Beauty, communication, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women, writing

What’s your sign?

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Today marks my 1 year anniversary in the blogging world. 1 year. Wow. Last year at this time I sat at our home computer with a quivering hand hovering over the “publish” icon…so afraid that I would fail, that no one would read my silly opinions or think I was funny. What I really was afraid of was succeeding. Yep. Afraid to succeed and not for the reasons you think. I wasn’t fearful of people now expecting better of me, I was scared shitless that success would make me look back on my past 20 years and realize I should have been doing this all along and my world would come crumbling down. Then I realized that the only reason I was able to do this was because of my past 20 years. – I say 20 years because quite honestly before the age of 21, we don’t know a damn thing. One of my favorite quotes (now) is by Mark Twain – “When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much he had learned in 7 years.”.

Back to the tale at hand. In past blogs I have written about kindness, about taking the time to listen, to take the time to see, really see the person in front of you. We all have struggles and stresses in this life – Christ – this past year I feel like I have lived 5 years in the span of 12 months. There were days I wanted to wear a sign around my neck to let the world know what I was going through that day and then maybe I wouldn’t get a flat iron thrown at me. (It happened more than once – I have witnesses). One day the sign would have read “Father in hospital”. Another day it would have read “Husband’s heart medication is working against him”. Another day it would have read “My daughter has to deal with a sick parent way before she should have to.”.

The one thing the past year has taught me is this…DO NOT WAIT. In the blink of an eye your life can and will change – it may feel like for the worse but the best comes out soon enough. Take your kids to the park – even when you are tired and bored. Take the time for your spouse – for cuddles on the couch or romps in the boudoir. Leave the crumbs on the kitchen floor for a couple of hours and watch the movie with your kids. When your hubby comes up from behind and hugs you while you are doing the dishes, let the dishes soak and hug him back and be sure not to be the one who stops hugging first. Start your blog – tell your story.

I have also learned we all have our own signs, some are harder to see, but are always able to be read if we take the time and pay attention and show a little kindness.

Beauty, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women

Different but the same

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Over the past few days I have had many salon tales come into my mind. So many tales to tell but how do I choose which one? I began this blog with the soul purpose of educating and enlightening the masses about the world of beauty and professional hair care products with easy to follow tips and opening doors that seemed to be locked and letting you join the club. I also wanted to wake up stylists and salon owners from their nightmare of what they thought was good customer service.

My primary goal is and will always be the same, to educate and enlighten. Over the past few months my tales have begun to travel down different roads, from customer service to product knowledge to how to be kind, not just at the Salon but where ever one may roam. You see, I am finding more and more, everyday, that beauty isn’t just the visual. It’s the emotional, the physical and the spiritual….maybe it’s because it is Sunday and I am missing my grandmother…who knows. Yeah, yeah…I know…you’ve watched Oprah and read “The Secret” so this isn’t news to you…or is it? Funny thing is, most Oprah and Secret die hards that have a library of all the #1 New York Times best sellers about self help and self love and loving your fellow man are the same people who mock their teenage daughter’s in public about their oily scalp and acne prone skin, or call their sons “tinkerbell” because he wants his hair style done just so and can’t live without KMS Molding Paste. Don’t get me wrong, I slip up all the time, did it last week when my daughter and I were out and I exclaimed and pointed at a sale item (I love a good deal). The item was Always overnight pads. Oops. I apologized on the spot. I am sure there is a doll with a pin in it in her room somewhere.

Being me, I have to clarify. Drives my husband CRAZY. I wanted to let you all know that I will always give you the newest product knowledge and information I get my hands on. I will give the tips you need for a great cut or Salon experience. I promise to continue with tales of my daily adventures in the Salon and all the tales of flying flat irons and mumblers and screamers. I will also keep telling the tales of kindness, the tales of inner and outer beauty. There is so much beauty around us, from the sound of our children giggling to the sound of our loved one sleeping beside us, the way the sun casts a shadow, the way the wind feels blowing through your hair while driving, the beauty of seeing someone, really seeing them and raising them up from such a simple act.

