To wonder if the hairdressers was lying?

[Imicola]

I was very excited when the hair salon called to ask if I wanted to make an appointment after restricting were eased... My hair is short and in desperate need of a cut! But, my usual hairdresser has left, apparently to work in childcare....or so they said.

AIBU to be suspicious of this? Is that something salons would do to stop you following a stylist? I'm a bit anxious as I had three dreadful haircuts (in very different ways) in 3 different salons when I first moved here before I found my regular stylist. I'm kind of secretly hoping she has actually moved to another salon and that I'll be able to find her again!

Had one who was a salon owner and she sold the business without telling me - later found out from someone who knew her that she'd been under strict instructions not to tell clients she was off. She became a mobile hairdresser, allegedly in an area some miles away.
The business she sold didn't last long. I went elsewhere anyway.

YANBU. They never tell you where they’ve gone when a hairdresser leaves. Same for other professions. I remember ringing every opticians in town when my optician left, and I finally tracked him down!

Years ago my hdyrfesser left to “join the police”. A few cuts later I mentioned this to the sylhet doing my hair, ENO laugher and says no, she was still cutting hair at a different salon. In traced her easily enough.

*ENO laughter = who laughed!

amijust I can imagine they have been, in which case maybe the salon owners are preferring to keep the business to themselves and have less staff to pay.

When it comes to hairdressers and dental hygienists once I've had a few good cuts or cleanings I always give them my phone number and ask them to put me in their 'book' in case they change jobs.

I've had the same hairdresser for 24 years and have 'followed' her to 4 salons over the years, she now owns her own shop. I had the same hygienist for about 16 years until she retired, followed her to 2 dental offices.

It depends if you are the salon's client or the individual hairdresser's client what they can tell you.

One of my friend's has been following her hairdresser to different chairs for years. She actually did get her hair done in different salons depending on what day of the week it was.

With previous salon while I was initially an individual hairdresser's client when she left hairdressing I became the salon's client. Now with my current hairdresser I am her client not the salon's. The "salon" is actually a barbers so if she leaves I can follow her. Particularly as the barber doesn't deal with afro hair.

The difference is that as the hairdresser's client I book with the hairdresser on her personal number and she puts me in the salon's book. As the salon's client I make all my appointments directly with them.

In my old salon, one of the hairdressers left to start a mobile business but she wasn’t allowed to see any of her clients from the old business for 6 months - so something like that may also apply.

one of the hairdressers left to start a mobile business but she wasn’t allowed to see any of her clients from the old business for 6 months - so something like that may also apply

Usually they can't go after their old clients but there's nothing to stop them accepting custom from an old client if they contact them. However it will depend on the exact terms of the restrictive covenant in their contract.

When my long time hairdresser left to go freelance, she discreetly let me know at our last appointment together. I think the Covid situation meant that a lot of stylists didn’t have this option – salons closed very quickly. They may be telling the truth – she may have changed career – or they may have been taught to state this to stop her clients searching for her. I just think childcare is a strange thing to move into, considering that Nurseries, childminders etc were also closed down due to Covid. If you can’t trust her yourself, could you perhaps put something out on Facebook or other social media asking if anybody knows where you can find her?

*trace her yourself

Generally bullshit IMO. I love my hairdresser, I am very low maintenance and get my hair cut twice a year if I’m lucky, but he just gets my hair and my lifestyle and cuts accordingly, and I always have a fantastic time while I’m there. Twice now I’ve called for an appointment to be told he’s gone back to Hungary. A quick google told me he’s gone across town. I get why they do it but generally my loyalty is to the person not the salon. I gave the first place the benefit of the doubt a few times, and I ended up with an awful cut, nothing like I wanted, for far too much money. They always curl it too when I never ask them to (which seems to be the MO of Toni & Guy tbh, I think they do it to cover for a shoddy cut) Luckily my hairdresser has an unusual name so I can find him relatively easily

@HaudMaDug

If you can find her follow her and don't feel bullied into an appointment at the salon in the hope of the new stylist knowing what you want. There's already a disasterous post lockdown haircuts chat thread running for those who have returned to find their long time hairdressers have forgotten how to cut hair.

Can you give a link to this please as both myself and my friend are unhappy with ours ?

To add to this there have been a couple leave from my place too - don't know what's going on .

Google/Facebook her. Worked for me in the past :)

@KayakingOnDown

One of my local hairdressers has trebled their prices.

It's in a small country town and their main clientele is old women who regularly go for perms, rinses etc. It's exploitative.

If it’s a small town their clients will mostly always be the same; they won’t get varied customers like in a city.

Coronavirus will have hit them hard, so with such a small (and specific) clientele who probably just want the same cut they aren’t going to make a lot of money.

It’s probably raise the prices or sell the business. It’s not exploitative; their clients have the choice to go elsewhere and will probably have to if they can’t afford to stay open.

I know of 2 stylists who left to work in childcare. It’s not that unusual.

Hairdressers do not usually tell you if a hairdresser has moved salons for fear of losing you as a customer.
You could try to find her on FB perhaps and message her?

@TheStuffedPenguin
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3971361-Post-lockdown-hair-cut-disaster
This was the one. was quite a good chuckle.

@KayakingOnDown alternatively, maybe the hairdresser was massively undercharging and hasn’t raised their prices in years? You’ve not said what the prices were originally.

An average price for a perm is anywhere between £45-£85, with some salons charging more than that. Perming is a skill that isn’t always taught on the basic hairdressing courses these days, they tend to choose hair extensions fitting instead.

Therefore, someone experienced in doing different types of perms should be charging a higher rate for that specialised skill.

I liked my old hairdresser ( a few years ago now) Just before my appointment they phoned and said ' she has left but we don't know where!' I had the other girl and we got on fine. She whispered that my original girl was now working in the next town as a hairdresser! I wouldn't have followed her as it's too far for me to get there but i think they are cagey as they don't want to lose the trade! It's always been a ' cut throat ' profession ( no pun intended) !

One of my local hairdressers has trebled their prices. angry

It's in a small country town and their main clientele is old women who regularly go for perms, rinses etc. It's exploitative.

No, it really isn’t

They’re struggling to survive after a 4 month closure and now working with reduced appointments due to social distancing

My hairdresser left but I found her on Facebook and she carried in doing my cuts at home. They won’t tell you but if you have a local fb group you could post and ask there, someone will probably know

A lot of hairdressers are on Instagram. Does the salon have a page? Look back at past posts and see if she’s tagged in any. You might be able to find her that way.

We had a supermarket delivery last week and the driver told us he was a barber. When he got furloughed he applied for this job. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that a hairdresser might find another job.