For most of my tomboyish existence, I've thought of Sally's Beauty Supply as the sole province of girly-girls. This is probably because it's been recommended to me for years by stylists and wannabe stylists, people far more passionate than I about things like nail decals, salon-quality straighteners, and professional-grade manicuring tools. Thinking myself a practical sort, I've always gotten my hair & body necessities at places like Target or Rite-Aid while picking up other "important" stuff. I might never have gone into Sally's, but today I found myself passing it on the way to one such "practical" store in a plaza, and going in to see what all the fuss is about.
And now, I am happy to say: I get it!
First of all, it was clear that the prices were competitive. Nothing's more expensive than you'd find it anywhere else, and a lot of things are cheaper (like the fake eyelashes I found for $3 less than the ones at Party City, and the pro-quality olive oil-based lotion I saw for the same price as the petroleum jelly-infused blends you see in grocery stores). They also have a loyalty card with fairly decent rewards and coupons (oh noes, addictive eyeshadow-buying habit, here I come).
Secondly, it seems like the attentive customer service at Sally's is actually ideal for low-maintenance ladies like me, because if I'm only gonna buy one brush, eyeshadow or nail polish every six months, it had better be the right one. And the staff at Sally's get this. They answered all of my many questions, steered me towards products that would save me money and time, and when it came to the nail polish, they even whipped out a roll of clear tape for me and invited me to test out all the nail polishes to my heart's content. The result? I walked out with a handful of stuff I felt really good about, at a price that I wanted to pay.
Bottom line? If you're the kind of person who'd rather buy your meat from a butcher, your bread from a baker, and your clothes from a boutique (even if you do shop at Target sometimes), you should probably upgrade your hair & beauty shopping routine to encompass a pro-quality customer service experience like this one. It might involve an extra trip, but what you save and learn makes it worthwhile! read more