My $51 Haircut
I am really embarrassed to say this, and I am feeling tons of remorse and guilt from it, but last night I had a $51 hair cut. At Superclips. That doesn’t sound frugal, does it?
The ladies I work with have been making comments about my hair and how I needed to get it cut. Once it hits a certain length, it’s all downhill from there. I go between wanting to grow it out and hacking it all off. Usually I decide I’m going to cut my hair today, and there’s no stopping me then. Yesterday was one of those days.
Even though they give me crap at work about going to places like Supercuts, Sport Clips, Fantastic Sam’s, etc., the truth is I like my cheap hair cuts. I figure that the hairdressers that work at those places went to school with the people that work at the $35 a hair cut salons. That’s why I am fine with the cheaper places. I like paying $13 for a hair cut! I can’t justify spending any more.
I should have seen it coming last night, but didn’t. The hair cutter asked me if I wanted her to wash my hair, and I said “no, that’s okay. It’s clean.” To which she replied, “I’d prefer if I could so you can get the best cut possible.” [/schmooze] I obliged, as I thought the shampoo was complimentary, as they do at Fantastic Sam’s. As she shampooed, she told me which products she was using and why. After she finished washing my hair, she asked if I would like an eyebrow wax. I asked her if I needed it (yeah, that’s probably my first mistake) and of course she said yes. Now, to my credit, I did ask her how much that was going to cost. $12. I didn’t think that was too bad, and I don’t get it done very often, so I might as well do it. Plus, she said I needed it done.
Strike two. Count another one for the hairdresser.
She cut my hair, all while asking me what I wanted and me telling her how I’d like it to look, and when she was done cutting, she started styling it. I seriously thought she was burning my scalp. I had to move a few times because the blow dryer + roller brush = evil. When she got done, I thought she did a pretty good job. I was happy, ready to pay for my $13 hair cut plus $12 wax and leave. She showed me ALL the products she had used on my hair and asked me if I’d like to purchase them. No thanks, I don’t need any more hair products.
She calculated my total, and I swear when she told me how much it was going to be I felt nauseous. Mr. Money had come with me, and I tried to make sure he didn’t hear how much it cost. Of course he did. I asked him if he was upset, and he said no, that if I liked my hair cut that was all that matters because I don’t get my hair cut all the time and it looked nice. I, on the other hand, was still trying to recover. The hair cut was not that good.
It was $15 for the haircut, $5 for shampoo, $15 for style, and $12 for waxing. A grand total of $47 (plus $4 for tip). I am ticked that she charged me $5 for shampoo, and since when was a style that took her 5 minutes $15? Ridiculous. I will never go back there. I also feel so guilty that I spent that much money on my stupid hair, when I could have used that money more wisely somewhere else. Lesson learned, though. I’ll stick to Great Clips, where I know the hair cuts are only $13. And I won’t ask them to wash my hair.
Do you think I am unreasonable to be shocked at a $51 hair cut?
The cut is reasonable.
The shampoo is over priced. If your hair is clean, it’s not necessary for shampoo/conditioner. Your hair can simply be wet down with a spray bottle
THE STYLE IS OUTRAGEOUS! Generally, when you get a cut, a blow dry is included. It will look nice, nothing fancy. If she just styled it without telling you it was extra, that’s crap.
The brow wax is a reasonable price, especially if you keep it up between waxing.
All of the product being sold at a salon is over priced. If there is something you REALLY love at a salon, find a hairstylist friend with their license, and ask them to pick it up from the beauty supply. It’s like half price of what they sell it in the salon for.
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Oh, I didn’t say this in my other comment, but I am a hairstyling student.
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Ugh, that’s really lousy of them. I’d be mad too if I went in there thinking it would be like $30, and then it was $50!
She basically talked you into the wash for no great reason. My last hair cut was at a beauty school. The wash was included in the price, but it hurts my back if I sit in a reclined position (baby pushing on my guts) so I declined. She just soaked my head with a spray bottle — no biggie.
The style was a few dollars extra for me, but I knew about it upfront. $15 for a style at a budget salon is outrageous!
I think the brow price is reasonable, if you did in fact need it.
Sorry about all that. Next time I know you’ll find out the price of it all beforehand!
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I hate it when you go in thinking it will be one price and when you come out it was way more expensive than you expected. She should have explained a shampoo and style were extra.
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That is one of the reasons I hate salons… There should be a full list of services and prices in clear view at the chair.
But yeah, $50 at supercuts is out of control.
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Nicole- That is cool you are a hairstyling student! I wish you could cut my hair. Thanks for the tips! It’s good to know I’m not alone. I couldn’t believe $15 for a style that I thought was free. Ugh.
Kacie- Yeah, I was expecting like $16 or $17 with tip, and when she said $47 I was so sick. I felt HORRIBLE. I’ll have to look into going to a hair design school next time.
Miss M- I wish she would have explained it was extra and then I could decline. I felt trapped, and then I felt stupid that I didn’t know it was going to be so much!
Ashley- I know! I think she should have told me it would be extra for what was extra. It was 7 PM and I didn’t need a $15 style!
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Your experience was unfortunate, however, this is why you should go the same salon and hairstylist all the time. You know what you are paying everytime you go. I schedule my next hair appointment when I go, and am never disappointed. I guess the response, is “you get what you pay for” or not
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Gitlie- That is definitely good advice. I am going to stick with the same person I used to go to. Even though it’s not as close to my house, it is definitely better than a $51 haircut!
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You’re not being at all unreasonable; I would be furious! Blogging about it is a great way to forewarn others about this travesty, but here’s another suggestion for you: Find out the corporate address of Superclips (and if possible, the name of the Customer Relations manager at the corporate level), then send them a letter detailing exactly what happened. Let them know that the stylist talked you into the shampoo without informing you of the additional $5 cost, and that she also neglected to inform you of the outrageous $15 styling cost. (Did she ask you if you wanted the styling, or did she just go ahead with it? If she didn’t ask you, that’s another important point for your letter.)
You’ll have the best chance of a response if you express your dissatisfaction and disappointment in a calm, reasonable and factual way. Tell them you feel this is a very deceptive way of doing business, and that the only fair solution is to refund you the $20 you were unaware you would be charged. Of course, if this is Superclips’ standard operating procedure and they train all their stylists to do it, you may get no results at all from your letter. But I think it’s worth a try!
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Mo- That is a great idea! I will write a letter this weekend. She did not ask me if I wanted the styling at all! She just did it, and I assumed that it was included with the cut. I hope that’s not the way they are all run. That would be disappointing!
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