I walked in and I was greeted by Ms. Maggie. It was my first time to the salon, and due to a…read moresensitivity I have with my hair, I asked if it would be okay if they used my blow dryer for the service. Maggie immediately smiled and said yes. I would have been okay if I was told no; I just would have changed my booking to another service.
I booked with Maggie, but Maggie walked me over to another girl. Immediately, the other girl did not come off as cordial, and her demeanor made me feel unsure about the service from the start.
I sat down and wanted to confirm the new price point. The girl said it would be $100. Online, that service states it is $50. She then changed it to $70, and then once again, and then again once more. She was visibly upset and went to talk to Maggie. Speaking in a language she assumed I didn't understand, they went back and forth in a way I don't believe they would have had they known I was aware of their conversation. Maggie kept a smile on her face the whole time and continued eating. I let Maggie know I was a college student and did not anticipate being charged double. Maggie ended up saying it would only be $10 more than what was stated online, making my new price point $60. I was okay with that.
The girl went on to roughly wash my hair. She complained about my hair texture "curls." She only washed the surrounding areas, not once touching the middle of my hair, leaving only about 25% of my hair washed or even touched. At this point, I already felt the service was not being done with care.
We then walked over to her station (and not Maggie's). I had assumed that maybe this girl was just the washer and Maggie would complete the service, the blow dry with my dryer that we agreed on. Things went differently. Again, the girl seemed disgruntled. She left again to speak with Maggie. She came back and decided that no, she was using her blow dryer. If the only option was to use their blow dryer, I would have opted for a deep condition instead and blow dried it myself at home. She refused to use mine.
So while she left again to speak with Maggie in the break room, I started combing out my hair. Once the girl saw I was doing my own hair, she seemed more relieved. I just wanted a peaceful service and environment, so I never raised a concern. I smiled and stayed kind the entire time. I even offered to pay full price despite being refused the blow dry service. I needed to have my hair done because I was headed to school next. Maggie said that was okay.
I pulled out my blow dryer and did the scalp test. I saw buildup come from underneath my nail continuously, clearly showing my hair had not been washed properly at all. Maggie asked what it was, but I didn't want to be seen as a disgruntled customer, so I said it was okay.
So I went on to blow dry my own hair.
Maggie then proceeded to take the next customer. I was hoping Maggie would do the right thing as I proceeded to pay. I was still charged the full amount for unwashed hair, hair that I combed out myself and blow dried myself. I called Maggie over, and she told me she had a customer, even though I was originally supposed to have been her customer.
Maggie's other employee informed me that Maggie said the upcharge was due to the fact that I used their electricity and their lights to blow dry my own hair, while still being charged more than what the service would've been if they had done it themselves.
I offered an opportunity to make this right. I was even willing to pay full price for the wash service that left my hair dirty. I played back my experience, and they agreed my experience was justified.