AIBU that a haircut shouldn't cost £60!?

I once asked my hairdresser friend why
men’s cuts are so much cheaper even when/ if they have long( ish) hair
her response was that ‘men just won’t pay for it’

interesting

My local salon charges £70 for a haircut. In zone 3. She charges £5 for a fringe trim bizarrely.

Interesting about the bins contract @Soddingcat . That will explain why the salon owner who has a plot at my allotments would bag hair and dump
it on the plot’s waste heap. Cue foxes spreading it all over my plot. It was grim ( and I was furious).

10 years ago I used to pay £8 to a girl from work who did knock off hair dressing in the evenings. If I gave her £10 she'd even have my tea ready for when I arrived! 🤣

I have moved away now and pay £35 which I think is steep for where I live.

I’ve given up my swanky chain because even with work discount it was 60 quid 18 months ago. I’ve got collar length fine hair and ended up with the same, boring hair cut every time. And I was in and out in the blink of an eye. Go to cheap and cheerful local (as in round the corner) now, 30 quid (which is still expensive) but she listens, she is willing to take risks, cuts really well,her daughter washes and it’s honestly the best wash ever(I iknow loads hate the massage, but I love it). Decent coffee, good craic and Dh actually can tell I’ve had it cut.

They will charge what they charge based on a combination of overheads (expenses) as well as customer demand. There is a minimum they have to charge to make it a worthwhile business, which will vary by region as well as set-up (I know some who operate from home and charge far less than brick and mortar in a prime location). But not all hairdressers will or should charge the minimum - if they are very good at their job and their services are in demand then they should absolutely charge more.

I’m not a hairdresser but do work on a freelance supply and demand basis after leaving salaried employment when my kids were young. I made a conscious choice to charge at a higher price point and optimise hourly wage over volume - basically I would rather work 10 hours a week for a decent amount than work 40 hours for only slightly more. Added bonus of working for clients that recognise the value of what I do.

if you view all hairdressers as interchangeable then by all means find the cheapest in your area. I’m happy to pay a bit more for expertise and a higher level of service.

Well wielding a pair of scissors is something we all can do from about age 5 - however being able to cut hair across the varieties that exist and do it well is a very hard skill. Even really experienced hair stylists aren’t always able to deliver a good cut that suits the person or can’t translate what the client is looking for into reality.

I’ve had some awful experiences at both cheap and pricy places. And the other day I had one of the best structural hair cuts from a woman my MIL wanted to do a favour for to bung her a little bit of extra cash. I just said give me a quick trim and she did such an amazing job. I didn’t even realize it until later because she didn’t blow dry it because we were in my MIL’s kitchen.

I’m guessing people who don’t see the skill in cutting hair just have a really easy style and hair and don’t realize the skill involved for most people.

Yes me too. Tho am going less and less frequently as can’t afford it as much anymore - the cut is brilliant and so much better than any where else I’ve been.

((my dog groomer is around £60… drops 💣😅… and quietly leaves MN 🫣))

These messages are making me cry
I had to stop going to my salon as it was, no joke, over 500 for cut and colour. In Marylebone
I now pay 250 which felt a bargain until this thread

My last mobile hairdresser used to charge me £10. My new one (last one moved away), charges £20.

I refuse to pay a small fortune at a hair salon.

Mine comes to my house, she’s charges £25, I wash my hair before she arrives and she trims it. I then style it. It’s easy, and she’s a great hairdresser also

I feel lucky that I only pay £10.50 for a dry cut once a month! I have short hair and it takes him 20 minutes and I always get compliments on the cut.

I’m so lucky a family member trims mine for free (although we do various favours like babysitting/ dog sitting etc)

The salon I use is a community interest company - they charge at cost price and invite donations to cover subsidised services.
Comfy but not particularly swish salon in a central-ish but not great part of London - costs including VAT are £37 for an hour.

Ive also just read that one eyed rat could learn to cut hair in 3 days ?
wow 😮
how fucking rude and unpleasant are you ?

it takes years to be good , and I assure you nobody wants a haircut by someone with 3 days training .
The ignorance on here is staggering

Or they could use scissors.......? 🤔 ✂

I was paying nearly that 20 years ago in London - was fairly central Zone 2 - but not one of the fancy or famous ‘names’ salons.

Exactly! FFS. No-one is that good at cutting and colouring hair that they deserve to be paid this! They trim and colour someones hair, and charge £247?! What a joke!

Of course they are
Or cut their own hair with a knife and fork
Their call

Businesses are entitled to charge what they want, mate.

And if they think highly of themselves- good on fucking them! As they bloody should! I applaud anyone who owns a successful and thriving business.

I doubt anyone is forcing you to go to a salon where they charge £60+ for a cut and blow. So you don’t need to go. You don’t need to get angry about it. And you certainly don’t need to insult stylists and compare their skill to a “one eyed rat doing a 3 day training course”. Honestly, I haven’t read anything as embarrassing as that comment on here in a while 😂

But if you really want to know why some salons will charge £60+ it will be to earn a living as well as being able to pay for:

Tools (that will need replacing regularly): scissors, combs, brushes, straighteners, hairdryers, clips, foils, mixing dishes, rollers, bands, trolleys, capes, towels. More expensive salons will use more expensive brands like GHD, Cloud Nine etc.

Products (that will also need frequent replenishment): shampoo, conditioner, heat protection, hair spray, mousse, oils, treatments, dye, dye activator, toner, perming solution, finishing sprays. Again, more expensive salons will use more expensive brands like Olaplex, Wella, Redken, Nanokeratin etc.

Marketing: branded posters, leaflets, signage, online advertisements, print advertisements, colour-charts, hair extensions samples, website, online booking system, mobile app.

I’m sure you’ll also take into consideration the HIGH overheads such as insurance, electric, water, salaries, rent, broadband.

Then you’ve got fixtures and fittings, (chairs that get lots of wear and tear) cleaning products, tea coffee and milk for clients, costs of having a card machine, subscription services, paying for training, upskilling and masterclasses that staff attend.

But you stick to your daft and classist assumptions of these workers charging prices because they think “highly of themselves” 👍🏻
How pathetic.

I pay between £140 and £180 for a cut, colour and blowdry. Roots and highlights and lowlights depending on what my hairdresser thinks I need.

I have fine, crap hair. It always looks fab because my hairdresser is superb and I hardly have to do anything to it.

My hairdresser is awesome. I don't begrudge her a penny. I get almost "mates" rates because we've been together for 25 years. SW London.

Decades ago I had a cheap as chips mobile hairdresser who did me and the children. Then she put her prices up by 50%. I wasn't prepared to pay more to sweep up the hair from the kitchen floor and wash my own hair over the bath. Not very treatworthy.

You don’t have to pay that though. I pay £90 for colour and cut. Quite expensive for my area in the North. But equally I could go round the corner and have the same done for £35. I think hairdressers are one of those trades where there can be a large difference in charges, to fit everyone’s budget.

I have a fabulous reasonably priced mobile hairdresser and threads like these make me scared of losing her.
I’ve no interest in pampering or the ‘salon experience’ (no offence intended to people who love it) so don’t mind washing my own hair and making her a coffee.

£200+ London suburbs. And I always hate it.

£247.50…. 😮