Want to change your perspective? Want to be more kind and stop being an ass? Just like being an ass, kindness is practiced. It takes effort, an effort with a great reward. You cannot just say you are going to be kind and then it happens. That’s like saying you are Jewish just because you attended a Bar Mitzvah.

What ever you put in, you get out. Plain and simple.

Beauty, Business, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women, writing

Full moon alert

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***A note to reader’s…my app. wasn’t updated to 2013…looks like I just attract crazy…read on…

So it happened again. No, I didn’t have to dodge a flat iron. I did however have to dodge the crazy. You would think after 20 plus years in customer service and dealing with the public that nothing would surprise me. The upside to all the crazy I get to witness and deal with is it gives me so much material. I find myself wondering, when did throwing your arms up and shoving your finger in someone’s face over the fact that the scent of the gel that you bought doesn’t transport you to  a green meadow became the norm? Maybe it is all the reality television or maybe it is that oxy’s are now banned in Canada…hmm….then I checked my Moon Phase app. (A necessity to anyone who deals with the public) and realized that the full moon will rise tomorrow. Great.

The phone rings. I begin my usual pleasant greeting when from the other end of the line I hear “Yeah, whatever. Look I bought a flat iron and I don’t like it. I want to return it.”. So I ask if it is still heating up. “Well….yaaaaah. Pfft.” is the eloquent response I receive. I explain that once a flat iron has been used, if there isn’t a defect present I cannot return it, nor can I sell it to someone else. I offer the company’s 1 800 number and tell her to see if they can help her out. “There is a defect! I don’t like it! That’s the defect!”. As I try to explain that does not constitute a manufacturer’s defect, I get to hear the ol’ stand by “You are an asshole and you suck!” then silence…not a dial tone…silence. You see, she is looking for a fight. Guess what? She isn’t getting one. So there I stand for about a minute in silence. After a few more seconds she finally shouts “I’m hanging up now!!!”. Click. It’s only 10:30 a.m..

A woman comes in and says “I bought this stuff here a few years ago. I don’t remember the name of it but I really liked it, do you have it?”. At our shop we have an awesome salon program that tracks our customers/clients purchases…if they have given us their phone number. So, I ask for her phone number to which she replies “no thank you”. I go on to explain I am asking for her number so I can check her file to see her purchases so maybe I can track down the product she is after. Big mistake. Huge. Who knew that little phrase I had uttered would begin a ten minute rant on Big Brother(not the reality t.v. show…lets keep up people) and the government watching our every movement and how it is no business of our Prime Minister what products she buys, and then she asks me again if I know what the product is she is looking for. Oh look…it’s 11:15 a.m..

A gentleman comes into the shop stating “I am never shopping here!!”, walks the perimeter of the shop and leaves.

At our shop, we sell over 25 professional hair care lines, so I deal with over 10 distributors, so if I don’t have the product you are looking for, I can usually order it in. We call it a “special order”. Another big mistake it seems. A woman was looking for a certain Kevin Murphy product that I didn’t carry, so I let her know I could order it for her, I let her know I could add it to our special orders, to which she said “Well! If I knew it was such a bother that it has to be classified as a “special order” I wouldn’t have bothered!” and then she left. I have to admit, I just stood there, I was actually speechless for a moment. You don’t want to know what time it was…too depressing.

I can hardly wait to see what or who crosses the threshold tomorrow. I do know one thing for sure, on tomorrow’s playlist I will be sure to have Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Bad Moon Rising on repeat.

