My hairstylist now requires a signed contract before services are rendered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hairstylists are wilding out lately, I swear.

Mine just upped her prices for a one hour curly cut from $85 to $100. That was hard to swallow, but she does a good job and I hate finding new stylists.

THEN she announced if you go more than 16 weeks between “maintenance haircut” appointments, you have to book a $150 “new client cut.” I think that is a disgusting way to wring money from your clients who can’t afford a $100 haircut every 8 weeks, told her so, and canceled my next appointment.

Wow, not reasonable. I know people are hurting right now but this is not the way. The reason hair stylists are doing this is that they have seen such a reduction in clients in the last few years -- people just not prioritizing hair maintenance especially when Covid has been very prevalent.

But you can't bully people into buying your service. You need to rethink it a bit. I know stylists who now offer in-home haircuts (especially helpful for WFH clients who have kids at home too) . They can charge a bit more because they are offering an additional value, by coming to you. I also think you could improve client retention by offering more frequent but less expensive maintenance cuts. Like I can't swing $100 for a maintenance cut but if my curly hair stylist offered a 15-minute dry cut touch up for $20-30, that could be beneficial to both of us.

I know it sucks but getting aggressive with long time clients is just going to come back to bite you. Many people discovered that letting their hair grow or go gray was not the disaster they'd previously feared. Push them away and they might just stay away.

[Anonymous]

I moved to a new area and the salon required a 50% deposit of the cost of the haircut before the first appointment...I thought it was a bit strange/off-putting. The haircut was 55 dollars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hairstylists are wilding out lately, I swear.

Mine just upped her prices for a one hour curly cut from $85 to $100. That was hard to swallow, but she does a good job and I hate finding new stylists.

THEN she announced if you go more than 16 weeks between “maintenance haircut” appointments, you have to book a $150 “new client cut.” I think that is a disgusting way to wring money from your clients who can’t afford a $100 haircut every 8 weeks, told her so, and canceled my next appointment.

Haircuttery is taking appointments

I get the sense you’re being snobby/snarky but I have gotten a great cut at the Haircuttery before. Just as I have had some of my best meals in low rent strip malls. Talent is found in all sorts of establishments.

No I was being serious. I got sick of spending hundreds on highlights/lowlights, cuts and blow-dries years ago. Haircuttery is just fine. I went to the Paul Mitchell school in Rockville for awhile, but I moved further away and can go to Haircuttery up the street. If you want a high quality cut, you pay for a high quality cut. Everyone is more than free to choose. I don't fault stylists trying to run their business and adhere to polices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hairstylists are wilding out lately, I swear.

Mine just upped her prices for a one hour curly cut from $85 to $100. That was hard to swallow, but she does a good job and I hate finding new stylists.

THEN she announced if you go more than 16 weeks between “maintenance haircut” appointments, you have to book a $150 “new client cut.” I think that is a disgusting way to wring money from your clients who can’t afford a $100 haircut every 8 weeks, told her so, and canceled my next appointment.

That is WILD.

That’s some sh!tty terminology. Just charge different amounts for different types of cuts. Chances are, if I went 16 weeks without a cut, I was intentionally growing out my hair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hairstylists are wilding out lately, I swear.

Mine just upped her prices for a one hour curly cut from $85 to $100. That was hard to swallow, but she does a good job and I hate finding new stylists.

THEN she announced if you go more than 16 weeks between “maintenance haircut” appointments, you have to book a $150 “new client cut.” I think that is a disgusting way to wring money from your clients who can’t afford a $100 haircut every 8 weeks, told her so, and canceled my next appointment.

That is WILD.

That’s some sh!tty terminology. Just charge different amounts for different types of cuts. Chances are, if I went 16 weeks without a cut, I was intentionally growing out my hair.

Yeah it really makes no sense. When I got an actual “new client cut” my first time she sat with me to talk about my hair, routine, products, etc, so it made sense for it to be longer and more expensive. It’s not necessarily going to take longer to cut my hair if it’s been 8 weeks or 8 months. What if I want a dramatic reshaping after 8 weeks, or just a small trim after 8 months? Nonsense.

[Anonymous]

OP here, below are a few of the requirements from the contract that jumped out. I'm not interested in being under contract for hair service so I will likely continue the at home haircare process. When I cancel, I am considering mentioning the contract and a few of the terms as being the main motivator. Another reason is that I've moved so I getting to her is now a 50 minute down the beltway.


4. I understand there is a 15 min grace period from start time *

5. I understand if I am more than 15 min late I will need to reschedule and will pay missed service in order to reschedule. This is to reassure all clients get their respected one on one time. *

6. I understand I must call/text soon as I am aware of my lateness or my appointment will be canceled. *

8. I understand that all services are non-refundable and prices are subject to change and are non- negotiable *

9. I understand and agree that if I need to cancel my appointment I will do so 48hrs prior to service time. If I do NOT cancel within time frame I will be charged 50% of service *

10. I understand that all color services require a deposit when booking and will pay invoice when sent. (New and existing clients) *
I agree
11. I understand that the cancelation fee is 50% of the service fee if appointment is canceled 48hrs or less prior to appointment and appointment will not be rebooked unless service is paid *

[Anonymous]

There is nothing wrong with hairstylists setting bizarre or outlandish conditions. The market will correct, and it's not like it is a medically necessary service.

