A BAD SERVICE CAN BE FIXED. BAD OWNERSHIP IS A DIFFERENT STORY…read more
I rarely post negative experiences with local businesses, but after what happened with my 14-year-old daughter at Studio 192 Salon, and especially how the owner handled it, I feel others should know before choosing to support this business.
My daughter had a cut and color on August 18 after having a consultation beforehand. The appointment went terribly. Her hair became so severely knotted during the service that I and two other stylists spent about an hour trying to untangle it, at one point fearing some might have to be cut out. She lost a significant amount of hair, the haircut was badly done, and the color did not take properly.
Initially, the salon handled the situation very well. Deena at the front desk was incredibly kind, reversed the $130 service charge and charged me only $35 for products. She scheduled us to return on August 22 for a no-charge corrective haircut with Jasmine.
Jasmine was AMAZING. She did a beautiful job fixing my daughter's haircut. We were then scheduled to return today, August 31, to have the color corrected and were initially told that would also be complimentary.
Later, Deena called to tell me that the owner, Amy, had decided I would need to pay for today's color after all. I didn't agree, but I thanked her for letting me know and decided I would pay. At that point, I just wanted my daughter's hair fixed.
We showed up today prepared to pay for the color.
Instead, Amy confronted me and insisted I also needed to retroactively pay for the August 22 corrective haircut because Jasmine hadn't been paid for it, even though her own staff had specifically told me there would be no charge.
When I explained that I simply followed what her staff told me, Amy responded, "Then how was Jasmine supposed to get paid?"
I told her that how she compensates her employee for a corrective service her salon authorized as complimentary is between her and her staff. It isn't reasonable to come back 1 1/2 weeks later and demand that the customer pay for it.
I told Amy I would still pay for today's color correction as agreed, but after today we would not return.
Her response?
"You can get your daughter now and go, and that will be that."
She kicked us out.
This confrontation also happened in front of another customer who was having her hair washed.
What makes this so disappointing is that Deena and Jasmine were absolutely wonderful, and we've also had great experiences with Ember. They treated my daughter with kindness and professionalism and genuinely tried to make a terrible situation right.
This wasn't about me refusing to pay. I walked in today prepared to pay. It was about being asked to retroactively pay for a corrective service I had explicitly been told was complimentary--and then being treated this way by the owner when I questioned it.
Mistakes happen. A bad haircut or color can be corrected. How a business owner treats customers when something goes wrong says far more about a business.
Unfortunately, after our experience with Amy today, we will never return or support this business again.
**** UPDATE: Adding a photo of what my daughter's hair looked like when we left the salon on August 18.
She went into the salon with healthy hair and subtle honey highlights. We asked to have the honey highlights brought up toward the roots and for a curly/Deva-style cut.
The photo speaks for itself as to the condition of her hair when we left.
Unfortunately, the owner has now responded to a review on another fourm by essentially accusing me of being dishonest and presenting a version of events that does not reflect what occurred.
I stand by what I wrote. My original post was a factual account of our experience, including giving full credit to the employees who were kind, professional, and did everything they could to make the situation right.
I had hoped the owner would respond with the same level of professionalism and accountability that her employees demonstrated. Unfortunately, her response has only reinforced my concerns about how this situation, and ultimately her customers, were handled.