Beauty, Business, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women, writing

The Emily Post of holiday retail

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It’s official. The holiday retail season has begun. Macy’s parade has paraded through our living rooms, turkey’s have been served and Black Friday has come and gone. It is here. Get used to it. Accept it. I have. One thing I refuse to accept is being yelled at, mistreated or having a flat iron thrown at me or any of my employees. I have also been known to intervene and stick up for the girl behind the counter while doing my own shopping. Why you ask? I don’t know if it is because I am forty, because I have had a hysterectomy or because I just have no room for (pardon my french) bullshit or people behaving like an ass. (A smart ass I will embrace, an ass – kick ’em to the curb). Yelling at and bullying a cashier or salesperson makes you look like an ass. Yeah, I said it.

Being me, I have compiled a little list for you to follow. Keep it with you in your wallet or on your phone. When you feel your blood begin to boil because the last red sparkle polish has just been sold or your stylist can’t fit you in at 7:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve – pull out the list, take a breath and move on.

 

– When a product is on back order, we honestly do not know when it is arriving. We don’t. Most of the time the warehouse doesn’t even know when or if the reorders are arriving. We receive the product as soon as they do. I wish I had a better answer, I do not.

– When you decide you want to change your hair color, be prepared to put aside at least two hours. Thursday & Friday nights are always booked up early, as are Saturday’s. Call ahead or better yet, ALWAYS pre-book your next appointment.

– Do not attempt your own hair color at 6:00 p.m. on the eve of Christmas Eve and then scream at us on the phone at 8:00 p.m. that same night because we are fully booked and won’t stay late on Christmas Eve because we close at 4:00 p.m. so we can see our loved ones. – Yes! It’s true – salespeople and stylists have families too! We aren’t all party girls that raid discount malls and drink cocktails.

– If the shelf is empty and we tell you the product is on back order, it is. We are not hiding it on you. We are not holding it hostage to the highest bidder. You are not being Punk’d. You can bat your eyelashes, show your cleavage, wave a 20 in my face, (all of these scenario’s have personally happened to me over hairspray…yep…hairspray), it will not make the product magically appear, I don’t have it.

– You cannot return an item after it has been used because you didn’t like it. The last time I checked the definition of manufacturer’s defect – “I don’t like how these clippers fit in my hand” or “The smell of the hairspray doesn’t make me happy” didn’t match the definition. I agree there is a defect present – it isn’t with the product.

– Yelling at a 17 year old girl behind the counter because your credit card was declined is not acceptable. It is not her fault you went crazy at your local Walmart on Black Friday.

– Just because you say your child is a gift does not mean you can plant them under the tree at our store while you shop.

– I know it is a pain waiting in line, your feet hurt, you are hot in your coat. When you finally get up to the till, say hello, look the cashier in the eye. They are tired too and probably been there for over 6 hours without a break while having to be yelled at for things they didn’t do and worrying about their sick child at home. * Something you all need to know – there are many companies that allow their employee’s benefit’s as long as they work a certain amount of hours – don’t work the hours = no benefits. Remember that as you shop this season.

– It is not our fault when the debit machine goes down. I know it is a hassle for you – think about how it is for us. We get to hear for the next however many hours of “what a pain and hassle” it is for you, how you will “NEVER shop here again!”, all because the bank’s network is down.

– When you are offered a free gift with purchase, say thank you. There isn’t any strings attached. We are thanking you for your business. If you don’t want it – give it to the person behind you or the next person you pass on the street.

– ALWAYS give to the Salvation Army soldier you pass on the street or in the mall. ALWAYS.

– If you are not a christian and someone wishes you a “Merry Christmas” please do not be offended. We aren’t judging your religious beliefs or trying to convert you, calm down and remember – it is a season of reflection and giving – no matter what you believe. Be kind.

So there you have it my lovelies, the first of what I can expect of many installments of  The Emily Post of Holiday Retail. Pass it along. Remember this. As you are complaining that the “must have nail polish” is out of stock, there are many wondering if the food bank is out of stock. Be kind, give where and when you can, even if it is a smile or kind word…and don’t throw the flat iron.

