To not understand hairdresser prices

Ditto - The hairdresser I’ve been going to for a number of years is exactly the same , possibly the same franchise company. Unfortunately the lady who cuts mine is now £83 for a cut and blow dry and I just can’t justify it, it’s ok but not fantastic.
The last couple of cuts I’ve had in our local village by a lady who worked in a very prestigious salon in a neighbouring town but set up on her own 6 years ago. So much better cut , no chipping in or “ I need to straighten it to see if it’s level “. A fantastic cut and this week she apologised as needed to raise her prices by a £1. £33 for a cut and blow dry.

@Crazycatlady79 My hair needs thinning out. My hair is very, very thick. I have an undercut and there is still masses of it!

I usually pay £17 for my regular dry cut with a local person.

If they can follow the line of your previous cut (generally an inch or two off) it is a trim. If they cannot follow it because it is too grown out it is a restyle. It does take longer to do a restyle.

I tried a different hairdresser specifically for curly hair, omg no up selling, price as expected and at the end she said that style will hold, forget 6weeks see you in about three months. Book in via website! She is my new favourite, they are out there.

I go to the barbers (they advertise as doing men and women) and pay £16 for a cut. I wash it before I go. I also colour it myself using a box colour varying in price from £5 to £8 depending on supermarket offers. I concluded many years ago that I didn't enjoy the whole hairdresser experience, the ever increasing prices, the add ons and upselling and having to book every 6 weeks (talked into it whilst paying for the haircut).
Now I just drop in when I fancy a cut, take my turn in the queue and save lots of money.

I stopped going because of this. It was always more than I had worked it out to be! I would check the prices on their social media page and in store and every single time it was more. I haven’t had my hair cut since 2020 and I dye it at home, it’s desperate for a trim but I think I’ll go to one of the over priced super cuts no appt needed because I would rather know what it will be even if it seems expensive. I find it stops you building up a relationship with your hairdresser because there’s resentment there which is a shame.

I think the only way to stop this is explicitly book a ‘trim’ and say ‘just a trim’ when they ask what they can do for you when you are sitting there. Then if they try the restyle, firmly said that you booked for a trim and made that clear before the cutting started so you won’t be paying for any extra stuff that they chose to do on top. Agree that it’s a bit crafty as they could claim even a simple tweak is a complete ‘restyle’.

Omg this irritates me so much! I don’t think I have EVER paid the price I was originally quoted. It’s always more! Various excuses which I can’t really argue with after they’ve done the service and I’m stood at the till. I once heard a lady complain when she was charged extra for toner - which is correct but she hadn’t been told it would be more so didn’t realise. When she left all the staff were slagging her off and calling her stupid because she ‘didn’t know’ it would be chargeable (I haven’t been back there). Next time, I’m taking cash and telling them at the start that it is all I have so please don’t add any extras as I do not have the money for it.

And that should have been made clear to you at the time, not just when you came to pay. I would have challenged that in those circumstances. If you've decided you're not going back at that price you've nothing to lose challenging it.

You hairdresser doesn't just do restyles. They do haircuts. It doesn't matter whether you cut off 5mm or 50cm, they still have to go through exactly the same process of sectioning your hair, cutting it off, cross checking etc. There is simply no such thing as "just a trim" unless it's a mum doing it with a pair of kitchen scissors.
You are in the south east. Your hairdresser needs to pay for premises, insurance, tax, pension, support staff (juniors, receptionist), product. Everything is going up in cost. If they clear gross salary of 40k by the end of the year, they'll be lucky. And I don't believe hairdressers should be earning a minimum wage given their skills and training. I'm not enjoying paying £70 for my haircut but I understand why it is charged.

Or if they installed designer sockets after you'd specified plain white ones and billed you for the extra cost without seeking your approval.

I had a terrible experience recently. I used a local salon for a few years and was really happy with them, always the same staff and reasonable prices.Trim and colour about 55.00. I booked an appointment and went and they said we have a new stylist would you like to go to her? I said yes and had the usual things done and was happy when it was done..until I got the bill. OMG 160.00 from the usual 55.00. Turns out she was self employed on her chair or something and she set her own prices. I was shocked and very embarrassed. I obviously had to pay but I would never ever have agreed to that kind of money. I will not go back now. Trying to find that kind of money really hurt my finances at that time.

