Rude! Rude! Rude! I dread having to come here because the people at this location are so rude. I understand that everyone has their bad days, but good lawwwwd!!
First time going here- A new student, excited to be in a smorgasbord of hair products that are off-limits to the public, I came with my former-stylist mother. We loaded up on hair and nail products to be met with an eye roll and a "You need a license to buy these," as the dumpy cashier crossed her arms and looked at us. I then told her "I have a permit...I thought I could buy them with a permit...." and she just started ringing stuff up. She took my information, supposedly, and chunked the stuff we bought in a bag that we brought. Wow. What a p.o.s human. Well, everyone has their bad days, right? Of course! And to be honest, they have lots and lots of useful things for cheap. I thought I'd wait a bit before returning. Surely they won't be awful the very next time, right?
Second time- I decided to pick up some Special Blonde for a friend at school. As I'm there, I can see it right behind someone who's stocking boxes. I didn't want to line-backer my way through her and her inventory, so I guess I might have hovered while trying to figure out a way to get the color and not disturb her. I was trying to NOT be rude. She wasn't. "Can I help you?" I was relieved when she asked because usually, at this point, people are prepared to be helpful when they ask if they can help. I replied "Yeah, I'm just trying to find the 12/0 for Special Blonde," she let out a little huff, like a cartoon bull, right before it charges "WHAAAAATT!!!!?????" I'm sure I took a step back, because man, she was scary. I gathered my thoughts and tried again "Special Blonde...it's by Koleston...." she seemed to be angry and confused, perhaps one was fueled by another one, but to this day I'm unsure. I continued "Wella makes Koleston....." I honestly at this point just started throwing my small amount of product knowledge to her, hoping to spark something. I could see it right behind her, I just needed to get to the 12/0. "I don't even know what you're talking about!!" she cackled at me. So I let her have it, good and hard.... "It's right behind you, lady," she slowly turned, I thought at this point that surely she'd apologize, or laugh, or silence the demons that were undulating around her, but no. She just put on her glasses, let out a few more huffs and said "This is Koleston," I told her that I knew, and that I'd like the 12/0, she didn't hand it over quite yet though. She then said "It's called SPECIAAAAAL BLOOOONNNDE," awesome, you can read, which is great, because you suck at customer service. That was the quiet part I kept inside. I once again walked to my car wondering what had just happened to me. I vowed to never go back there. Unfortunately, Armstrong hair show came to town. I really wanted to go. Crap.
Third time- So, I'll make this visit short. They tried to sell me a $65 ticket for $85 dollars. When I tried to tell them that it wasn't the advertised price on the flier, they argued with me. Like legit got all shitty and argued with me. When I told them that I'd pay it anyway, surprise, they didn't have any tickets. After talking to a few of the hair industry elders that I know, I was advised to call corporate. A day or so later I got a call from a woman who, guess, just guess...was beyond rude. She tried to tell me that they didn't know any better, but they had been with her for years. If they had been with her for years, why didn't they know that the advertised price on the flier is what you pay after all these years? I brought up how rude her employees always were to me, and how if you don't know something, that's cool, but don't treat me like a second class citizen just because you feel like it. I was about to get off of the phone with her, when she offered to give me a discounted ticket because an "actual stylist was unable to attend," Wow. Thanks. So, from the bottom of her heart she gave me a ticket for $45 instead of $65 because someone else, more important, couldn't go. Here's the kicker: I go to meet the owner at the store to pick the ticket up...It was the SAME LADY who was all crappy about the hair color. I don't think things are looking up anytime soon. Unfortunately, she runs a few of the stores in Austin.
I've thought about this a whole lot, because they do have some really great deals, and I've talked to a lot of people, and most of those people have had similar experiences. An instructor I used to have told me that they're kind of notorious for treating students poorly. The way I see it, RDA is right up the street and they are ALWAYS nice!! read more