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

I pay £125 for a cut and blow dry. London West End award winning salon with one of the co-owners/directors. He’s been cutting my hair for 30+ years. Because he’s fabulous and worth every penny. When he started cutting my hair, I was a new grad in my first post uni job and he was a junior stylist at a big name salon. It was my first time not paying £2 to have a very bad haircut in my village’s “salon”. We’ve both moved up in the world since then.

And people are entitled to go somewhere cheaper.

Exactly! I needed my hair cutting after 4 years, as I had coloured and bleached it so much that it was a mess - but quite honestly, with many types of hair, it is easily cut yourself.

You could say that about any service
Everyone is entitled to set their rate and customers decide if they are prepared to pay 🤷‍♀️

Ok , to all the complainers , see the list below

£60 hair cut
vat =20 %
tax = 22 %
wages 83000 per year
employers National insurance
employers pension
electricity £7000 per year
water rates 1000 per year
business rates 4000 per year
music licence £5/600 per year
bins contract £1000 per year ( yes really )
towels laundry 1000 per year
stock colour : hair products £20000 per year
IT system 2000 per year
website 600 per year
refreshments
bank fees £4000 per year
accountant £25000 per year
sanitary bin removal £300 per year
training 5000 per year
phone and internet 1200 per year

these are a list of the main expenses for my very salon small with 2 full time , one part time stylist , and 2 juniors
I pay my staff £15 an hour btw
I charge £56 for a cut and blow dry

Im getting very sick of posts like this slating salons
for being to expensive
so many of you seem to be too dense to realise that there are many extra costs involved in your haircut, and many salons are closing because of the astronomical costs

Why are you happy to pay a plumber double that , or an electrician , but not a haircut ?
why do you think salons are too expensive when we have costs like this ? We are barely getting by
Why do you think we should not earn a decent living ?

I see that many are happy to pay lots for dogs cuts though…

Last month my cut and blow dry was £55 (London suburb) though I had £6 off for a 10% discount - not sure why that was. I only get it cut every 3 months so I don't begrudge it - a good haircut makes all the difference and I don't spend a lot on make up or beauty treatments.

Colour (highlights) plus cut is around £140 but again I only have that twice a year and touch it up myself in between.

You need to get a mobile hairdresser. Ok it’s not the salon experience but it’s much much cheaper. Mine is £30 and she’s done royal haircuts

I pay £65 for colour, foils, cut and blow dry - and I have extensions! I know it’s cheap but she’s a fantastic hairdresser which is why I go - not because of cost

I have tried to argue with so many barbers. My hair cut cost isn’t too bad at £15 every 6-8 weeks, hair is v short.

However, my husband pays that for a buzz cut on his head and a beard trim and shape Mr Upside Down Head).

But the barber refuses to even consider my custom. Makes me so mad. More pink tax.

I pay £30 for a dry cut which takes 20 minutes, small independent salon in a small town.

Pre-Covid it was £15.

£100 for a cut, colour and blow dry.
£80 for a colour and blow dry.
£70 for a colour and rough dry.

My hairdresser didn't have time for a blow dry but it was still a great rough dry and quite sleek.

I'll be asking for that in future.

£47 ish for a wash/cut/blow dry ( East London) maybe more .

Haidressing is a service if you cannot or don;t want to do this for yourself then you pay for it .

I remember all the Coming Out Of Covid threads that were
"Going to the hairdressers on Wednesday ....Can't Wait , I;m going to give my Hairdresser a MASSIVE tip "

So even though they couldn't use dryers and you had to wear masks , people were paying ££ and a huge tip on top.

How things change !

YANBU - it’s become too expensive for me to justify now. Religiously had my hair cut and hilighted which until around 3 years ago cost around £150 (Southern City). The last time i rang round a few salons they all wanted £250 - £280 ! I literally cannot afford it - so for the last couple of years I have been following youtube videos to hilight my grey roots and trim my own hair. It’s not perfect - but each time I do it I get better at it !!!!

I started cutting my own hair during lockdown and never went back. It’s great and honestly, I don’t think it looks any different to the very simple cut I asked for.

Still not explaining why some charge £60 to £80 for a cut, when others charge £20 though are you?

Nope. Because you can't. Oh I suppose the more expensive ones have HIGHER overheads...... 🙄

Nah mate. Not having it. The really expensive hairdressers just think very highly of themselves.

@BatchCookBabe I'd love to see how you get on with a 3 day course on how to cut hair, bet you'd look a right sight after doing your own from that!

Barbers can do 3-4 basic mens cuts with clippers in the time it takes to do a women's hair cut with scissors, they also don't have the costs associated with hair washing and colour - so fewer products, no towels, no hairdryers going all day (hairdryers are very inefficient when it comes to electric usage)

Typically to employ someone the costs to the employer in terms of NI, pensions, holiday, sickness etc are roughly double the salary. So that needs to be factored into the hourly rate, plus the costs of running the place, plus the business rates, rents etc. It quickly adds up.

That's not a haircut though is it?! FGS! 😩

I live in a village in NE England, where there are 5 hair salons! I get my layered bob washed, cut, and blow dried for £30. It takes about half an hour. All of the stylists there are self employed and pay the owner a percentage for their 'chair'.

I recently paid £105 for balayage, cut and blow dry. I thought it was a bargain tbh!

Mine gave me her phone number and now I go to her house, she gets every penny I give her, and the salon isn't open on a Monday which is my NWD so it's much easier for me to fit in too. She charges £30 I give her £40 I was paying £55 in the salon

Oh wow! What does that include? A wash etc too?
I get a dry cut and pay £11, it takes about 15 mins. I’m very northern

Do me a favour, it's cutting hair, not brain surgery! A one eyed rat could do it after a 3 day course.

What an incredibly embarrassing ignorant and arrogant comment.

Mine is £55 for a cut and blow dry with the salon owner (there’s only 2 of them). Was about £30-something when I first started going there 15 years ago.

I get it coloured elsewhere and that hairdresser is always talking about swapping to dog grooming for more £££ 😂

Your haircut isn’t £60 then.

Your cut and blow dry is £60. Which is reasonable in today’s market for a highstreet salon.

You’re paying for: the labour, training, tools used (scissors, comb, brush, clips, hair dryer, shampoo, conditioner, towel), salon overheads (water, electric, rent, insurance), cleaning supplies, marketing. There’s so much that goes into a business.

Price increases overtime are needed due to inflation and rising cost of living. The stylists need to be able to earn a proper living.

In my town (large market town in Yorkshire) there’s a salon where I get my highlights done, they are specialists in hair extensions, hair replacement systems and colours. A wash and blow dry there is £55 for short hair and £60 for long hair.

Then there’s another little salon in the town, just a bog standard basic salon who only do dry cuts. I get my long hair trimmed there and they charge me £10 which is a real bargain!

I pay £65 for cut, highlights and a few lowlights and blow dry but I am in the north west.