 

 

 

Beauty, Business, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women, writing

Tales of Truth – Part 6

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Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, gather round. Yes, it is that time again, tales of truth. The past week has been an unusual one, more so than normal. Maybe it’s the weather…a tad milder than normal, maybe it’s the holiday season approaching, maybe it is the pressure to have the turkey basted to perfection. I couldn’t put my finger on it until I was looking at my calender counting the days until the next available hour I would have to myself (December 3rd.) that I realized there is a full moon approaching. That explains everything.

Here is a glimpse into the daily life of that girl in the red coat, what I hear and what I see and sometimes wish I could un-see.

– “Your hair looks so nice, like fur, like….my cat. Oh, your hair reminds me of my cat.” – Thank god she said cat. (wait for it…there you go)

– “I want to get a Brazilian done. I heard it was easy enough. Do you think if I do the splits standing up and use the wall to hold my balance I could do it?”. I didn’t know what to say so I told her to You Tube the how to video on Brazilian Waxing. (You are gonna look it up now aren’t you? You know you are. You aren’t fooling anyone.).

– “If you can curl your hair with it, why do you call it a flat iron?” – how is it that these people make more money than I do?

– “Do you sell toe nail polish?” – had to explain that nail polish can be used on both finger nails and toe nails – I swear I did a shoulder check looking for a camera crew and Ashton Kutcher

– A customer asked the difference between root boost and mousse. I explained that “root boost is sprayed directly at the root, rub it in and then blow dry. A mousse is a foam that you disburse into your hand, emulsify it in both hands and rub it through out the hair, then blow dry.”. She stared at me and responded with “so..what’s the difference?” – Where is the principal’s office when you need it?

– A woman  called the shop asking me if I thought her hair color was too brassy. I told her it would be easier for me to tell if she was at the shop. She asked me why.

– I had a customer ask for a product line I did not carry. “I bought it here before! You don’t know what you are talking about.”. I apologized and explained that our shop has never carried that line. “Well , I know I bought it here! I shop here all the time! Give me your head office’s phone number!”. I told her we were locally owned and operated and not part of a chain. That’s when the light bulb switched on and she realized not only was she in the wrong store, she was on the wrong city. I offered her a complimentary mint.

– “My son loves computers. Can he come behind the counter while I shop?” – didn’t realize I had such a resemblance to Nanny McPhee

– A customer asked me if we sold Sebastian Shaper Plus. I said yes and took her over to the shelf. She just stood there saying “Really. You sell Sebastian Shaper Plus.”. She said it three times, then stared at me. I asked if she wanted me to get it down for her. She nodded as she stared and smiled and then walked up to the counter. I stood back for a minute- in case an alien sprang out of her chest or her head began to spin around.

There are five more days until the full moon. Although the thought of what may be said or seen does frighten me a little, it will make for some great tales to tell and maybe even bring a bit of laughter to an otherwise dull day.

health and wellness, lifestyle, Women

Kindness 101 Section 2

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You may be familiar with my previous blog, Kindness 101. No? Well, feel free to read it, you will find it in the July archives. In the past weeks many great things have been happening to myself and to others that I hold dear. The great events aren’t the only things we all  have had in common  – we all have been the brunt of a sarcastic or unkind word.

Ladies and gents, seriously, do I have to say this again? I know I am a mother but I HATE when I am forced to sound like one. BE NICE. BE KIND. Not sure what that means or how to do it? I have compiled a little list for you all. Feel free to add it to your favorites, share it on Facebook or print it off and keep it in your wallet for future reference.

– When someone is excited about their news, be excited with them = Kind. Respond with “hmpt…whatever…” = Not kind.

– When someone gets a Pixie cut tell them they look great =Kind. Telling them they look more like Peter Pan than a pixie =Not Kind

– A friend has lost 20 pounds and has 10 to go, hug them, tell them they can do it = Kind. Telling them “Are you sure it’s only 10” = Not kind.

