Was I too generous?

[Crazyladee]

I've been regularly going to the same beauty salon for the past 18 months. Every three weeks I have been going to have my eyebrows waxed and tinted. A youngish girl owns the salon and as I have been a regular for 18 months, we are very friendly with each other.

Two months ago, I made sure I had my appointment for Xmas (next Wednesday) booked in as the salon gets busy at this time of year.

Yesterday, I messaged the salon to say I'm sorry but I will have to cancel the brow appointment as the hospital had just been in touch to say they were able to offer me an outpatients appointment the same day as my brow appointment. A cancellation had come up. I apologised to the beautician and acknowledged that next week is a busy week but explained the hospital appointment was important to me.

I got a message soon after saying "okay, thanks for letting me know"

Feeling a bit guilty, and sensing that she may have been a bit miffed with me, I quickly replied offering to pay something towards the cost of my brows if she couldn't fill my appointment.

She replied "thank you, I will let you know if the appointment doesn't get filled"

I get that my appointment is during a busy week but I did give her a weeks notice to cancel. Was I being too generous in offering to pay or did I do the right thing?

Why is this on the "highlights" of MN,, I would also add. Just a bizarre non-question.

I think you didn't genuinely mean the offer you were being polite, well that'll teach you! ;)

Her response wasn’t warm, so you tried to warm up the proceedings with your offer, which she took at face value.

It’s a business relationship, you don’t need to placate her.

Thing is, she might contact you and say she didn’t fill the vacancy and expect you to pay, but you’ll never know for sure if she managed to get someone else or not.

Oh grow up pipstartpip. I cannot abide this faux naïf attitude to anything beauty-related. She gets her eyebrows done because she wants to, not because there is anything 'wrong' with them. You must have noticed the plethora of ladies' hairdressers in most towns - would you believe they exist because women like getting their hair done, not because there is anything 'wrong' with their hair.

*I got a message soon after saying "okay, thanks for letting me know"

Feeling a bit guilty, and sensing that she may have been a bit miffed with me, I quickly replied offering to pay something towards the cost of my brows if she couldn't fill my appointment.*

This seems like waaaaay over thinking it to me. Her message is polite and neutral, it doesn't suggest that she's miffed at all to me. Why on earth would you offer to pay when you've given plenty of notice for cancellation?!

It’s a business relationship, you don’t need to placate her.

Yes, this. If she's running a viable business she should have a cancellation policy and let you know if your cancellation is too short notice. (And it should be clear when you book what that policy is).

It's clearly an important part of running your own business to understand and allow for things like cancellations, unfilled appointments and other factors which mean the income you generate is variable.

From the business owners perspective- I own a business. It is extra work if someone cancels. Even if you fill their slot, you still have the admin involved in cancelling/refunding (If nec), re-advertising, admin for new client. So, it isnt nothing. Whilst I don't charge clients for cancelling with good notice, it would be nice if they were aware (as the op has, but many responses haven't) of the inconvenience, and made a gesture of recompense. Otherwise when you redo your pricing the next time, you have to consider increasing them all to allow for a few cancellations.

hit a nerve floozie - never - a - truer - name!

Unless OP is a hollywood starlet why is she spending money on this shit?

hair, i can understand.

eyebrows? what do eyebrows need every few weeks? I mean, unless they're infested with lice or something, and need medical treatment. the mind boggles.

Ridiculous.

Eh pip? What are you on about? Loads of women like getting their eyebrows done. Most women I know in fact. That's why there's plenty of beauticians on a high street. They're not sat there empty waiting for a Hollywood starlet.
My eyebrows are the only things I get it done, hair I'm not bothered about. Everyone's different you see.

pip so you’re saying ‘never a truer name’ about floozie - because you equate someone supporting a woman’s interest in having her eyebrows done with - being a ‘floozie?’

You seem rather hard of thinking.

pip her eyebrows her money her choice. Why are you so judgemental?

OP you’re over-thinking. 24 hours cancellation notice is normal. I once phoned up to cancel an appointment at the time it was due to start as I was stuck at the hospital with an injured ankle and the beautician didn’t charge me because of the circumstances and because I’m a regular. Just forget the whole thing now.

I guess the moral of this story is don’t offer something you are not willing to go through with to make yourself look good .

Comments such as Pips make my skin crawl.
Us women can do what the hell we want - our bodies, our choice.
Good grief I really do despair at times. Your superior attitude ....Why oh why do people like you seem to think a woman can't be more than her looks.

3 weeks is far too frequent. If they are doing it right then you should get 5-6.

Seems strange that a girl can be a business owner

Yes yes, well done golf claps have a gold star

Why would you think ‘ok thanks for letting me know’ was her being miffed at you?

I have mine done every 6 weeks, and I could maybe stretch it to 7 or 8 if I had to. Every 3 weeks seems a lot.

It does seem slightly desperate of you to offer to pay for an appointment you cancelled a week in advance. Most cancellation policies are 24 hours or 48 hours maximum. Her response is also odd, implying if she doesn't fill the appointment she is going to charge you?

Are you very keen to be very friendly with this woman? It comes across as though you are.

The salon near me only charges if there is less than 24 hours notice for a cancellation.

Wow can't believe I'm being judged for the frequency in having my brows done! I sometimes think people scrutinise threads to try and find things to pick at for the sake of it! Get a life! My brows..my money! And it's not my fault my thread was a highlight or whatever!

She mentioned last year that she was thinking of asking for deposits for appointments during Xmas week as she was sick of being out of pocket for failed appointments during that time so that kind of stuck in my head. I'm not sure whether she went through with it as she's never asked for a deposit from me and I never heard anything more about it.

Her reply sounded okay but normally her messages are full of smiley faces and various emojis and her reply didn't contain anything like that.
And I never said I wasn't prepared to pay something towards my appointment! I just questioned whether I had been too generous. Hence the title of the thread.

I think she's a CF OP

I get my eyebrows done every 3 weeks, pay £2.50 and even if I cancel 30 minutes before the salon doesn't give a hoot.

Please don't pay her a penny. Find out what their terms for cancellation are for the future.

Cancelations are a part of any business. They’re annoying but can’t be helped.

You sound very nice OP but I do think you were over generous to offer to pay.

Too generous. Had you cancelled at the last minute, then she may have been out of pocket. A weeks notice is plenty of cancellation time.

She mentioned last year that she was thinking of asking for deposits for appointments during Xmas week as she was sick of being out of pocket for failed appointments during that time so that kind of stuck in my head.

And then you went and cancelled the appointment during Xmas week, so can you not see why her text was not full of smiley face emojis?

Maybe you and 10 others have all cancelled already.

If she has any sense she will say thank you for your offer and be keen to keep your thrice weekly business you eyebrow extravagant hussy.

These things happen, and I’m sure as you are a regular client who doesn’t have form for cancelling then I wouldn’t worry. You gave as much notice as you could, and most places slightly risk price treatments on the assumption a certain % will cancel; at least you weren’t just a no show so she can try and find someone else.