I have been going to this salon for 11 years, and for most of that time, I had nothing but amazing…read moreexperiences. Under the previous owners, Laura and Danny, the salon felt welcoming and personal. Over the years, we got to know them and many of the people who worked there, and we brought the business a great deal of repeat business. Unfortunately, since they retired and sold the business to Lux SF2, my experiences have changed dramatically.
My longtime technician is still wonderful, and I have nothing but positive things to say about her. Unfortunately, the overall atmosphere and customer service have gone downhill.
The manager who now runs the salon consistently comes across as angry and unwelcoming. There is rarely a hello or any effort to make customers feel welcome, and it seems that the employees are uncomfortable around her. There is also another employee who has displayed the same type of behavior toward customers.
The problems really came to a head when my partner was accidentally charged double for a service. He noticed the overcharge immediately and was told that it would be corrected and refunded within a day or so. It wasn't. After three phone calls over the course of 10 days, the money still had not been refunded. We ultimately let the matter go because he returned to the salon and received the pedicure he had already paid for.
Instead of simply resolving the issue professionally, the manager became angry and raised her voice at my partner, insisting that the money had already been refunded when it had not. My partner eventually contacted the manager at their sister salon on Hayes Street to explain what had happened. Apparently, that made the situation even worse, because the manager then confronted him and became even more upset with him in the salon.
Then came my experience last night.
I had a punch card that had been started under the previous ownership. I had one punch remaining for a complimentary manicure. This card had already been punched by the current salon seven times out of ten, so they clearly had been honoring it. After receiving my manicure, I presented the card and was suddenly told that I had to pay an additional $5 because it was an "old" card from the previous owner.
When I questioned this, I was told that they don't honor the old cards--even though they have continued punching mine and accepting it as valid. If the salon no longer intends to honor a loyalty program, that should have been clearly communicated to customers before they continued accepting and stamping those cards.
The situation became even more uncomfortable when the male employee raised his voice at me in front of other customers and began bringing up my partner's refund issue from a month and a half earlier. I explained that the matter had already been dealt with, but he continued to argue with me and speak to me disrespectfully. Meanwhile, the manager, who was present and is supposedly running the salon, never stepped in to de-escalate the situation or address the behavior.
I eventually left and went to the main Lux SF location up the street to speak with management. The manager there was apologetic, listened to what happened, and treated me with the professionalism and courtesy I would have expected from the salon in the first place.
There are also growing concerns about cleanliness and sanitation that I have noticed during my recent visits. The chairs and workstations appear to have a layer of nail dust on them, and sanitizing the stations does not seem to be the priority it once was. I have also observed pedicure stations not being sprayed with what appeared to be bleach/disinfectant after each use. Given the nature of the services being provided, this is particularly concerning to me. I plan to contact the appropriate health department to report what I have observed and ask them to determine whether the salon is following the required sanitation procedures.
It is incredibly disappointing to see a place that we supported for so many years change this much. Customers should not feel like they are walking into an environment where employees are angry, customers are spoken to disrespectfully, charges are inconsistent, or legitimate concerns are met with confrontation.
A business cannot build a lasting customer base by treating people this way. In my opinion, if the current management continues to create an atmosphere of anger, disrespect, and distrust--and if customers feel they are being overcharged or treated unfairly whenever there is an opportunity to do so--the business will eventually lose the loyal customers who helped sustain it for years.
I genuinely hope Lux SF2 takes these concerns seriously. There is still an opportunity to turn things around, but that starts with treating customers and employees with basic respect, being transparent about pricing and loyalty programs, properly addressing billing issues, and making cleanliness and sanitation a priority again.