– When someone is speaking to you, look them in the eye = Kind. You keep looking at your phone as they speak to you = Not kind.

– When someone is following their dream, even if it is to be the best damn basket weaver on the planet, tell them you have their back and want the first basket they weave = Kind. Asking them if they have joined a commune = Not kind.

– When someone is recovering from addiction and is having a trying day and wants a drink, offer to listen and tell them to call their sponsor =Kind. Telling them to “get over it” = Not kind (actually = Idiotic).

– When someone has colored their hair purple and red and they love it, love it with them =Kind. Telling them Sesame Street is looking for them =Not kind.

– Your friend gets a perm and it was over processed and she can’t fix it for a few days, help her try to style it = Kind. Telling her she needs a hat =Not kind.

– When someone has just lost a loved one, be it a parent or pet, take their hand and ask if they need anything, then shut up = Kind. Asking for every detail from time of death to burial while you Google embalming  = Not kind

– When someone’s dream is beginning to unfold for them, congratulate them, celebrate it = Kind. Telling them “Great, now you will forget all about me.” = Not Kind

– When someone’s parent is in the hospital and needs child care for their children, offer to take their children, free of charge = Kind. Calling and asking for an hourly rate = Not kind.

Trust me, I am the first to admit life is tough. I know how frustrating it is when things don’t go your way or work out as planned. One thing I do know is this – The more you belittle someone else, the smaller your life becomes. If you think your life is crap, your family vehicle will become the manure truck. Yeah, I know, taking the high road is exhausting. Trust me – I am thinking of investing in a portable oxygen mask. (wait for it…high road…lack of oxygen…there you go.).

Celebrate each other victories, big or small. Laugh with each other, not at each other. Be kind. It is really that simple. Treat people as you want to be treated…and don’t throw the flat iron.

 

 

 

Beauty, Business, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women

You know you like it

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Every day, at least once a day, a woman comes into the shop looking for something new. I see her come in the door, We exchange our “hello’s”, she heads over to her “go to” product, picks it up, puts it back on the shelf. She picks it up again and puts it back down. She starts to walk around the store, looking at all the shelves of product. I ask if I can help her. She tells me no. She ends up back at the shelf she started at, and sighs. I walk over and ask “Are you sure I can’t help you?”. She turns to me, sighs again and says “I guess you can. I mean maybe, I really don’t know.”. So I ask her why she picked up the first product then kept putting it down. (lets say it was Joico JoiWhip for educational purposes.). The response is always the same “I was told I needed to change my products.”. So I ask her, “Do you like JoiWhip? Are you happy with the hold and volume it offers?”. This response is always the same also, “Yes, I love it!”. I reassure her that if she has found a product that works for her and she likes it, she doesn’t have to change it. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” is what I end up saying and usually I get a laugh. I was once corrected on my grammar but at least it wasn’t accompanied with a flying flat iron.

Ladies and Gents, when it comes to your hair products, if you like the products you are using, keep on using them. You don’t need to change because someone said so…that being said – I do highly recommend to stop using drug store product and invest in professional salon products. You know your hair, you know what it will do and what it won’t. You know how much or how little time you want to spend on your hair. You know the scents you like and the hold you want. The same goes for your life. If you like what you are doing, keep doing it. If you like to bang your head to Iron Maiden…bang away. If you like to skip down the lane…skip away. You know yourself and what you like. Trust yourself. I have said on many occasions that I believe a little fairy dust goes a long way. I am forty years old and I am sure many people I meet may think I am a little “off” because I say hello to caterpillars – you never know – the one you don’t say hello to may be the one caterpillar that is capable of speech.

If you like your JoiWhip or your Moroccanoil or your BigSexy Spray and Play – keep using it. If you like to sing along to Weird Al while you drive around town – be like a surgeon and tell ’em to eat it. Be yourself and trust yourself – there is nothing more beautiful.

 

Beauty, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women

What is your lesson for today?

