I was a regular customer here for 4 years and saw Mai every four weeks. I tipped around 30%, showed…read moreup on time, and had relatively few problems over the years.
Unfortunately, my experience changed significantly over the last few months.
After I came in with several broken nails, including one that had ripped off, I raised concerns because this was very unusual compared with my previous years of service. My nails were redone, but from that point forward how I was treated changed dramatically.
Without warning, my phone number was blocked at the salon for two months. I raised the issue with Susie, the manager. At first I was told there was no block and that the problem might be with my phone. Eventually, another employee acknowledged on 10/3/26 that my number had been placed on a block list and said it had been done accidentally.
During this same period, I found Susie's interactions with me increasingly short, dismissive, and at times openly rude. On one visit she raised her voice at me when I declined to soak my hands in a bowl of acetone. For years, Mai had removed my dip by individually wrapping my nails, which was a method I preferred and had consistently received. Suddenly, I was being told I needed to use a different removal method because they were short on time.
On my final visit, I decided I was done with dip altogether and had my nails cut down and painted with regular polish. The manicure was completed in less than 45 minutes, and unfortunately the finished polish was visibly uneven and lumpy.
What made the entire situation more frustrating was that while I was sitting there, another longtime customer named Suzy came in complaining that her nails had broken and that she was unhappy with the color and length and wanted Mai to correct them. That stood out to me because I had been treated as though my own concerns about broken nails were unreasonable, even though I had experienced very few issues in four years.
At checkout, Susie told that Mai no longer wanted to service me. By that point, I had already decided that I would not be returning. I paid for my manicure and left.
What disappoints me most is not that the business relationship ended. Businesses and customers can part ways. It is the way it was handled after four years of consistent patronage: the unexplained phone block, denial before the block was eventually acknowledged, repeated unpleasant interactions with management, changes in how my appointments were handled, and ultimately being told at checkout that my longtime technician would no longer service me.
I'm moving on to another salon and won't be returning. I'm sharing this because longtime customers should know that if a service problem arises, my experience was that accountability and communication became very difficult very quickly. Below are videos of my attempts to speak with Susie and her responses.
