Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Beauty Salon Tipping - Etiquette Guide

When you find yourself in a beauty salon there can seem to be an overwhelming amount of people to tip that it can be a bit confusing. Provided here is a quick breakdown of whom you should tip and how much you should tip them.

As an example let's say you spend about $20 for your haircut. You should first tip the stylist, the one who did the actual cutting and combing $4 if they delighted you with the results, $3 if you're not jumping for joy but are still looking good. You should give their assistant a tip, which depends entirely on how attentive they were. The person who did the shampooing for you should get a dollar, and if there's a coatroom attendant they should also get a dollar.

If you went in for a perm or a hair color change you should not tip less than $5 regardless. You should tip a bit more if you are thrilled with the work done. The general guideline for a beauty parlor is 15-20% for any service provided.

It doesn't matter if you visit the salon only once or twice a year of if you go there weekly, you should tip consistently. You shouldn't pay less only because you don't visit very much. Especially if they are giving you consistent quality work you should tip accordingly.

To do it the most courteous way you should personally give the tips yourself. This is especially true to those people that have put in the most time with you. The beauty salon staff usually gives a personal service - think about it, it's your body they are working on - and since they will usually chat you up while they work they become privy to your more intimate details if you divulge them. If you go to a busy salon and there are a good number of people to tip out, many places will have an envelope at the desk for that exact purpose. If they know you because you go there often you should personally thank each stylist and simply leave the other tips at the front desk.

One exception, if the owner of the shop was the one that did your hair cut they should not receive a tip. Many times the owner will charge more for the cut taking away the necessity of a tip, although on your way out you should offer a thank you. If you didn't realize that it was the owner that was doing the job and you do offer a tip they will probably decline it. In this case don't keep pushing it, a smile and your thanks will suffice.

If the results are making you miserable you shouldn't withhold your tips as a way to send a message. What you should do is complain to the manager about the service you received and still tip the minimum. The people that work in a salon depend on tips and the manager is the one who is ultimately responsible for the work that is done in their salon.l If they did their best trying to satisfy your request you should still give them something. They should also try their best to try and fix it or repair the damage.

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