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As I was sipping on my morning coffee, scrolling through my Twitter feed to check the goings on of the world according to Twitter, I couldn’t believe all the negativity and insult. Yeah, I am forty years old and I am still amazed on a daily basis how immature and mean and down right stupid some people and their behavior can be.

Not to get all political, but the feeling is there and I gotta say it. “Anti-Bullying” and “Zero Tolerance” – two terms that I personally think hold no water. Why you ask? Look around…the problem is bigger than ever. In my life I have been bullied. In my daughters life, she has been bullied and at one point almost pressured into being a bully herself until she realized what was going on, came home and talked to me about it…that was a fun conversation. Long story short – her conscience kicked in, she owned up to it to me, her mother (the scariest thing for a kid to do) and apologized to her friend.

What I am getting at is this. Everyday, seriously, EVERYDAY I see or hear grown women being a bully, in front of or directed at their kids. Case and point;

– Mother and daughter come into the shop wanting to return a flat iron, with no box and no receipt. I explain that I need the receipt for proof of purchase and the manufacturer’s warranty states that we need the box as well. The mother, in front of her daughter, leans over the counter, yells “what the F*&! is your problem, just take it back!” and then throws it at me.

– Mother and daughter come in the shop and the mother says, out loud, with other customers around “Look at her hair! It is so oily and gross!”. Nice.

– A woman comes into the store, complaining that her “fat, lazy kids can’t even buy their own hairspray.”. Mother of the year right there folks.

– Mother and daughter refer to each other as “stupid” and “idiot”. Guess I should be more up to date on the newest trending names.

– A woman calls me a “stupid liar” when I say I don’t have the product she is looking for. Tells her daughter, in front of me “sales people are assholes”. When she realizes she is in the wrong store, instead of apologizing, she tugs on her child’s arm, and pulls them out of the store yelling “Why didn’t you tell me we were in the wrong store?”. – my guess…they didn’t want to mess with crazy.

My all time favorite is when people use the phone/Facebook/texting or Twitter as their shield of bravery. The way I see it, if you won’t say it to someone’s face – you probably shouldn’t say it at all. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and from what I see and hear there are a lot of ’em out there. Everyone is also entitled not to listen to an opinion. It is time to grow up a little. It is time to be the grown ups, it is time to be the parent to our kids not their friends. We can be their friends when they are 18. How do you expect your kids to be kind and not be a bully when they see you scream at a perfect stranger, or hear you call a salesperson an asshole? How do you expect them to say a kind word when they have never heard one.

Seriously, does it really matter in your daily life if you don’t agree with the new book a celebrity wrote? If it does, you need a new hobby, I hear knitting is fun. If you don’t like someone’s tweets…un-follow them. Don’t like their face on Facebook…unfriend them. If you don’t like it, don’t look.

When a child is born, they don’t know what kindness is, someone has to teach them. A child doesn’t know what a bully is or how to be one. Someone has to teach them. What lesson are you going to teach today?

Beauty, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women

Stuart Smalley may have been on to something…

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I am sure after reading some of my blogs some of you are thinking “what’s up with that girl in the red coat? I thought this was supposed to be a blog about  beauty and salon tales.”. We my lovelies, it is. As I have stated before, there is more to beauty than flat irons and hairsprays…although they can be quite helpful. Everyday I see all sides of beauty, from a woman walking in with a bad hair cut which one of our talented stylists transforms into a great cut, to a woman stepping over our threshold in search of herself…someone she lost somewhere along the way and together we find her. I am also a witness to some of the greatest stories and achievements. I love hearing great news or exciting happenings in the lives of our customers and clients and in some circumstances, it seems I am the only one.

You see, as I learned the hard way, not everyone is happy for you when something good happens to you. I know how down right devastating it is to open up to someone and share something that is so exciting for you just to have them either put you down, laugh at you or (the worst of all) not respond at all. So I make it a point to be excited for any news – be it that you found $20.00 on your way in to my shop, that you lost 5 pounds or that you are going after your dream – even if that dream is clown college.