I don’t know anyone who looks down on hairdressers and the difference between them and a trades person such as a plumber or electrician, is that you pay a charge for them to come to your house and plumbing and electrical stuff is not something you expect regularly.

My hairdresser is a man and is expensive. I know his overheads are high, as they are for most people with premises, but I know he makes a reasonable profit and good for him!

Hairdressers have finally woken up to the fact that we do deserve to be paid well hence the increased charges, we have historically been looked down on, and thought of as not very bright
The overheads are astronomical and the profit margins are not huge for most…

There are always cheaper options for people who want cheaper though.

I always wonder why folk are happy to pay huge sums to plumbers and electricians, but not for hairdressers ? Again , people on here seem happy to pay peanuts to mainly women

good stylists take years to learn their craft and im thrilled to bits that we can charge our worth

Village salon.
V thick shoulder length curly hair
Cut, 3 shades of highlights, and DD's straight hair and fringe trimmed. £80.
Tea, biscuits, natter - free

I also am shocked at hairdressers prices. Made a commitment to hair health last year which included 6-8 week trims. But my local hairdressers doesn't do trims. They only do restyles. These cost £80. It's an expensive habit. The only places that don't charge this sort of price (£65+) are supercuts but I've had my hair done a few times there and I've never been happy with it. It's getting so expensive to spend £80 on my hair every 2 months! I don't even dye it or anything (letting my bleach grow out). DM moved down to live near us recently and she cannot understand the cost of haircuts in our area (south east), as she used to pay half what she does now for her hair.

@Ilovelowry you could ask your stylist if they have a less scented shampoo as well - say you're sensitive to perfumes.

I do this - get my hair cut infrequently. I think it probably is a restyle/cut, because you're completely changing your look, not just maintaining a look which has recently been done, that seems fair to me, I wouldn't expect to pay the cost for a trim since I go so infrequently.

I tend to go to places which are called things like HairExpress and trade based on price/speed rather than any kind of reputation and you can walk in without an appointment, or yes the "old lady salons" can work well as well, though you do usually need to make an appointment there.

Another option is someone who will come to your house - they often have a client list of mums and kids, and then elderly people who struggle to wash and style their own hair. Their costs can be lower because they don't have the overheads of the salon.

Try a unisex barber too - they are good at explaining stuff for the clueless without trying to market you endless products.

And if you don't like blow drying, you can ask them not to dry it.

I usually tell them they can go as short as they like and I want a low maintenance hairstyle because I don't have time or interest in spending time on my hair - that's where a unisex one is often good, because I find with some salons which are aimed at a customer who loves the whole "pampering" thing, obviously also a lot of stylists have gone into that line of work because they are interested in hair and beauty and sometimes (not always) it's like the idea of a woman who isn't interested in doing her own hair doesn't compute. That can be a bit of a frustrating experience and lead to a haircut where it takes more effort to make it look nice, whereas I REALLY do mean that what I want is a hairstyle where all I need to do is wash, air or towel dry (and preferably not every day) and brush. I have found what works best for this is to use the excuse of having really little kids, which is why the hairdressers who come to your house might be a good option since they do a lot of that kind of cut.

Where can you get those prices?

I'm up north and when I went to my friendly local (not even on the high street but on the edge of town) it was £49 for a cut and blow dry. And they didn’t even do such a great job 🫣

Ooh yes this. It is a necessity not a pleasure. I'm going later and already not looking forward to the blow dry which I will have to wash out to make it feel normal again.

While my stylist does an incredible cut each time, I bloody hate the shampoo smell and the blow dry.

It's a rare place that does that kind of differentiation in my experience, prices seem to be by the experience of the stylist (so junior, senior, director etc).
But I get the reluctance to protest at the time. I was once talked in to getting mine coloured by a new to me senior stylist, I knew it was going to be expensive but she sold it to me (I normally colour it at home). So I go back for my appointment only to find a much more junior stylist who was basically going to do the same all over dye I do myself. When I explained to her that I thought I was getting different tones (as I discussed with the other woman) she said that's not what she had been told and there wasn't time to do that. So stupidly I went ahead and paid far far far too much money. I protested with my feet and never booked there again (pathetic I know).

I found a hairdresser who doesn't use them. I made it very clear I have a blunt cut and no layer in my hair anywhere. It took my entire adult life to find this man and I'm never ever leaving him. Despite it being £75.a cut!