I seem to be reading that people are offended at them setting clear limits, and I don't understand that. It's a small business and they lost a lot of income during the pandemic. Trialling out a lot of different approaches in the marketplace sounds like a good way for the profession overall to find the right balance.

I'm never going to tell a small business owner what to do, or criticize them for doing it (unless it harms people significantly). They know what they need. Honest feedback is a different matter, of course.

[Anonymous]

Mine does this and I do not mind at all because I don’t flake.
She is an independent contractor and this is her livelihood.

[Anonymous]

LOL. That is INSANE. I go to a high end salon and if they required me to sign I would laugh and find a new salon.

If you have truly been a good customer for her, she is making a mistake asking you to sign this.

[Anonymous]

Her contract is more stringent than getting an appointment with a specialist physician.

I get paying a fee if you cancel with short notice, fine. But what the OP posted is overkill.

Maybe the hairdresser doesn't care if she loses clients, but I suspect she is not doing well already if she has to have all of them sign this "contract."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, below are a few of the requirements from the contract that jumped out. I'm not interested in being under contract for hair service so I will likely continue the at home haircare process. When I cancel, I am considering mentioning the contract and a few of the terms as being the main motivator. Another reason is that I've moved so I getting to her is now a 50 minute down the beltway.


4. I understand there is a 15 min grace period from start time *

5. I understand if I am more than 15 min late I will need to reschedule and will pay missed service in order to reschedule. This is to reassure all clients get their respected one on one time. *

6. I understand I must call/text soon as I am aware of my lateness or my appointment will be canceled. *

8. I understand that all services are non-refundable and prices are subject to change and are non- negotiable *

9. I understand and agree that if I need to cancel my appointment I will do so 48hrs prior to service time. If I do NOT cancel within time frame I will be charged 50% of service *

10. I understand that all color services require a deposit when booking and will pay invoice when sent. (New and existing clients) *
I agree
11. I understand that the cancelation fee is 50% of the service fee if appointment is canceled 48hrs or less prior to appointment and appointment will not be rebooked unless service is paid *

F that. Prices are subject to change and non-negotiable? And if prices do change upon arrival are you still required to pay 50% of services if you then disagree? Becuase she's taking this contract to the next level, she'd then need to add verbiage regarding what happens if prices do in fact change. You should be permitted to back out of appointment without paying any cancellation or services fees.....though this whole idea is just ridiculous.

Find a new salon.

[Anonymous]

I go to a high end salon and the terms sound similar to the ones where I am. I don’t sign anything but you agree to the terms when you book. I don’t know how strict they actually are with existing clients. I had to cancel same day before when my son wasn’t feeling well and they didn’t charge me or give me a hard time. I guess if they’ve gotten burned enough times they have to establish the rules.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, below are a few of the requirements from the contract that jumped out. I'm not interested in being under contract for hair service so I will likely continue the at home haircare process. When I cancel, I am considering mentioning the contract and a few of the terms as being the main motivator. Another reason is that I've moved so I getting to her is now a 50 minute down the beltway.


4. I understand there is a 15 min grace period from start time *

5. I understand if I am more than 15 min late I will need to reschedule and will pay missed service in order to reschedule. This is to reassure all clients get their respected one on one time. *

6. I understand I must call/text soon as I am aware of my lateness or my appointment will be canceled. *

8. I understand that all services are non-refundable and prices are subject to change and are non- negotiable *

9. I understand and agree that if I need to cancel my appointment I will do so 48hrs prior to service time. If I do NOT cancel within time frame I will be charged 50% of service *

10. I understand that all color services require a deposit when booking and will pay invoice when sent. (New and existing clients) *
I agree
11. I understand that the cancelation fee is 50% of the service fee if appointment is canceled 48hrs or less prior to appointment and appointment will not be rebooked unless service is paid *

When you said contract, it sounded bad. This type of thing I would just skim through and hit “ok”. They clearly have had lots of cancellations.

[Anonymous]

The salon where I go has a policy for charging for cancellations made less than 24 hrs before the appointment. At the same time I always end up sitting and waiting for the next step (glaze, blow-out etc) because they book several clients overlapping. It's like my time is not worth anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hairstylists are wilding out lately, I swear.

Mine just upped her prices for a one hour curly cut from $85 to $100. That was hard to swallow, but she does a good job and I hate finding new stylists.

THEN she announced if you go more than 16 weeks between “maintenance haircut” appointments, you have to book a $150 “new client cut.” I think that is a disgusting way to wring money from your clients who can’t afford a $100 haircut every 8 weeks, told her so, and canceled my next appointment.

Good for you! That’s so obnoxious of her.