we, believe it or not, have more than one client...And we never put someones priority above anyone else, please remember, we are running a business... we don't have office workers we can delegate to so we can do 3 or more people at once. We can only work on one person at a time, we only have 2 hands most of the times, they are covered in color. A lot of hairdressers double up, I used to do that and in "emergency" situations sometimes it has to be done, so if you need an appointment you need to realize, we need to see where our opening are... and I work from 4 am to 11 pm.... but only in 8 hour blocks so if I am working until 10 or 11 pm... no, I can't squeeze you in at 5 am on that same day because it is not my emergency that you didn't book ahead and you are leaving on vacation tomorrow, and forgot to call me....please realize we are people pleasers and this stresses us out and makes us feel guilty so many of us will bend over backwards to get you in.....but you need to be considerate and flexible as well.
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A gift from Irene Goreham, Helene' Curtis' first female platform artist...back in the day!
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Last but not least, illness. If you are ill and call in sick to work... why on earth do you think it is OK to come get your hair done? Oh you didn't want to miss your appointment. OK we get it. But we would rather reschedule you than ending up sick for 3 days and have to inconvenience and reschedule 30 clients, not to mention the ones we got sick before hand and spread your lovely illness around. We don't get paid sick days... and we never get rest when we get back, just like normal human beings, we are exhausted after a serious flu, but then we come back to double days, or 16 hours days to get everyone in that we had to reschedule. So please, if you are too sick for work or anything else please reschedule. I would think this were common sense, but sometimes I feel that people view us as Robots, not human beings and also that we do this for fun. Yes we do, but believe it or not, this is how we make a living, and we don't make the money it seems we do because we have expenses and overhead that has to be paid for us to continue our craft. So next time you get your hair done, please remember these things. We love many of you as friends and clients, we bend over backwards and make you a priority every day.... please respect out business the same way. Thank you.
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