To think having your hair done is now extortionate- rant

[OnlyFoolsnMothers]

So after covid lockdowns I went back to my hairdressers, didn’t know my hair dresser had been promoted and so for a full head of highlights, cut and blow dry was over £200- I’m in a London zone 3 suburb not central London!
This is extortionate so I used a local girl who works from home £85- she’s now unavailable, so this morning I’ve been calling round other salons etc- it’s an absolute rip off everywhere I call!

Last one I rang:
Highlights £70 for one colour- +£15 for an additional colour
Toner £35-£40 depending on length of hair
Cut and blow dry £40-£50 depending on length of hair

Seriously?! The length of the hair subjectivity pisses me off because I cannot plan how much it will cost me (I assume people will call anything past the ears “long hair”).
A cut and blow dry costing nearly £50?!!!
And these aren’t high end branded salons, they’re run down salons on high streets, main roads etc.
I’m not struggling but have to think before dropping over £100 on my hair- surely this isn’t right or is cutting ones hair now a luxury ?!

@OnlyFoolsnMothers

Comedycook I suspect it’s the posters who say “it’s a luxury you can’t afford deal with it” who take home 100k+

Umm, no. I can't afford those prices, so I choose to have a wet cut only (no treatments or colour) and pretty rarely at that.

Of course choosing to have treatments/colour/blow dry are a luxury!! It's hardly comparable to going to the dentist or buying sanpro. The same as needing clothes - having clothes is a necessity, having "posh" boutique clothes is a luxury. I don't bitch that I can't buy Prada on a Primark budget!

@Sparklfairy

Really unfair to call it a rip off imo. Presumably you saved over the last year+ not getting it done whilst hair stylists' income vanished completely, then with added costs on reopening and reduced income when open because they can't have as many people in, its spectacularly shortsighted and tight to think that prices wouldn't have risen substantially to cover all of this.

How would you know if I saved? You have no idea how our household income was affected by covid. Bizarre assumption

@Paq

I think if you just described hair cuts you would have had a more sympathetic response. To bring in colours and highlights you are definitely moving into luxury product territory IMO.

Don’t really get why- they are two diff price points - as pointed out I’m being quoted £50 for a hair cut-which I think is a lot! I also am happy to pay 100- slightly over for highlights - I think over £200 is ridiculous for a standard salon. People who disagree fine that’s their opinion

Why not start your own salon offering services at what you deem an acceptable price?

61% agree with you so far so you should have no problems becoming the place to go. You might not make a profit mind you but that's by the by.

I’m not struggling but have to think before dropping over £100 on my hair- surely this isn’t right or is cutting ones hair now a luxury ?!
YABU as you are not talking about just a cut. A haircut does not cost that much.

@OnlyFoolsnMothers

It's about expecting to get expensive treatment on your hair for next to nothing I don’t think £100 is next to nothing Like I said I think people should be able to get a hair cut for less than £50

I pay £13 at the barber (I am female). It's your choice what you are willing to pay.

It's a luxury. I've stopped dying my hair and get it cut once a year:/ too expensive I'm not made of money

Can you go to a college they normally have a full salon on site with really nice facilities at knock off prices. When I was studying I never saw a client get a bad haircut or dye job. The clients were for second year students at least. The first years did washing and making cups of coffee.

@OnlyFoolsnMothers www.uksevenplus.co.uk/lookbook

This is in London zone 3, in Hendon. They charge around £30-35 for a haircut. I called after the pandemic and it was still around that price point. I also go to Tai Chung Wah in Leicester square- but they don't have a website and you have to pay in cash. Its also around £35 for a hair cut and I paid £90 for a haircut, blow dry and colour. You can bargain a little in Tai Chung Wah.

Its definitely possible to find a haircut for less than £50. Both places are pretty good.

I charge £69 for full head highlights and cut and blow dry and I'm in the northwest

I just think it’s sad that cutting ones hair is a luxury

"Cutting one's hair" isn't a luxury - you can do that yourself very cheaply at home.

"Having your hair washed and then cut and styled by a professional in a nice environment, maybe with a drink thrown in" is a luxury.

I have an expensive cut but I colour my hair myself.

My hair costs £25. My cats hair costs £40!

Hi lighting hair is a skill and if your good u can charge what u like !! Have u seen shit hilights ? That’s why there cheap ! Good stylists take 3 years to qualify and extra colour and cutting g courses every year and those cost monies !!
Some people are lucky and get their money’s worth those stylists don’t know the worth !! X

And the different prices for hair lengths equals more product and more time ! X

Once prices started knocking on the door of £200 ( London / Surrey) I started looking elsewhere. I now go to a hairdresser in my home town in the East Midlands who ive known for years. Sadly if I travel just to see him the petrol charges on top bring it up to my local prices so I need to plan it properly. Importantly for me he’s worked in London salons and teaches etc for a big hair care brand. No way would I just walk into a salon because they’re cheap. The only time I did that I had the Dudley / Demi Moore encounter that Monica had in friends.

@SoupDragon I don't think its a luxury, I would put it on the same level of going to a mass market cinema like Vue or getting a coffee. It is a 'service' but no frills. I have never cut my hair at home except during the lockdown when my husband hacked away at my hair, but i go to no frills Asian hair salon. They don't offer drinks. They can be abrupt. The environment is clean and looks decent but I wouldn't call it fancy.

I live in London too and I have no idea what kind of hair salons that OP is going to or why they are so expensive. It reminds me of brows- I go to Harrow and get my brows threaded for £3 at a booth run by an indian lady at the shopping centre, but there are some people out there charging £16-35. Ridiculous!

Noticed a few years back how expensive hair salons were becoming. I stopped going about 6 years ago. Hair is now in better condition then when I use to go to them.

Mobile hairdressers are far cheaper than salons and they do just as good a job.

and they do just as good a job.

I don’t think everyone would necessarily agree with that.

When it comes to colour particularly, it hasn’t been my experience.

I don't think its a luxury, I would put it on the same level of going to a mass market cinema like Vue or getting a coffee.

Going to the cinema and getting a take out coffee are also "luxuries" rather than "basic needs.

@TheKeatingFive

and they do just as good a job.

I don’t think everyone would necessarily agree with that.

When it comes to colour particularly, it hasn’t been my experience.

I’ve had some less than positive experiences in salons too - both with haircuts and colours that cost £££. There’s so much variation on quality and often no comeback with hairdressers.

Rush is a fucking outrageous ripoff. The last time I went they tried to charge me over £200 for top section highlights and a trim. I kicked off and the girl basically admitted she'd bumped it up by £50 out of pure incompetence. Even after that its the most expensive hairdo I've ever had and decidedly average.

Fucking cowboys. Never going there again.

I pay £170 for a cut, highlights, colour and blow dry and I don’t mind paying a penny of it because:

I’m there for 4+ hours drinking her tea, using her electricity.
I need her expertise, skills and knowledge. She’s trained very hard to do her job.
Then the products themselves aren’t cheap at cost. I don’t want to put any old stuff on my scalp, I want quality products that won’t damage my hair or cause a reaction and I pay to trust her not to do that.
She’s excellent at her job and I don’t have to go back for 3 or 4 months.

It is a luxury. Nobody needs to cut their hair let alone colour it.

I forgot to add, for great colour, you need a colourist not just any old hairdresser. I’ve learnt that the hard way. If you’re not willing to do the research into a proper colourist, then you’re just screaming out to have a shit job.