The Hair Business: Cancellations, Tipping, and Salon Ownership

Cancellations due to Weather

So it never rains in Southern California . . . this makes for many more gorgeous hair days.  California's low humidity has been perfect for those with press and curls over the years. Only when people move from California to the East Coast and begin fighting rain and humidity that they realize how much the weather does make a difference with their hair upkeep.

I researched some years back that Santa Barbara, California was voted the best city for hair because its weather stayed consistent for most of the year.  So what about those of us who live in cities where rainfall can be quite a regular occurrence?

Without some hairspray or extra holding spray, you have to wonder if it is even worth going to the salon.  Some clients go because they need a clean head, but for those who are more focussed on style, cancellations may come more commonplace because getting it styled on a rainy day is somewhat risky.  No one wants to waste their money, and many complain when too much holding spray is used.

Rainy weather makes it tough on the salon business in 2014 when people are already trying to stretch their dollars.

Tipping
The rule of thumb used to be "not to tip" the salon owner because the owner was already making money off their other hairstylists working for them.  Sometimes I have run into customers that stand firm on not tipping the salon owner even if the salon owner is the sole and only operator in the salon.

With many hairstylists moving into salon suites, they are salon owners, but many never considered the fact that they could lose their tip money because they branched out into their own individual styling studio/suite.

I have not figured out a way of tackling this topic with those who stand firm on not tipping the salon owners.  Often times, I find that "tipping" is such a delicate topic and a courtesy that it almost seems taboo to educate on the tipping process.  Maybe this article will open up dialogue about when to tip the operator even if they are the owner of the hair business.

Salon Owners
In some states, state laws do not require salon owners to have a license to do hair. North Carolina is one of those states.  The problem with this practice is that salon owners who do not practice the art of hair can NOT effectively make sure their clients are happy in case a service correction needs to be made.  Granted, salon franchises such as Sports Clips, Great Clips, Hair Cuttery, etc  have built brands where people know that finding someone great working there may be a gamble, but for the affordable price, they may be willing to take their chances. Many of these "fast haircutting places" work fine with business savvy people owning them. However, when non-franchise salons are being run by business people who just want to own a salon in theory, they are less likely to survive in 2014 because the retention of hairstylists as well as the retention of clientele for those hairstylists can be challenging..  A example of two salons bumping heads is described in this link.

Tipping versus Gratuity

Many years ago, an educator told my class that "tips" stand for To "Ensure"/Insure Proper Service. This topic came up tonight as I was leaving a casual restaurant. The tip jar is located at the register. I usually walk back to the register after my meal and put a dollar into it. The crew is very thankful, and I am appreciative of them pouring the remainder of my drink into a "to go" cup and refilling it. I also liked their upbeat spirit. I do not have to tip, but the phrase "to ensure proper service" kept entering into my head. I plan to return to this place, and I want the same good service. So it was a no brainer - the tip really was gratuity at this point. I was showing gratitude and leaving some incentive to remain nice to me on the next visit.

I often leave a tip every night that I am staying at a hotel because different people clean rooms on different days. Leaving money for the cleaning lady every morning, "ensures" me that I get extra perks in the bathroom, etc. I think that I read somewhere in a tipping article that it is recommended to leave some money everyday for the cleaning lady. I am religious about this rule. Tipping the cleaning lady is not always a gratuity, but it is to ensure proper service. Smile.

By now, you can tell the difference between gratuity and tipping. In a restaurant that you eat often . . . I suggest "tipping" even if the service was poor. Why? You guessed it "to ensure proper service" on your next visit. Smile.

Now, when it comes to hair services . . . a committed stylist is always going to take great care of your hair with or without a tip. Also, with the economy being down, most stylists are just happy that you are still patronizing their services regardless of your ability to tip.

The only hair instance that I truly remember where a tip made a difference was in beauty school. As a student, looking back, all of my tools were not as professional as the ones I have now. I remember it taking me what seems like forever to put "hundred million" curls in this lady's head who had a short haircut. She looked gorgeous in the end, but I had the hardest time with either the marcels were too hot or not hot enough. It turns out that they were not tempered properly, but no one told me. Back to the story at hand . . . Well, the lady did not tip me after I slaved over her head. She came back to the beauty school the next week. She said that she had gotten a huge amount of compliments and wanted me to service her again. I was of course "busy." Smile. The other student that serviced her did not style it like I did, and she was not happy. I did not care mainly because I remembered that I felt that she was unappreciative because I took so much time to service her. That is probably why she did not tip me; however, tipping me on her prior service would probably have ensured that I was not too busy to service her again on the next service. Smile. I am more seasoned and mature now. I would not turn down a hair service that someone specifically request for me. I definitely see it as an honor. People have a lot of choices. I appreciate my clients for just paying my mid-range pricing without additional tipping.

This article is just food for thought. We are always paying for some sort of service. I like tipping to ensure good service on my next regular visit. Gratuity may be the difference between leaving 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%. The higher the percentage, then the more you express your gratitude.