We all love attention. We all want recognition. We all deserve these things and we can have them. You wanna know how? Give them to yourself. If you wait for everyone to tell you how awesome you are or how terrific your new cut looks or how great you look in your new size 6’s…you are gonna be waiting a long time. Be happy with yourself, get excited for yourself, hell, throw a party for yourself. Not to get all Stuart Smalley “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and, doggonnit, people like me.” but seriously, once you celebrate yourself, people will be drawn into your life that want to raise you up and keep you there and those who didn’t care to notice you will fade into the shadows.

When someone shares their story, listen to them. When someone is excited, be excited for them. When someone is happy, be happy for them. Plain and simple.

 

Beauty, Business, communication, Hair Care, health and wellness, Uncategorized, Women

What are you so scared of?

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Today’s tale is for all the stylists out there. Not a stylist? You may continue reading, you may even end up telling your stylist about this blog. It could help her be a better stylist and help you and her other clients like their hair for more than two days after the appointment.

You see, most Salon’s do not put any energy or focus into their retail. Retail meaning selling the products that they use during their services, be it a pomade or a flat iron. Everyday, and I mean everyday I have women coming into our shop saying the exact same thing… “I just had my hair done a few days ago and it looked great but now look at it!!! I don’t know what she (meaning the stylist) used and I can’t do my hair.”. So, this is wear my rendition of 20 questions begins. “What shape was the bottle she used?”. “What color was the bottle?”. “Did it foam up or did it look creamy?”. You get the point.

Something I cannot wrap my head around is this. A stylist has no problem telling their client that their service will cost $185.00 but they cannot muster up the courage to ask the client if she would like to purchase the mousse that was just put into her hair for $10.95. Seriously?!? It’s a win win. The client will be able to achieve the look you have just given them and the time in between each visit, your client will be happy with her hair and in turn with you, her stylist.

I have compiled a little list for all you stylists out there of what a client sitting in your chair should never hear. I mean NEVER.

– when your client asks “What’s that your using?” DO NOT answer “Oh, just some free stuff from my rep.”. Tell her what it is, tell her how to use it, offer to her that she can buy some on her way out.

– after finishing your color service and your client asks “What shampoo should I use?” DO NOT say “Oh, just pick something up at the drugstore”. – Are you crazy? Anything but professional shampoo could fade her color and make her hair look dull and lifeless – and guess what? When that happens she isn’t going to blame the shampoo – she’s gonna blame you.

– when your client asks about flat irons DO NOT answer her with “Oh…these are for professionals only” – come on…it’s not brain surgery…if you can iron a shirt, you can use a flat iron. Besides, it sounds a little rude and kind of belittles your client.

– if your client is currently using a professional hair care line that you do not carry, do not tell her “Oh, that line is crap!”. Now you have not only made yourself look stupid, you have insulted your client. Instead, compliment her choice and offer something similar that you carry. If you are not familiar with the line she uses, keep your mouth shut and after she leaves hop on Google and educate yourself.

If you decide to sell retail (which you should), sell the client the proper product, not the one with the highest commission or profit margin. Greedy will get you nowhere FAST. Think about it, would you like to be sold something that isn’t what you need just so the salesman gets a spiff? (Spiffs are when product has a higher commission put on it because the product needs to be sold).

All the manufacturer’s from A-G to Sebastian offer free product knowledge training for all salon employee’s. They offer awesome promo’s for your stylists and your customers. I have had many of the companies give me free product for a gift basket that my shop either puts in a monthly draw or offers as a donation for local charities.

In recent years the shampoos, conditioners and styling products at the drug stores and department stores have increased their prices and quite honestly, when they are not on sale, they are only $1.00 – $3.00 less than professional salon products. I believe our clients and customers deserve to have a good hair day everyday.

What about you?